SUNY Empire Spotlight: January 2026

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.    

Cindy Conaway, professor, was interviewed about Australia’s social media ban by WNYT. 

Herb Covington, assistant professor, commented on the psychology behind New Year’s resolutions for  WNYT.  

Dorothy Escribano, interim provost, co-authored an article published by Inside Higher Ed.* 

Daniel Fogarty, assistant vice president of enrollment management and marketing, was selected to participate in the 2026-2027 NAWDP Leadership Academy. 

David Fullard, visiting associate professor, was invited to contribute an article to an issue of the National Dance Society Journal, which also features one of his poems. 

Cherrelle Hall, assistant to the vice president of enrollment management and marketing, co-authored an article published on the Forum of the American Journal of Education.

Mindy Kronenberg, visiting assistant professor, performed in a poetry series for Oceanside Library. 

Tom Mackey, professor, will serve as a virtual keynote speaker for the upcoming iSchools Inc 2026 conference. 

Cirita Moffett, academic advisor, was selected as a SUNY Academic Momentum Fellow.  

Julie Reback, assistant professor, spoke with WNYT about the danger of heart attacks during the holidays. 

Shaun Richman, program director for graduate studies, was interviewed on the Drafting the Past podcast. His op-ed on the New York City nurses’ strike was also published by the Daily News.* 

Gayle Stever, professor, spoke about parasocial relationships in an article published by Anadolu Agency. She also contributed to a Metro article on Diet Coke fandom.  

President Lisa Vollendorf has joined the ASU+GSV Higher Education Insights Board. 

*Subscription may be required for full access. 

SUNY Empire Spotlight: December 2025

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.   

Luis Camacho, assistant professor and academic coordinator of the Spanish BBA, had an article titled “Competing Identities Under Threat: Ethnocentrism, Xenocentrism, and Touristic Motivation Amid Geopolitical Uncertainty” published in Businesses (MDPI).  

Pamela Doran, digital accessibility and multilingual technology coordinator, received the Best Student Paper Award for “Critical MT praxis: Machine translations and tourism slogans in Latin America” at the 2025 ALBUS Conference. 
 
Cherrelle Hall, assistant to the vice president of enrollment, published an article on addressing inequities in higher education on the Forum of the American Journal of Education. 

Heather Horowitz, assistant professor, co-authored an article titled “The ICAIL Framework: A Critical and Inclusive Approach to AI Literacy for Non-Technical Learners in Higher Education.” It was published in Innovations in Learning.  

Mindy Kronenberg, visiting assistant professor, has a poem appearing in a Moonstone Arts Center anthology dedicated to Human Rights Day. 

Njoki Mwarumba, assistant professor, was quoted in a Slate article about the new head of FEMA’s Office of Response and Recovery.* 

Ian Reifowitz, SUNY distinguished professor, appeared on France 24 to discuss President Trump’s approval rating, recent election results, and other issues facing Republicans. He was also featured in a separate interview with the outlet about President Trump’s push to rename the Kennedy Center and other topics. 

Duncan RyanMann, professor, spoke about healthcare in interviews with WAMC and News 10 Rochester. 

President Lisa Vollendorf was featured in an Albany Business Review article about how Empire State University is adapting to meet the needs of learners.* 

*Subscription may be required for full access. 

SUNY Empire Spotlight: November 2025

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.  

Alan Belasen, professor, published “Transparent Leadership: Bridging the Trust Gap Between Senior Executives and Middle Managers”. 

Diana Centanni, director of Opportunity Programs, George Lopez, assistant director of Opportunity Programs, and Asia Moore, academic advisor, presented “From New Student to Role Model: An Intersectional Approach to Student Development” at the SUNY OER conference. 

Cailyn Green, assistant professor of addiction studies, was featured on The Academic Minute for her open access group counseling workbook. 

