Student Activities

Esports elevates at ��Ƶ

mercure@morrisville.edu — Fri, 31 Jul 2020 02:42:28 +0000

Esports elevates at ��Ƶ mercure@morris… Thu, 07/30/2020 - 22:42

The term “esports” may be unfamiliar to some, but it has quickly become a buzzword on the ��Ƶ campus.

Esports (electronic sports), which has taken the nation and globe by storm over the past decade, is an organized sports competition featuring multiplayer video games, where gamers from around the world can compete individually or as a team. According to an analysis from Statista, the esports industry is booming, expecting to top $1 billion in worldwide market revenue for 2020.

Esports has quickly gained popularity on campus since it emerged through Morrisville Competitive Gaming (MCG), a Student Government Organization (SGO) club which provides the campus community an outlet to appreciate and enjoy video games. When Spencer Herring, an information technology: network administration B.Tech. student, became club president in the fall of 2019, his first order of business was to help elevate esports from casual interest to serious competition.

“When I first joined (MCG), it was just a club where kids would come and play games, so I started a Smash team and have tried to blossom it into a legit esports program,” said Herring, a passionate Nintendo Super Smash Brothers Ultimate player.

Herring pushed to create a large team of competitors, reaching out to peers from other institutions to hold scrimmages. His vision meshed with that of MCG co-advisors Angela Rhodes and Jamal Verity, who helped organize and host the club’s first esports scrimmage against Bryant & Stratton College last fall.

The duo continues to advocate for esports through various avenues on campus.

“Our challenge right now is for our esports program to be fully recognized by administration as an official team,” said Verity, assistant professor in the Computer Information Technology (CIT) Department. “Angela has been making great strides in this area, and we as a group will continue to work forward to this goal.”

They got one step closer to that goal this past semester when they were awarded grant money to purchase equipment and official team jerseys.

“When we unboxed those jerseys at the beginning of the spring semester, the students' faces just lit up, and they were definitely excited to be recognized as college competitors,” said Rhodes, the college’s Systems & Electronic Resources librarian.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought everything to a sudden halt by mid-semester, until the State University of New York (SUNY) announced a three-week, systemwide SUNY Chancellor Esports Challenge to help support student emergency funds.

“All of the sudden, the whole esports scene erupted and some campuses, including ours, that didn't appear to outwardly have much of an esports scene, came out of the woodwork to compete on a SUNY-wide scale,” Rhodes said. “It's never been done before, and now there's this whole community that I'm in communication with.”

Herring quickly signed on for the tournament and found some fresh competition to keep his skills sharp. “I was very excited to hear about this, and it was fun to play with people from all over the state,” he said. “I found more people I can play friendlies with now to help me improve.”

Following the tournament’s success, the University of Buffalo and SUNY Canton partnered with LeagueSpot software again to coordinate the SUNY Summer Esports Tournament, which will be held throughout August. It is open to all SUNY students, including incoming freshmen.

Herring, of course, has already registered. Catch him in action as the tournament is live-streamed through the Morrisville Gamers Twitch channel.

Author

Eugenio Mercurio

Published date

July 31, 2020

News Type

Coronavirus

General

Student Activities

��Ƶ Norwich student receives SUNY-wide ACT Award for Excellence & Student Initiative Scholarship

valenzfr@morrisville.edu — Fri, 15 Nov 2019 19:38:18 +0000

��Ƶ Norwich student receives SUNY-wide ACT Award for Excellence & Student Initiative Scholarship valenzfr@morri… Fri, 11/15/2019 - 14:38

NORWICH, N.Y. — Despite a rare degenerative disease that has forced her to change the course of her life, Marsha Friedel is still all heart. And she is putting it to good use.

The New Berlin resident and human services student at the ��Ƶ Norwich Campus is going to college at age 52, blazing a trail of giving along the way.

Friedel’s spirit and commitment are among the reasons she earned the State University of New York Association of Council Members and College Trustees Award for Excellence in Student Initiative Scholarship.

The scholarship recognizes outstanding academic achievements and extraordinary service to the campus and community. Recipients receive $1,000 and an additional $250 to the charity of their choice. Friedel designated her award to the Norwich Campus Human Services Institute, which develops ongoing partnerships and collaboration between the college and surrounding communities.

“Marsha shares her ideas in the classroom and actively engages other members of the class,” said Julanne Burton, assistant professor and human services program coordinator at the Norwich Campus. “She has demonstrated an extraordinary work ethic and shows great promise as a future human services professional.”

Friedel graduated from Sherburne-Earlville High School, where her propensity for helping others shined as FFA president. She put college on hold to get married, raise six children and help run a family dairy farm.

