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PA Notes
The Newsletter of the Department of Public Administration

Volume 9, Issue 1, Fall 2000

350 New Campus Drive| Brockport, NY 14420-2961
Telephone: (716) 395-2375|Fax: (716) 395-2242
E-mail:  astalnec@brockport.edu
In this issue . . .

Message from the Chair, Dr. Ann S. Altmeyer

Welcome to the fall 2000 semester!  As you will see from this issue, our alumni, students and faculty have been adapting to the challenges each academic year presents.  Along with the challenges change brings are amazing time savers.  For example, Drake Library now provides far greater and more convenient access through new databases to full-article resources from your home via your SUNY Brockport e-mail.  (To access you must use your Brockport e-mail which is automatically assigned to you upon registration--see instructions on page 2).  When I reflect on the time I spent driving 20 miles each way through mud, snow, sleet and rain only to discover that the book in question was not available or the journal article had been razored out, I am in awe of this new technology.  Not only are student research capabilities enhanced, but the development of strong research skills is most valuable as a lifelong tool. 

My students who are taking Organizational Management on line through the SUNY Learning Network (SLN) report that it is a good way to learn, especially if you are working full-time, raising a family and earning an MPA.  While this is an MPA program of choice (in class or on line), we urge you to try at least one class, as the experience of learning on line will become a vital component of your resume and enhance your value to any employer in this digital age.  Much to her credit Anne Canale Stalnecker, our office mainstay, is currently completing a required SLN course as she pursues her undergraduate degree.  This is of value to the department, too, as she provides us with a student perspective of on-line learning.

We now have a new Office of Graduate Studies under the direction of Assistant Vice President Diane Elliott.  With a focus on graduate education here at SUNY Brockport you will find some changes for the better, including a streamlining of the application process and earlier registration for matriculated students.  To remain consistent with the Office of Graduate Studies the department has changed its policy from requiring matriculation during the completion of six credits, to matriculation during the completion of nine credits. However, we do welcome earlier matriculation.  With matriculation status students have the advantage of earlier registration which is especially important for entrance into our core courses.  For advisement matriculated students are assigned a faculty advisor.  (The deadline for spring applications is March 1, 2001.)

President Paul Yu is optimistic about completing arrangements for relocation of the MetroCenter to the lovely, historic Chamber of Commerce building on St. Paul Street,  Rochester, New York, in January. This change will not only allow us to grow but to continue to maintain a central location for your convenience.  The actual move is not anticipated until next summer.

Until next semester, Happy Holidays.