Bethany Hicks, assistant director of Military Academic and Student Services, and Matt Quinn, VMRC Manager, were honored as veterans working for New York state for the “Serving Then, Serving Now” ceremony. Desiree Drindak, director of the Veteran and Military Resource Center, was also recognized for her contributions as part of the New York state DVS Veteran Liaisons program. 

Heather Horowitz, assistant professor, co-authored a chapter in the newly released book Clutch Leadership: Harnessing the Qualities of a Gamechanger (edited by professor Alan Belasen and associate professor Barry Eisenberg). The chapter is titled “Navigating Disruption: Leading with Empathy.”  

She also presented on an inclusive AI literacy framework at the EDUCAUSE online conference via a Virtual Poster Session, “Designing with Intention: A Critical AI Literacy + Universal Design for Learning Framework.”  

Horowitz’s proposal for the SUNY/D2L Educators-in-Residence initiative was accepted. The study focuses on designing trauma-informed and inclusive doctoral learning environments using Brightspace. 

Andrew Hurd, Assistant Professor, spoke with Look Media about AI safety. 

Mindy Kronenberg, visiting assistant professor, had a review of “Son of Bird”, a memoir in prose-poems by Nin Andrews, published on the Mom Egg Review website. 

Empire State University’s Marketing Department won a MARCOM Award for its “How You Do University” Digital Media Campaign during a Nov. 20 ceremony in Albany, hosted by the American Marketing Association of the Capital Region. The organization also recognized the campaign as a finalist in the Video Series category. In addition, CASE (Council for Advancement and Support of Education) recently honored the Marketing team with Best of District II Awards for its “Why Empire?” video series, which profiled university employees, and the “El Imperio Bodega” event at the 2024 Student Conference. (The Bodega previously received a Silver Award from the global CASE organization). 

Ian Reifowitz, SUNY distinguished professor, was featured on Political Pulse regarding the 2025 election results. 

Gayle Stever, professor, had research featured in The Atlantic’s article “How to Know If Your Friends Are Real” on parasocial relationships. 

Lisa Unangst, assistant professor, presented on her paper Prior Learning Assessment, Displacement, and Educational Equities: Website Content Analysis of 244 North American Universities at the International Conference of Education, Research, and Innovation (ICERI) in Seville, Spain.  

Melissa Wells, associate professor and director of teaching, learning, and faculty development, spoke on the EdUp Experience podcast about Universal Design for Learning. 

Lisa Vollendorf, president of Empire State University, appeared on the NYC Employment and Training Coalition (NYCETC) podcast episode and discussed how Empire State University removes barriers to access for all learners. 

SUNY Empire Spotlight: October 2025

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.    

Alan Belasen, professor, published “Clutch Leadership: Harnessing the Qualities of a Gamechanger,” with Routledge.

Luis Camacho, assistant professor and academic coordinator of the Spanish BBA, was interviewed by Telemundo 47 about Hispanic entrepreneurship in New York and the Spanish BBA program.

Empire State University’s Spanish BBA Program was featured on Univision with an interview by SUNY Chancellor John B. King on October 18.

Gloria Kramer, assistant professor and TESOL coordinator, published “It’s Raining Fish,” a children’s book, a culturally responsive resource for educators and families focused on teaching compassion and kindness.

Mindy Kronenberg, visiting assistant professor, was featured in a poetry anthology about books and censorship, published by Moonstone Arts Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She will participate in a virtual reading on October 5.

Joseph Lawless, adjunct professor, was featured in WalletHub’s piece about Unsecured Credit Cards for Bad Credit.

Ian Reifowitz, SUNY distinguished professor, appeared on The New Republic’s “The Daily Blast” podcast to provide insights into recent topics surrounding President Trump including crime and the military, as well as his early life in Queens. He was interviewed on Anthony Scaramucci’s podcast, “Open Book,” regarding his recently published book, “Riling up the Base.”  

Noor Syed, assistant professor anddirector of CAARES, has been named a trustee at Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies.