A turn of events decades later forced her to take a look at her career in farming and choose a less physically demanding path. Diagnosed with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia (ARVD), a degenerative condition which causes irregular heartbeat and cardiac disease, she decided to go to college.

“Sheila Marshman (associate professor of agricultural business development) is the reason why I am here,” Friedel said. “She encouraged me to follow my heart; If not farming, what else was I really passionate about? I knew it was helping people.”

It’s evidenced in all aspects of her life.

When a local agency sought volunteers to make desserts for a community-wide Christmas dinner last year, Friedel stepped in. She found sponsors to purchase ingredients and a kitchen where volunteers could make dozens of cookies.

She helped to plan the Human Services Organization’s (HSO) annual Sunday Fun Day at the Norwich Campus, which attracted more than 200 families to a night of games, arts and crafts, and talked the local 4-H group into bringing a petting zoo.

On the Norwich Campus, Friedel is vice president of the campus HSO and serves as the public relations liaison with the campus Student Government Organization. She also is an alumna member of the Unadilla FFA.

An advocate for upstate farm families, she spearheaded an agriculture appreciation day on the Norwich Campus to help local farmers and agriculture enthusiasts.

“When I started in the human services program, I decided that my passion is to help upstate farm families,” Friedel said. “Planning this event came straight from my heart. I feel that agriculture is what keeps New York State beautiful.”

She plans to finish what she started.

“My goals are ambitious,” Friedel said. “I want to create a resource center for agriculture in Chenango County and surrounding areas.”

“Marsha has a unique understanding of the stressors and pressures those who live, work and own businesses within rural America face every day,” Marshman said. “Her own experiences as a farm business owner combined with her degree in human services will benefit many.”

Author

Franci Valenzano

Published date

November 15, 2019

Gallery

News Type

��Ƶ to host Mustang Weekend

mercure@morrisville.edu — Fri, 20 Sep 2019 20:40:28 +0000

��Ƶ to host Mustang Weekend mercure@morris… Fri, 09/20/2019 - 16:40

MORRISVILLE, N.Y. — Calling all Mustangs: ��Ƶ welcomes alumni, students, friends and family to campus for Mustang Weekend Friday, Sept. 27, and Saturday, Sept. 28.

Highlights from the weekend’s event, which is open to the public and campus community, include a campus parade, campus tours, community picnic, carnival and rides, fireworks, and a variety of student activities and athletics contests.

Registration is 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday. A complete event schedule and registration details can be found on the Mustang Weekend webpage.

Friday’s events feature a 50th reunion happy hour for the ��Ƶ Class of 1969 at Morrisville’s Copper Turret Restaurant from 4-6 p.m. The Mustang football team also will host a football alumni reunion at Good Nature Farm Brewery in Hamilton from 5-7 p.m. Additionally, the Children's Center at ��Ƶ will celebrate its 25th Birthday Bash with live music, hot dogs, cake and a paint-your-own-tile fundraiser starting at 5:45 p.m. at Bailey Annex.

On Saturday, the Class of ’69 will conduct a campus parade at 11 a.m. Class members will join ��Ƶ President David Rogers, the Morrisville Fire Department, University Police and various campus departments for a procession beginning at the Auto Body Building parking lot on Chenango Road, traveling through parking lot A and finishing at Charlton Hall.

The football team competes in its homecoming game at noon on Drake field, squaring off against Husson. The alumni luncheon kicks off at noon in the hospitality suite of the Athletics Stadium, as will the community picnic in the administrative quad. The Mustang women’s lacrosse team will host its alumni game at 4:30 on Drake Field, where fireworks also will be held at 8:30 p.m. (weather permitting).

Saturday’s plans also include a carnival and rides, apple picking and a cider press demonstration courtesy of the renewable energy faculty, a car show presented by the ��Ƶ Auto Club, and a plant and produce sale sponsored by the Horticulture Department.

Events occurring throughout the weekend include one-hour campus walking tours, a tour of the on-campus Aquaculture Center, free samples of New York State products courtesy of Nelson Farms Country Store and a T-shirt up-cycle station.

Additional events include a homecoming dance, caricature artist, craft fair, pumpkin and gourd decorating, open skate and free giveaways during the weekend.

