Faculty applauded new students arriving for convocation on August 22 (SUNY Geneseo photo/Matt Burkhartt).
New and returning students and faculty gathered at two campus convocations to mark the beginning of Fall 2024.
New Student Convocation on August 22 officially started the 2024–25 academic year at Geneseo. The event included a keynote address by Gerard Floriano ’84, distinguished service professor and chair in music, whose address advised students not to limit themselves or their ability to learn. “This is the time to explore and grow,” he said. “Absolutely take advantage of us, your professors here at Geneseo. We want you to be successful, and we want you to be happy, and we want you to thrive. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and challenge us—we grow from knowing you as much as you grow from knowing us.”
Alumni speaker Justin Pinchback ’02 (business administration) encouraged students to embrace three things as they embark on their Geneseo journey: learn resourcefulness, believe in perseverance, and embrace curiosity. “You may never have another moment in your adult life where the world is squarely in front of you like it is today,” he said. “I invite you to cherish this moment.”
Student Association President Orquidia Geraldino ’25, a political science major from Brooklyn, NY, and a first-generation student, spoke about the importance of finding your community and being your authentic self. “Enjoy college,” she advised students, “please submit your assignments on time, be honest with yourself, and try a black raspberry Byrne dairy milkshake—it’s my favorite flavor.”
SUNY Geneseo President Denise Battles delivered her keynote, “Geneseo for Generations,” at the Opening Convocation for faculty and staff on August 23. Battles highlighted both challenges, such as maintaining enrollment and grappling with a structural budget deficit, and strategic opportunities for improvement, such as the introduction of new academic programs and a growing collaboration with the International Baccalaureate Program.
Battles reflected on the significant changes Geneseo has experienced in the past decade, including a new curriculum, large-scale facilities renovation projects, and a sustained public health crisis.
But all of us, Battles said, “are part of a continuum, generations of individuals who are touched by and contribute to the Geneseo experience, destined to eventually step back to let others take our places. … This coming year holds challenges and opportunities that we, the present generation, will address collaboratively as we have done throughout my time here to prepare the way for those to come. Together we will continue to move Geneseo forward, remembering the contributions of those who came before us, as we become the premier equity-centered honors college we envision, one dedicated to providing an affordable, high-quality education for tomorrow’s teachers, innovators, and leaders.”
2024 award recipients announced at convocation:
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Classified Service
Rachel Beck
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Faculty Service
Catherine Adams
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Librarianship
Alessandra Otero Ramos
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service
Brian Bennett
Delbert Brown
Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching
Jovana Babović
Suann Yang
Distinguished Teaching Professor
Monica Schneider
Faculty Career Achievement Award
Beth McCoy
Faculty promotions and appointments announced at convocation:
Kodjo Adabra, promotion to professor of global languages and cultures
Allison Bechard, promotion to associate professor of psychology with continuing appointment
Hanna Brant, promotion to associate professor of political science and international relations
Wesley Costa de Moraes, promotion to associate professor of global languages and cultures with continuing appointment (posthumously)
Samuel Fallon, continuing appointment in English
Mackenzie Gerringer, promotion to associate professor of biology
Claire Gravelin, promotion to associate professor of psychology with continuing appointment
Rebecca Leathersich, continuing appointment in the library
David Levy, promotion to professor of philosophy
Jacalyn Wittmer Malinowski, promotion to associate professor of geological sciences with continuing appointment
Alessandra Otero Ramos, continuing appointment in the library
Lee Pierce, continuing appointment in communication
Amy Sheldon, promotion to professor of geological sciences
Atsushi Tajima, promotion to professor of communication
Staff promotions and appointments announced at convocation:
Kristy Barkan, promotion in Communications and Marketing
Kristina Barsema, permanent appointment in Student Life
Allison Brown, promotion in Library
Alexis Clifton, permanent appointment in Office of the Provost
Erin Crowell, promotion in Communications and Marketing
Margaret Foster, promotion in Enrollment Management
Sarah Gaudio, permanent appointment in Geological Sciences
Adam Klinges, permanent appointment in Computing and Information Technology
Nicholas LaGamba, promotion in Chemistry
Heather Morens, promotion in Career Design Center
Suzanne Neary, promotion in Office of the Registrar
Monique Patenaude, permanent appointment in Communications and Marketing
Becky Patt, promotion in Computing and Information Technology
Christopher Sandefer, promotion in Computing and Information Technology
Thomas Underwood, promotion in Procurement and Property Control