Special Project Fund Awardees Announced
Awardees of the Empire State University Foundation’s Special Project Fund were announced today. This marks the second year of the Special Project Fund, which offers flexible, quickly available funding for creative and entrepreneurial projects in support of the university’s strategic plan.
“The Special Project Fund reflects the partnership between the Office of Advancement and the Empire State University Foundation Board,” said Vice President for Advancement Veronica Fitzgerald. “Together, we’re thrilled to be able to support the work of SUNY Empire’s faculty and staff through innovative projects that this year focused on our strategic plan priority of organizational effectiveness.”
Eight proposals totaling $72,396 in funding were approved. Read more about the projects below.
Project: Unite Series: Strengthening Support for Veteran and Military Families
This professional development initiative will help faculty and staff support military-aligned students and their families, enhancing academic, operational, and cultural support.
Project lead: Desiree Drindak, director of Veteran and Military Resource Center
Project: SUNY Empire Apprenticeship Accelerator
This initiative will help design and launch registered apprenticeship pathways in technology, health professions, and education, building internal systems, workflows, and scalable tools to optimize SUNY Empire’s responsiveness to workforce needs.
Project lead: Daniel Fogarty, assistant vice president of Enrollment Management and Marketing
Project: Designing AI Assistants for Self-Service Data Analytics and Assessment
This project will explore the deployment of AI assistants to provide customized self-service data and assessment solutions for the university community, with the end goal of creating a more data-informed culture.
Project lead: Eileen McDonnell, executive director of institutional effectiveness and planning
Project: Human Resources Chatbot
The HR chatbot will create a more efficient workflow within Human Resources by providing up to date HR information at any time and adapting to the changing needs of an online workforce.
Project lead: Rebecca Monaghan, assistant to the vice president of human resources
Project: Planning Your Education, OER Revision
This project will use funds to make changes to the existing OER course resource, with the goal of increasing use of credit for prior learning and making content fully accessible.
Project leads: Susan Oaks, professor, and Marie Pennucci, lecturer
Project: Case Studies Across the Curriculum
This project will improve the way case studies are used in the curriculum, allowing the university to subscribe to the peer-reviewed collection of case studies through Sage and implement this resource into courses.
Project leads: Alena Rodick, director of learning design and solutions, and Shannon Pritting, executive director for the Office of Graduate Studies and Scholarly Supports
Project: Expanding Affordability Through Strategic Partnerships via Adopt2Open
Project funds will allow SUNY Empire’s library to join the Adopt2Open program and partner with Sylla to develop a program to convert textbooks to an open access model, expanding the university’s textbook affordability initiative
Project leads: Jennifer Collins, open educational resources and scholarly communications librarian, and Shannon Pritting, executive director for the Office of Graduate Studies and Scholarly Supports
Project: Centering Neurodivergent Voices: Improving Higher Education Practices Through Universal Design
This project, a collaboration between CAARES and SUNY New Paltz’s Disability Resource Center, will include a revision of the mandatory employee training on universal design and strategies to support neurodiverse students. It will also allow CAARES to extend training across the SUNY system.
Project leads: Noor Syed, associate professor and director of the Center for Autism Advocacy: Research, Education, and Supports (CAARES), and Lauren Allen, assistant professor and assistant director of CAARES