Author

Eugenio Mercurio

Published date

September 20, 2019

News Type

��Ƶ Campus Activities Board receives 2018 APCA Northeast Community Service Event of the Year award

mercure@morrisville.edu — Fri, 21 Dec 2018 15:14:09 +0000

��Ƶ Campus Activities Board receives 2018 APCA Northeast Community Service Event of the Year award mercure@morris… Fri, 12/21/2018 - 10:14

MORRISVILLE, NY—After helping bring joy to children in need of care, the ��Ƶ Campus Activities Board (CAB) was recently honored with the 2018 Northeast Community Service Event of the Year award by the Association for the Promotion of Campus Activities (APCA).

��Ƶ CAB received the honor for its “Bears for Children’s Hospital” event held during the college’s 2018 Day of Service honoring Martin Luther King, Jr. Morrisville students stuffed teddy bears in build-a-bear fashion before donating them to the Springfield (Mass.) Shriner’s Hospital for Children, where they were designated for use in the toy room. The inventory of teddy bears donated to the hospital derived from a Valentine’s Day gift option CAB provided Morrisville students, who could personally stuff the teddy bears and purchase them for $5.

This is the second time ��Ƶ has received the prestigious award from APCA.

“I am so proud that we received the Community Service Event of the Year award because it helps show our students that we truly can help make a difference in someone else’s life,” said Marc Cianciola, Morrisville’s assistant director of student activities. “What makes Shriner’s Hospitals amazing is that they help kids not only be kids, but help them realize that, even in what must seem like an impossible situation, they can still achieve their hopes and dreams.

“My hope is for our students to come away from the experience learning that even the small things can make the world a better place. I’m proud that Morrisville could provide some of those moments for the children at Shriner’s Hospital.”

The award was presented during the annual APCA Northeast Conference, where Morrisville also took home a second-place award for its T-shirt design.

Accompanied by Cianciola and ��Ƶ director of student activities Rita Goyette, six student members of CAB attended the conference: applied psychology majors Ayanna Legare, of Bronx, and Zainab Jimoh, of Staten Island, who also serves as CAB chairperson; Kemi Olorunfemi, an individual studies major from Bronx; computer information systems student Justin Narh, of Bronx; Samuel Coffie, an entrepreneurship & small business management major from Bronx; and accounting student Dijae Ellis, of Brooklyn.

The conference provided CAB members with networking opportunities and creative ideas for future planning as they attended educational sessions, showcases, exhibit halls and cooperative buying sessions.

“Students learned many new skills and information, chose great acts to bring to campus for the spring semester, networked with other colleges from the northeast and learned to negotiate with agents,” said Goyette, who also serves as the APCA northeast cooperative buying coordinator.

For more information regarding the ��Ƶ CAB, please visit our student activities webpage.

Author

Eugenio Mercurio

Published date

December 21, 2018

News Type

Community

General

Student Activities

Timber! Watch out for the evolving Morrisville State College Woods Sports Team

salibalr — Tue, 29 May 2018 15:02:27 +0000

Timber! Watch out for the evolving Morrisville State College Woods Sports Team salibalr Tue, 05/29/2018 - 11:02

Imagine if homework consisted of operating chainsaws, wielding axes and log rolling.

That’s exactly the case for members of Morrisville’s woods sports team.

Now wrapping up its second year, the woods sports team is an academic special project where students participate in a traditional woods skills course that teaches the operation, safety and preventative maintenance of traditional tools used by lumberjacks and lumberjills. Their studies involve instruction via hands-on operation of equipment such as chainsaws, crosscut saws, bucksaws, axes and Peavey tools.

Members also participate in intercollegiate lumberjacking competitions across the northeast, traveling to approximately three events each semester and competing under the name “MSC woodsmen.” One men’s team and one women’s team with six members each and a “Jack and Jill” co-ed team consisting of three men and three women all compete as a unit at events, which are held in singles, doubles and triples format.

Students on Morrisville’s team hail from a variety of majors and backgrounds, with some having little to no experience with traditional woods skills. Most, however, find a common theme as soon as they join the team.

“One practice and I was hooked,” said Zach Davis, a natural resources and conservation student and three-year veteran of the team.

“I went to one practice and the next thing you know, I fell in love with it and made it a priority,” echoed two-year team member Emily French, a senior majoring in human performance and health promotion.

Some practice sessions, which are held in the open field behind the college’s aquaculture center, last for hours as members work to perfect their timing and technique in preparation for a variety of events ranging from cross-cut sawing and wood chopping to axe throwing and fire building.

During the winter months, a day’s practice may consist solely of clearing the field of snow or processing wood just to be able to get in a session the following day.

“We’ll spend an hour trying to clean up wood just so we can chop for the next day because it’s frozen,” French said. “That’s just what being a lumberjack is all about.”

