State University of New York Chancellor John B. King visited SUNY Polytechnic Institute’s Utica campus on Thursday, March 2, 2023, engaging in a robust conversation with a diverse group of students about what initially excited them about becoming SUNY Poly students while he highlighted future opportunities of the institute.

The Chancellor also received a tour led by Interim Dean of the College of Engineering Dr. Michael Carpenter where he saw each lab of the Center for Global Advanced Manufacturing (CGAM), located in Donovan Hall. CGAM offers students and collaborators the opportunity to engage with various manufacturing processes, with facilities that include additive manufacturing 3D printing, digital prototyping equipment, CNC machine tools, CMM inspection, SEM and AFM analyses, static and dynamic/fatigue testing, and robotics equipment. CGAM is an inter-regional manufacturing innovation resource which enables industry/academic collaborations and serves as a training ground for the next generation workforce. Both students and faculty alike shared their ongoing research and projects.

As part of the tour, the Chancellor also met SUNY Poly’s Drone Club and was able to fly a drone in the robotics lab. In the 3D printing lab, Chancellor King also met the local high school FTC FIRST Robotics, team MUCC Bots, and their mentor, Kate Alcott. The team practiced with their robots for an upcoming competition. In addition, Chancellor King met with the Women in Engineering club in the Maker’s lab, as well as the Baja club and the ASCE bridge building team.

Chancellor King took time to sit down with one dozen students representing EOP, CSTEP, student government, athletics, and the four colleges: College of Health Sciences, College of Business, College of Engineering, and College of Arts & Sciences. He asked the students what makes SUNY Poly “SUNY Poly” – to which a number of students provided the following responses:

What Makes SUNY Poly, SUNY Poly?

• “The support we receive – and small class sizes”
• “The incredible facilities and 3D Printing Lab”
• “The accreditation of the Business School”
• “Relationships with faculty”
• “Feeling welcome everywhere – and the diversity of the people here”
• “There are incredible internship opportunities with major companies”

Dr. Kathryn Stam, Professor of Anthropology, then provided a brief overview of the “Portraits of Hope” exhibit in the Cayan Library. She was joined by Kay Klo, a refugee and current graduate student in IDT at SUNY Poly who is also the Executive Director of the Midtown Utica Community Center (MUCC).

Following the events of the day, Chancellor King, SUNY Poly Officer-in-Charge Dr. Andrew Russell, and College Council Chair RoAnn Destito joined New York State Senator Joe Griffo, Assemblywoman Marianne Buttenschon, and Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente for a news conference, touting a bright future for SUNY Poly.

“I want to be clear,” said Chancellor King to the assembled crowd. “SUNY Poly has the support of the Governor, the SUNY Board of Trustees, and all of us at SUNY System to take this campus to new heights.”

“The Chancellor’s visit is an opportunity to celebrate the close alignment of the Chancellor’s priorities with SUNY Poly’s key areas,” said Dr. Russell. “These include the distinctive mission of a polytechnic to focus on hands-on, applied learning, which creates opportunities for collaborations in research and scholarship for our faculty, students, and partners; SUNY Poly’s holistic approach to creating an environment where students feel included, valued, seen, and heard; and building on these critical platforms, our ongoing contributions to the development of a skilled workforce, that, along with our industrial, governmental, and academic partners, will drive economic development and facilitate upward mobility for our students.”

Read more about the Chancellor’s visit to SUNY Poly.

 

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