Liv Thygesen, bilingual disability specialist, was selected for and attended the SVA Leadership Conference in Washington D.C.

Melissa Wells, assistant professor, appeared on the EdUp Experience podcast to discuss online learning, AI practices, and more.

Huiting Qi, assistant professor, was selected for “Examining the Usability and Efficacy of GenAI Tools,” a project sponsored by the SUNY Innovative Instruction Technology Grants (IITG) program.The project looksacross six SUNY campuses to explore how pro versions of ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Claude can be used to design meaningful learning experiences, and to examine their impact on teaching and learning outcomes.  

SUNY Empire Spotlight: September 2025

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.    

CAARES staff (Director Noor Syed, Assistant Director Lauren Allen, Training Coordinator Aley O’Mara) appeared on Talk of the Town, Radio Catskill, CNY Central, WENY News, and NNY 360 to discuss recent conversations about autism in the news.

Mindy Kronenberg, visiting assistant professor, performed poetry at Bradstock XXXI, a two-day, multi-stage music and arts festival in Moriches, NY, on August 31. Festival proceeds were donated to local Long Island charitable organizations, including Camp-Pa-Qua-Tuck, a summer day camp for children with special needs. Kronenberg was also a featured reader at “Conversations on the Sacred,” a program celebrating poetry across several cultures hosted at All Souls Church in Stony Brook, NY, on September 6. On September 14, she will join writers from across the nation in reading from “What Unites Us” — an anthology examining US history and the persistence of the American spirit, at the Walt Whitman Birthplace Association. The event is held in honor of Constitution Day, and is a fundraiser for the WWPA.

Ian Reifowitz, SUNY distinguished professor, was featured in France24’s news coverage, “Trump wants to push the boundaries, expert says as Chicago troops deployment confirmed,” on September 2. On September 17, he appeared on Political Pulse in Rochester discussing the prosecution of hate speech. He also published a report with The Liberal Patriot on September 18. On September 24, he appeared on 13 WHAM ABC’s Political Pulse to discuss President Trump’s recent remarks on international conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine. On September 30, he appeared at an author event for his book, “Riling Up the Base,” coauthored by Anastacia Kurylo.

Jason Russell, professor, has been appointed editor in chief of the Journal of Canadian Studies, published by the University of Toronto Press.

Diane Shichtman, associate professor of computer science and technology, was named to SUNY’s Inaugural Class of AI for the Public Good Fellows. This program will serve as a resource to SUNY campuses by providing targeted support to faculty and staff who are incorporating AI literacy into their courses.

Gayle Stever, professor, explained the psychology of parasocial relationships through the lens of Charlie Kirk in a Cronkite News article.

Noor Syed, assistant professor and director of CAARES, was a featured panelist at the Stanford Neurodiversity Summit from September 13-15. Her panel, “Beyond Accommodations: Inclusivity and Advocacy for Neurodivergent Students in Higher Education,” focused on how higher education institutions can foster inclusion and belonging for neurodivergent students.

Liv Thygesen, bilingual disability specialist and current Ed.D. student, has been accepted to the Student Veterans of America Leadership Institute in Washington D.C.

Nan Travers, director of the Center for Leadership in Credentialing Learning, is the recipient of this year’s CAEL’s Morris T. Keeton award, which recognizes significant contributions to the field of adult and experiential learning.

Lisa Vollendorf, president of Empire State University, joined JP Novin, podcast host, on the Plexuss Presidential Podcast to discuss how the university serves as the innovation hub of the SUNY system. Topics included the institution’s growth, commitment to AI readiness, flexible online learning, and initiatives that reduce barriers for diverse student populations while preparing them for the evolving workforce.

SUNY Empire Spotlight: August 2025

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.    

Alan Belasen, professor, published “With the Game on the (Betting) Line: NBA Referee Performance in the Last Two Minutes,” coauthored by Ari Belasen and Alex Olbrecht, in the Journal of Sports Economics.

