Alumni

In addition to great food, eye-opening exhibits and commercial attractions, fairgoers once again got an up-close view at SUNY Morrisville’s innovative programs, one-of-a-kind learning and alluring draft horses during this year’s Great New York State Fair.   Faculty and staff stirred up interest during Agricultural Education Days, providing information about the college’s exciting academic programs and innovative learning going on inside and outside of SUNY Morrisville classrooms.  

MORRISVILLE, N.Y. — Before they go out into the field to study reptiles and amphibians, students in Associate Professor Eric Diefenbacher’s Herpetology class get an indoor lesson in how to safely handle them. A table lined with frogs, lizards and snakes in captive tanks set the scene for one of his first classroom lessons this semester, a real-life learning exercise for students who will venture out to study the creatures in their natural habitat in the coming weeks.  

MORRISVILLE, N.Y. — SUNY Morrisville automotive professor Ron Alexander, of Fair Haven, spent part of his summer polishing his skills training Mopar dealer technicians at the Mopar Training Center in Rochester.  Alexander, associate professor of automotive technology, assisted with training of a new diagnostic lab scope, which is being implemented in dealership service departments.  

MORRISVILLE, N.Y. — SUNY Morrisville is bringing its innovation, competition Belgian hitch and exciting hands-on approach to learning to The Great New York State Fair again this year.  See the college during Agricultural Education Days, Friday-Sunday, Aug. 20-22, from noon to 8 p.m., in the Toyota building, where faculty and staff will have information about the college’s exciting academic programs, answer questions and talk about the engaging, one-of-a-kind learning going on inside and outside of SUNY Morrisville classrooms.  

Inspiring entrepreneur selected as a Forbes Next 1000 honoree

As the semester came to an end, three agribusiness students had something a little extra to celebrate. They won the top three prizes in the 2021 Cotton Family Business  Idea Competition, a competition where students have the opportunity to win money and take their ideas to the next level.

“It’s worth it if you put in the effort,” said Danielle Bunting ’21 while reflecting on her time as a SUNY Morrisville Mustang.

“If your goal is to make difference, you start with journalism and Morrisville.” Those words spoken by SUNY Morrisville journalism graduate Mike Gormley are precisely what he has been doing as a reporter covering politics and government for four decades. Since he graduated in 1981, Gormley has racked up more than two dozen journalism awards, including the 2016 New York State Publishers Association Distinguished State Government Coverage Award of Excellence for his investigation into New York State Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s campaign finances.

As a single mother, Rolanda Campbell ’22 has faced her share of financial burdens while pursuing her education at SUNY Morrisville. But childcare costs, transportation worries and so many other financial burdens were alleviated thanks to the college’s Student Hardship Fund, which helped her stay on track. The fund supports students who incur a sudden expense or change in circumstances they cannot overcome with financial aid or family support.

As a hot housing market and spike in home remodeling propel the need for skilled tradespeople in the residential construction industry, Mike Gridley ’04 is doing his part to ease the demand. The assistant professor of residential construction at SUNY Morrisville has been teaching the tricks of his trade and molding skilled workers for more than two decades in the classroom and as proprietor of Gridley Construction, in Hamilton, New York.