SUNY Empire Recognizes Outstanding Faculty and Mentors

Congratulations to the Empire State University mentors and faculty members who were recognized for their scholarly activities and for their contributions to faculty development across the university.

The Arthur Imperatore Community Forum Fellow

The Arthur Imperatore Community Forum Fellowship is an endowed fellowship made possible by the generosity of a friend of Empire State University, Dr. Arthur Imperatore, who died in 2020 at the age of 95. As a result of this annual award, an Empire State University mentor has been able to develop a year-long community-related research or artistic project.  Mentor Dan Nyaronga has served as our Imperatore Fellow for 2022-2023.

Mentor Sarah Valentine from the School of Nursing and Allied Health was chosen as the 2023-2024 Arthur Imperatore Community Forum Fellow. Sarah will continue and deepen her work on nursing, environmental health, and community collaborations.

The Scholars Across the University Program

The Scholars Across the University Program has been in existence for more than 20 years and has offered SUNY Empire employees an opportunity to share their professional/scholarly work across the university. During the 2022-2023 year, Joan Buzick, Cathryn Thurston, Rebecca Eliseo-Arras, and Erin Young have served as scholars.

Mentors Julie Parato from the School of Science, Math, and Technology and Rodlyn Hines from the School of Human Services have been chosen as Scholars for 2023-2024.

Center for Mentoring, Learning and Academic Innovation

Faculty development activities at Empire State University have been created and guided by the Center for Mentoring, Learning and Academic Innovation (CMLAI). Shantih Clemans, CMLAI Director; Karen LaBarge, senior staff assistant for Faculty Development; and support staff Stacey Turner and Terri Hilton have been indispensable assets to the CMLAI team.

Each year, mentors apply for reassignment to CMLAI to create faculty development activities and work on their own projects This year, there have been three colleagues who have been part of our CMLAI group including mentors Roxana Toma from the School for Graduate Studies, Dana Glisermans Kopans from Arts and Humanities, and a special reassignment focused on prior learning assessment carried out by mentor Lisa D’Adamo-Weinstein, who will continue in  this capacity for 2023-2024. In addition, mentor Julie Parato from the School of Science, Math and Technology has received a reassignment to CMLAI for 2023-2024.

“Thanks to everyone who, in so many ways, supports faculty development at our university,” said Professor of Adult Learning and Mentoring Alan Mandell. “I am most honored to be part of this wonderful team.