Pam Doran, digital accessibility coordinator and multimedia technology coordinator, has been appointed student ambassador at SUNY Empire for Hispanic Educational Technology Services (HETS).

Cailyn Green, assistant professor of Addiction Studies, published a free, peer-reviewed social justice textbook, “Social Justice & Advocacy in Human Services.”

Rodlyn Hines, assistant professor, published “Gendered Dynamics of Transnational Living: A Narrative Inquiry of Ghanaian Couples” in the African Journal of Gender and Woman’s Studies on August 13.

Raul Manzano, visiting assistant professor, held an art residency teaching older adults to draw in conjunction with SU-CASA and the New York City Department for the Aging, among other agencies.

Shannon Pritting, executive director for the Office of Graduate Studies & Scholarly Supports, Alena Rodick, director of Learning Design and Solutions, and Jennifer Collins, open educational resources and scholarly communications librarian published an article, “Using Teamwork and Collaboration to Design Better Affordable Learning Experiences,” in the Journal of Continuing Higher Education.

Ian Reifowitz, SUNY distinguished professor, published a new book, “Riling Up the Base: Examining Trump’s Use of Stereotypes through an Interdisciplinary Lens,” coauthored with Dr. Anastacia Kurylo. He also appeared on Rochester ARC TV News program, the Political Pulse, on August 26.

Nan Travers, director of the Center for Leadership in Credentialing Learning, was cited as “the fairy godmother of all credentialing” in Inside Higher Ed’s podcast, “Voices of Student Success: Encouraging Innovation in Credit for Prior Learning,” about the challenges and opportunities in expanding credit for prior learning assessment at Utah Valley University on August 7. 

Melissa Wells, associate professor and director of the Center for Teaching and Learning, published “Effectiveness of Federal Education Funding on Rural Schools: A Quantitative Study” in the journal Educational Futures in June. On July 22, she presented “Enhancing Faculty Integration: The Role of Structured Onboarding, Peer Mentorship, and Belonging” at UPCEA‘s 2025 Summit for Online Leadership and Administration (SOLAR) in Portland, Oregon. She also published  “Supporting students with disabilities: discrepancies in educational outcomes and the need for comprehensive postsecondary support” in the open access journal Discover Education on August 20.

SUNY Empire Spotlight: July 2025

by

The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.    

Brian Frederick, assistant professor, was quoted in a CBS 6 story about the impact policy changes are having on the availability of resources for the LGBTQ+ community. 

Xiomara Giordano, assistant vice president for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and chief diversity officer, was featured in a podcast episode of EDUP Xcelerated Excellence titled “Leaving No Community Member Behind at SUNY Empire State University Through DEI.” 

Cailyn Green, assistant professor, was interviewed by SUNY Fredonia’s communications department about her experience with creating Open Education Resources (OERs). Green has published a group counseling workbook, supported by the Joyce McKnight OER Scholarship grant, that is available to counselors and students for free. 

Brendan Griffith, adjunct professor, was elected as president of the New York City Labor Council.  

Pamela Gustafson, specialist for Academic Support, has had two pieces—a poem titled “Love Story,” and a photograph titled “World Turned Upside Two”—accepted into ‘Double Exposure: A Survey of Works by New York Art Educators,’ which will be shown at Farmingdale State College’s Memorial Art Gallery through August 15.  

Cherrelle Hall, assistant to the vice president of Enrollment Management and Marketing and current Ed.D. candidate, has been appointed as a board member for the NASPA Center for Women. 

Mindy Kronenberg, assistant visiting professor and mentor, was published in the 27th anniversary edition of Shabdaguchha, an English and Bengali bilingual literary publication featuring international contributors. She has also been invited to join the editorial board for a forthcoming poetry anthology, “Saving Ourselves: An Anthology Advocating for Women and Girls.” Submissions from SUNY Empire faculty, staff, and students are welcome. Please email them to tammynuzzomorgan@gmail.com by September 30. She also has two poems featured in the 29th volume of Korean Expatriate Literature (KEL), a bilingual journal. 

