SUNY Chancellor visits SUNY Delhi, promotes internships

Feb. 6—SUNY Chancellor John King visited SUNY Delhi and encouraged area business leaders to offer paid internships to students at a Regional Innovation Council meeting.

King met with a group of students studying various majors to discuss internship opportunities, why they chose SUNY Delhi and how the college should be promoted to prospective students. Every student studying the different construction trades, hospitality, golf course management and mechatronics said they chose SUNY Delhi because it offered hands-on learning. Other students said they chose to attend after hearing alumni, including their parents and teachers, talk about how great it was, while others were recruited to play on the college's basketball, lacrosse, track and field and softball teams.

Many students said the college needs to promote it more with high school guidance counselors because it is a great school and several programs are considered to be the best in their fields of study, including nursing, veterinary technology, culinary arts, golf course management and mechatronics.

King toured some of the campus, visiting the Applied Technologies Complex which holds welding, HVAC, electrical and plumbing and refrigeration; Smith Hall, which holds the construction management program; and South Hall, which holds the mechatronics machining lab. The students also use the electrical and welding labs at the Applied Tech complex. Inside South Hall, SUNY Delhi Acting President Mary Bonderoff showed King architectural drawings for a new building on campus where North Hall is now that will hold the mechatronics major.

Bonderoff said the building will cost about $33 million to build and the college has just started fundraising for the project. Mechatronics Assistant Professor Will Warner said the program has 100% placement after graduation and 90% of those are offered a job during their internship. Each year's graduating class is 80 to 100 students and the new building could accommodate more students to meet the demand for businesses.

King, who was the U.S. Secretary of Education during President Obama's administration, grew up in New York and rose through the ranks of education from teaching high school social studies to being a principal to state Education Commissioner. He said he made it a point to visit all 64 campuses right after he was appointed chancellor last year. "The campuses are so diverse," he said. From city to rural and for the unique programs offered, such as SUNY Maritime, which trains commercial fishers and U.S. Coast Guard and the Environmental Science and Forestry.

He came back to SUNY Delhi Tuesday to learn more about the programs offered and asked instructors and students what they would like to see changed at the campus if anything.

King learned from every professor he talked to in the construction majors there is a waiting list of students who want to take the courses.

"This building is rocking from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.," Instructor Chris Jones said of the plumbing and heating classroom. Students were learning how to connect electric to furnaces. In the refrigeration lab students were connecting pipes to heat pumps. Students in these fields also are almost always guaranteed a job after graduation.

King visited the campus's Mosaic room where Interim Chief Diversity Officer Louis Reyes talked about how the space is for everyone at the campus to use.

Bonderoff and King then visited the Regional Innovation Council meeting. It was the second meeting being held at Bluestone, which is also part of the SUNY Delhi campus. The council has members from the businesses and education field to try to entice people to stay and work in Delaware County after graduation. "The opportunities are endless," Bonderoff said. "Delhi and Delaware County offer so much."

King appealed to the audience to donate money for the new mechatronics building and encouraged businesses to offer paid internships to college students. Low income students usually choose to work instead of taking an unpaid internship, and therefore do not get the experience working in their field of study before graduation.

The same day King visited SUNY Delhi, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced in a media release that State University of New York campuses are investing nearly $10 million in annual state funding to provide 3,000 SUNY students with internships and other experiential learning opportunities before graduation. The funding was secured through the historic $163 million increase in direct operating aid to SUNY's State-operated campuses for fiscal year 2024.

SUNY Delhi will utilize its funding to provide high-quality applied learning opportunities by hiring student interns to assist with various projects on campus. Each internship will align with academic programs and be tailored to the student's interests and career goals. The campus will also hire a Director of Career and Transfer Services to bolster student success; implement the on-line platform Handshake to improve job placement rates, career development resources and enhanced alumni engagement; and offer financial support for students to ensure they have access to opportunities from the pre-employment/recruitment stage through completion of the internship/work experience.

Other state-operated campuses will use their portion of the $10 million to expand internship opportunities and professional career development including:

—All 29 campuses will increase the number of paid internship slots for undergraduate students.

—At least 28 campuses will provide internship stipends, including wraparound supports like childcare and transportation access, that students face to complete internships.

—At least 25 campuses will hire staff for internship coordination, which includes developing employer and industry partnerships.

—At least nine campuses will invest in software programs to create job boards and track internship opportunities.

Vicky Klukkert, staff writer, can be reached at vklukkert@thedailystar.com or 607-441-7221.