That gritty mentality stems from the team’s volunteer head coach Seth Carsten, an MSC instructional support assistant whose lumberjacking days date back to the 1970s. A former professional woodsmen’s competitor, Carsten remains an avid fan of the sport. As he notices the growth of woods sports at the collegiate level around the region, he sees the value of having the program at Morrisville.

“We’re using it as a recruiting tool,” he said. “It’s a special interest and extracurricular draw for students.”

The growth of Morrisville’s team has been rapid, nearly doubling in roster size since its inception thanks to its welcoming environment that encourages students of all skill levels to join.

“People on the team are absolutely awesome,” exclaimed Mason Muoio, a freshman majoring in natural resources and conservation. “It was so easy to come here and not feel judged. Everybody wants to work with you.”

Muoio and fellow classmate Andrew O’Connell have joined the rest of the team in spreading the word around campus to help the program prosper.

“We’re always looking for more people to join,” said O’Connell, whose swinging abilities as a lifelong baseball player have helped him become a top chopper for the team. “You come out, we see what you can do, and we see where you can best help the team.”

This continued enthusiasm from team members, both old and new, played a significant role in Teresa Link’s decision to return to Morrisville following a year away while attending ranger school.

“I came back because of the faculty and the wood sports team,” explained Link, an inaugural team member who is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in renewable resources technology. “I couldn't leave a team I put so much work into.”

Along with bestowing his immense knowledge of woods sports to the team, Carsten has supplied his personal equipment, finances and countless hours of time to the program. He’s been glad to do it, though, knowing the team shares his same passion for the program and seeing it succeed.

“There was a lot of student interest so I knew there was enough kindling on the fire,” Carsten recalled of the team’s beginnings. “Success always fuels the fire. After our first event, I saw their enthusiasm and the drive and desire that they had.”

The team’s beginnings trace back to 2011, when Brendan Kelly, MSC assistant professor of forestry and renewable resources, began receiving inquiries from students interested in starting a program. Kelly had interest himself after previously dabbling in the sport and felt Carsten would be the perfect addition based on his background.

“I needed somebody who could coach and really knew how to do it, plus Seth had competed in the past,” said Kelly ’93, who serves as team manager.

Following that initial interest, Kelly’s students and members of the college’s Conservation Tri-Society began gathering research on budgets, funding and equipment needs through other northeast wood sports schools. Carsten, meanwhile, used his many contacts in the sport to help MSC observe various competitions to get a feel for what an event entailed.

The project grew legs in the fall of 2014, when Kelly, Carsten and a group of students attended an athletics board meeting to make their pitch. The effort landed a donation the following spring, which allowed Carsten and a group of nine students to participate in their first official competition.

“Getting everyone together, encouragement and communication were the keys in the beginning,” said Link, who helped with research, recruitment and coordinating practices as the team got started.

Faculty and campus departments have since pitched in to help the team overcome its tight budget. Wood is provided from felling trees through the college’s natural resources conservation program, with the residential construction program helping cut practice logs using the college’s sawmill. The mechanical engineering department has helped construct tools, with Carsten and Kelly gathering other equipment from around campus as well.

The group raises funds by splitting firewood that can then be purchased through the college. They also hope to increase their capital through raffles, auctions and selling custom-made T-shirts and hooded sweatshirts, which feature the team logo originally designed by Link and Nicole Duchene ’14.

Monetary donations that also help defray costs of equipment, travel and registration fees have come through employee voluntary payroll deductions and small gifts from around campus. Outside sources have recently contributed as well, including a $500 donation from a local branch of the national Davey Tree Expert Company.

As the team evolves, Carsten and Kelly would like to host a competition on campus someday and ultimately elevate the squad to a club or varsity sport. For now, the team is just enjoying the opportunity.

“I didn’t know anything about the sport until (coach) talked my ear off about it,” French said with a laugh. “Now I love it; it’s such a great time. I think everyone should swing an axe once in their lives.”

Author

Eugenio Mercurio

Published date

June 19, 2017

News Type

Momentum

Summer 2017

Student Activities

Student Activities

Esports elevates at ������Ƶ

������Ƶ Norwich student receives SUNY-wide ACT Award for Excellence & Student Initiative Scholarship

������Ƶ to host Mustang Weekend

������Ƶ Campus Activities Board receives 2018 APCA Northeast Community Service Event of the Year award

Timber! Watch out for the evolving Morrisville State College Woods Sports Team

Esports elevates at ��Ƶ

��Ƶ Norwich student receives SUNY-wide ACT Award for Excellence & Student Initiative Scholarship

��Ƶ to host Mustang Weekend

��Ƶ Campus Activities Board receives 2018 APCA Northeast Community Service Event of the Year award