Seana Logsdon, associate provost for Student Success, and Libby Tsibulsky, director of Health and Wellness Programs, have been selected as 2025 Outstanding Program award recipients by the SUNY Council of Senior Student Affairs Officers (CSSAO). They will be presenting at the organization’s annual conference held in Schenectady on October 26-28. 

Duncan RyanMann, professor, provided expert commentary on the impacts of President Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” on health care. He was featured on ARC Rochester, News 10 Rochester, and CBS 6 Albany. 

Silvia Mejía, director of Spanish language programs, and Assistant Professor Luis Camacho attended the Hispanic Educational Technology Services (HETS) Board of Directors meeting held at Borough of Manhattan Community College on June 23-24. A recent session of the organization’s Student Passport initiative hosted at SUNY Empire’s Manhattan location was highlighted for its success and student participation.   

Njoki Mwarumba, assistant professor, shared insights on the role of disaster management for events like the floods in Texas for a CBS 6 article on July 6. She was also featured in WNYT’s coverage, which talked about how the Capital Region uses emergency management to plan for future disasters.  

Andrea Piazza, assistant director of Accessibility Resources and Services, and Gabriel Cruz-Allen, disability specialist, attended the 35th anniversary celebration of the Americans with Disabilities Act.  

Ian Reifowitz, distinguished professor, authored an essay titled “How Democrats Lost Sight of Obama’s Vision of National Identity,” which was published by the Progressive Policy Institute. 

Kim Stote, associate professor and program director of Nutrition and Dietetics, published findings “New Study Suggests Replacing Common Fruits in USDA’s Dietary Patterns with Berries May Reduce Cardiovascular Disease Risk” in Annals of Medicine.  

Noor Syed, associate professor and program coordinator of Applied Behavior Analysis, presented findings on sustainable inclusive science and evidence-based solutions for autistic individuals at the United Nations on July 21.  

Marketing Staff received the Silver Circle of Excellence award for “El Imperio Bodega,” an immersive pop-up installation celebrating Hispanic culture during the 2024 fall academic conference.  

Gayle Stever, professor, was quoted in an Observer article about the public’s fascination with a suspected relationship between two professional athletes. She was also a guest on the podcast “Mind the Force” to discuss the psychology of fandom.  

SUNY Empire Spotlight: June 2025

by

(SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY — June 25, 2025) The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership.  

Elizabeth Bradley, professor, edited and co-authored a book titled “Navigating Academic Motherhood: The Possibilities of Effective Mentorship for Tenured Faculty Mothers.” Assistant Professor Lauren Allen, Professor Diane Gal, Assistant Professor Blair Izard, Distinguished Teaching Professor Peggy Tally, Distinguished Teaching Professor Tina Wagle, and Assistant Professor Melissa Wells also served as co-authors.

Shantih Clemans and Debra Kram-Fernandez, both associate professors, presented at the International Association of Social Work with Groups annual symposium. Shantih presented “Joys, Frustrations, and Moments of Learning: Virtual Study Groups for Online Adult Learners.” Debra presented “The Women’s Therapy Center Institute Historical Project: The History of a Grass Roots Training Institute through a Social Work Group Work Lens” and “Engaging Aging: Using a Group Work Model to Promote Critical Thinking About Aging in America” (with co-presenter Lela Zaphiropoulos from the Women’s Therapy Centre Institute). 

Anita DeCianni-Brown, director of career and experiential learning services, presented “Scaling Career Supports for Nontraditional Students in an Online Environment” at the 2025 NACE Conference on June 10.  

Xiomara Giordano—assistant vice president of diversity, equity, and inclusion and chief diversity officer—served as a panelist for the “Progress Under Pressure: Can We Still Deliver on the American Dream?” discussion hosted by the SUNY Global Center on June 18. Giordano also coordinated an event in collaboration with Hispanic Education Technology Services (HETS) held at 4 Park Avenue that day. The event, titled “Student Passport: Connect, Learn, and Lead,” promoted international connection and academic engagement, with five student presentations on subjects ranging from interior décor to health sciences. President Vollendorf addressed attendees and Digital Accessibility Coordinator Pam Doran presented on machine translation—a powerful resource built into the software used by the university community that facilitates multilingual communication in the landscape of higher education.    

Douglas Gruse, chief marketing officer, and members of the Marketing and Creative Services team attended SUNYCUAD’s 2025 Awards for Excellence ceremony, where they received Judges’ Citation awards in the Excellence in Creativity and Excellence in Strategy categories.  

Lynn Lubecki, assistant professor, has been named a consulting editor for the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) journal, Young Children, and NAEYC publications. 

Alan Mandell, professor emeritus, was the invited keynote speaker for the “President’s Dialogue Series” at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Vancouver, BC, on May 6. 

Njoki Mwarumba, assistant professor, spoke with Spectrum News 1 about how Canadian wildfires are impacting air quality in New York.  

Renee O’Brien, adjunct instructor, was featured in the National Association of Women Artists’ 136th Annual Exhibition, on display at New York’s Leonovich Gallery from June 6-21. The show highlighted one of O’Brien’s photographs.  

Shannon Pritting, executive director of the Office of Graduate Studies and Scholarly Support; Pam Doran, digital accessibility coordinator; Herbert Covington, assistant professor; Jolie Kennedy, assistant professor; and Hope Sun, associate professor, co-published an article, “AI-integrated Literature Discovery Tools: A Guide to Reviewing for Institution-wide Use,” in the Journal of Electronic Resources Librarianship. 

Ian Reifowitz, distinguished professor, appeared on France 24 and ARC Rochester to comment on the protests over immigration raids in Los Angeles and President Trump’s decision to deploy the National Guard and the Marines. In separate interviews with ARC Rochester this month, he discussed war and diplomacy between the U.S. and Iran, as well as the cease-fire and the constitutionality of President Trump’s actions.  

Kim Stote, associate professor, co-authored an article that was recently published in the Annals of Medicine.  

Betty Wilde-Biasiny, professor of visual arts, is featured in “New Drawings,” a juried group exhibition curated by Samantha Friedman of the Museum of Modern Art. On view at the Kentler International Drawing Space in Brooklyn, the exhibition runs through July 20.  

SUNY Empire Spotlight: May 2025

by

(SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY — May 28, 2025) The latest news on research efforts, awards, grants, and media appearances from Empire State University faculty, staff, and leadership. 

Lauren Allen and Noor Syed—both assistant professors and the assistant director and director of CAARES, respectively—received mini-grants from the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. 

Nidal Daou, assistant professor, co-authored an article discussing positive behavior interventions and supports (PBIS) as related to neurodiversity-affirming practices. The article was published in the spring 2025 edition of the International Journal of Positive Behavioural Support. 

Pamela Doran, digital accessibility coordinator, received an Innovative Instruction Technology Grant (IITG) for her proposal titled “Custom Machine Translation to Support Spanish-Language Higher Education Programs.” 

Desiree Drindak, director of the Veteran and Military Resource Center, attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Foreverly House by the Veterans & Community Housing Coalition. The Foreverly House is a transitional home for veteran mothers and their children who are experiencing homelessness. 

Cailyn Green, assistant professor, and Thalia MacMillan, associate professor and department chair for Health & Human Services, recently published a textbook titled “Evidence-Based Substance Use Treatment.”  

Himanee Gupta, professor, was featured on an episode of Radio Catskill, which focused on community sustainability.  

Thomas Mackey, professor and program coordinator for the digital media arts program, organized a presentation by Michele Zizza on “Disinformation, Digitization, and Destabilization,” which provided a glimpse into the contents of Zizza’s new book. Zizza’s presentation, hosted by the Center for International Education, analyzed the effects of fake news on international politics in today’s global digital era, as well as strategies for strengthening the integrity of information. 
 
Pamela Malone, strategic improvement lead and UUP Empire State chapter president, received the Judith Wishnia Award at last month’s United University Professions’ Delegate Assembly. According to UUP, the award “recognizes UUP members who have rendered exceptional service (beyond standard union work) and who have advocated tirelessly for UUP, labor, equity, and humanity.” Malone was also selected to join the statewide team for the next round of UUP’s contract negotiations with New York state. 

Aley O’Mara, CAARES program associate and training coordinator, was quoted in a WHAM article about an interactive theater game hosted by CAARES. 

Shaun Richman, program director for the School of Arts & Humanities, appeared on an episode of the America’s Work Force Union Podcast to discuss his new book, “We Always Had a Union: The New York Hotel Workers’ Union, 1912-1953.” 
 
Jason Russell, professor, spoke about President Trump’s impact on Canada’s election results and tariffs on Talk of the Town. 

Heather Shalhoub—librarian and coordinator for web services, user experience, and systems—was the keynote speaker at the 2025 Arab American Heritage Month event hosted by the Office of the State Comptroller’s Division of Diversity Management. “This was the first time the office celebrated Arab American Heritage Month, and it was an honor to be invited and to represent my heritage, culture, and family,” she says. 

Gayle Stever, professor, has co-authored a second-edition textbook titled “Understanding Media Psychology,” which will be published in July. Her co-authors include J. David Cohen, an adjunct instructor. Stever was also recently quoted in articles about celebrities by Cosmopolitan and Yahoo Entertainment.  

Victoria Vernon, associate professor, contributed as one of eight experts to a recently published U.S. Government Accountability report titled “Telework: Private Sector Stakeholders and Expert Views.”  

President Lisa Vollendorf was honored as one of six recipients of the Capital Region Chamber of Commerce’s Women of Excellence Award in a May 9 ceremony. She was also named to City & State’s annual Trailblazers in Higher Education list for the second consecutive year. 

Melissa Wells—assistant professor and director of teaching, learning, and faculty development—had her article, “Enhancing Faculty Integration: The Role of Structured Onboarding, Peer Mentorship, and Belonging,” accepted for publication by The Journal of Continuing Higher Education. 

President Lisa Vollendorf Named Among Women of Excellence for Leadership and Community Impact

by

(SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY — May 9, 2025) The Capital Region Chamber of Commerce Women of Excellence Awards, celebrating 34 years of honoring outstanding women in the region, will recognize six distinguished recipients on Friday, May 9. Among them is Dr. Lisa Vollendorf, the sixth president of Empire State University and a dedicated advocate for expanding access to higher education. 

Vollendorf, who will receive the chamber’s Excellence in Management award, was selected based on criteria that include initiative, innovation, and the ability to drive organizational growth.  

“I am committed to authentic and inclusive leadership. For me, that means showing up as being true to the person you are. Leadership requires a lot of self-reflection, insight, empathy, and compassion for those around you,” Vollendorf said.  

With over 30 years of experience as an educator, scholar, and university leader, Dr. Vollendorf has demonstrated exceptional management and leadership skills. Since joining SUNY Empire in July 2022, she has rapidly positioned the university as one of the fastest-growing public institutions in the state by emphasizing high-quality online education. Under her leadership, SUNY Empire has experienced record enrollment in Fall 2024, reversing previous declines and serving 17,000 students of all ages and backgrounds through over 125 flexible academic programs. 

Vollendorf said, “I find this award to be very humbling. I look at the past recipients and think how fortunate I am to be considered excellent alongside so many incredibly empowering women.” 

To learn more about President Vollendorf’s management style, view her Women of Excellence video here.