News from MPA Alumni and Current Students

  • Ron Adams, current student, is Energy Program Evaluator for the Monroe County Department of Social Services. Adams is also the  local chapter president of the American Society of Public Administration (ASPA)..  He recently gave a welcoming talk (along with Monroe County Executive Jack Doyle) to over 100 people attending the Sixth Annual Quality in Government Day on October 17, 2000, which was cosponsored by Monroe County and the Greater Rochester Chapter of the American Society for Public Administration.  Adams also gave a talk about the misuse of statistics for the New York State Library Assistants Association (NYSLAA) on June 16 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Rochester
  • Frank X. Allkofer '91 has been nominated by Monroe County Executive Jack Doyle as the next director of the Monroe County Parks Department. Allkofer is a member of the SUNY Brockport Curriculum Advisory Committee, the Monroe County Youth Services Quality Council, and is a commissioner of the State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
  • Paul Bush '99 is director of marketing at the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired-Goodwill Industries in Rochester, NY.  Bush is currently searching for a marketing assistant/volunteer coordinator at ABVI and welcomes applications from MPA graduates.  If you are interested, e-mail jobs@abvi-goodwill.com.
  • Ashley Eckman '00 received the Honorable Mention Award for her work creating an electronic brochure for the SUNY MetroCenter. Additionally, she received an Academic Affairs Student Travel grant award and presented her work at the poster session on Scholars Day.
  • Diane Giambrone '96 has been appointed director of human resources at Adirondack Community College.
  • Sheryl Gonzalez, current student,  was selected as a member of the SUNYCAP (college admissions professionals) executive committee. Gonzalez is also a member of Rochester City School District's Educational Committee, "Step-Off" (an accelerated academic program for middle and high school students).
  • Jean Graupman '97 is director of development at the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra.  Graupman is also an adjunct faculty member for the Department of Public Administration where she teaches PAD 629 Fundraising and Development in spring semesters.
  • Denise Groesbeck '92 is the president of Glove House, Inc., an organization that provides child welfare, mental health, and juvenile justice programs across the Southern Tier of New York. Groesbeck also teaches a course at Elmira College.
  • Molly Hegeman '95 currently holds a position at CCB Financial Corporation, Human Resources, in Durham, NC.
  • Jim Lampert '98 is with the federal government in the Office of Budget and Program Performance, a section the Office of the Secretary of Transportation.
  • Tanya Lane-Martin '95 currently holds the position of director of admissions at Genesee Community College in Batavia, NY.
  • Karen Ogden, current student, is director of client development at Harris Interactive in Alexandria, VA.
  • Kimberly Reynolds '95 recently accepted the position of director of hotel services/general manager at Sodexho Marriott Services, Inc. in Boston, MA. Reynolds is responsible for the following departments:  environmental services, food services, transportation, linen services, service response center, business services center and human resources/training.
  • Joseph Robach '82, New York State Assemblyman, was recently on the SUNY Brockport campus where he spoke to a group of undergraduates in Donna Rossi's CMC 201 Public Speaking course encouraging voting among 17-22-year-olds.
  • Linda Robbins '00, Paula Wojtowicz '95, and Catherine Moran '00 have been appointed New York State Public Management Interns.   The  Public Management Institute (PMI) attracts the highest caliber and most talented individuals from graduate programs across the country.   This full-time, paid (about $35,000), two-year internship offers the opportunity to serve in an administrative position within a state agency.   Robbins has been placed in the NYS Department of  Education/Information Technology  Services; Wojtowicz is in the Office of Work Force Development, NYS Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities; and Moran is at the Department of Transportation.  Robbins states that  "the MPA program at SUNY Brockport is excellent preparation for government service.  Future grads should apply to the PMI programs as a means for placement and advancement in state government which provides many opportunities for continued training."    For more information, visit their Web site at  www.cs.state.ny.us/pmi/pmimain.html. Application deadline is November 15, 2000!
  • Adam Standish '00 is an undergraduate admissions advisor at SUNY Brockport.
  • Richard Tantalo '98 was promoted to lieutenant in the Irondequoit Police Department.
  • Clint Van Zandt '82 is a former FBI agent and currently owns his own practice specializing in hostage and terrorist negotiation, stalking, profiling, and child-molestation investigations.Van Zandt recently gave an informative lecture at the "Mornings with the Professors" series this fall on the SUNY  Brockport campus.
  • Daniel Varrenti '98 is an adjunct lecturer for the Department of Criminal Justice at SUNY Brockport.
  • Christine Vieira, current student,  is a staff assistant for the Small Business Development Center at SUNY Brockport.
  • Sharon J. Vincent '89 MSW, MPA, CSW is currently operating her own business, Eldercare Management Sservices, and serving as co-secretary of the Thadhani Foundation Board whose mission is to support and facilitiate empowerment as a process aimed at changing the nature and direction of systemic forces which marginalize women, girl children and other disadvantaged masses in a given context.  Vincent says that the foundation would be glad to hear from people interested in its work and interested parties should contact her.  (E-mail astalnec@brockport.edu and I will forward more information to you.)
  • Jim White '98 and his wife Donna welcomed a new daughter,  Shyanna Marie, on August 11, 2000.
 
Please keep the department informed about any new positions attained, promotions received, address changes or other accomplishments or information you would like us to include in our newsletter by e-mailing astalnec@brockport.edu or fax to the department at (716) 395-2242. 
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FAQs

Question:   DO YOU NEED THE GRE TO GET INTO THE MPA PROGRAM? No!

Answer: If you have above a 2.75 cumulative undergraduate GPA (from the college or university granting you your baccalaureate degree), you do not need to take the GRE exam.   If you don't meet this requirement, the department offers another option to gain admittance to the program.  You may submit GRE General Test scores at or above the 50th percentile and it is possible to be admitted to the program.  If any of the the following conditions apply to you, you may wish to take the exam prior to applying:

  • You have less than an overall cumulative average of 2.75 in  undergraduate study (from the college or university granting you your baccalaureate degree).
  • Your undergraduate transcript shows a pattern of  repeated courses with grades below "B."
  • You graduated from an undergraduate institution that does not supply letter grades for 40 percent or more of the courses on your transcript.
    Note: If you already possess a master's degree from an accredited institution, you are exempt from this policy.
The GRE Web site provides information on testing centers, on-line testing, and information on score reporting.  Visit them at www.gre.org.  Kaplan Educational Centers is offering a free practice test on November 2, 2000, at either 1:30 pm or 5:30 pm.   Register by calling 1 (800) KAP-TEST, the Brockport Career Services Center at (716) 395-2159, or visit its Web site at kaplanpracticetest.com.

Program and Policy Updates  
  • At the recommendation of the College's Graduate Council Committee, the official name for the Course of Study has been changed to Plan of Study, effective immediately. 
  • The Department of Public Administration faculty committee has recently approved the following policy change effective October 2000: 
    • Students may take up to nine credits in the program before being admitted (i.e., becoming matriculated) in the program.
    • Students must be matriculated in order to complete a Plan of Study (formerly called Course of Study).
    • A Plan of Study must be completed within the first nine credits of course work; otherwise, registration for courses will be blocked.
  • Please note change in graduate registration:   Matriculated graduates may register October 30, 2000.   Nonmatriculated graduates will not be allowed to register until December 11, 2000. 
  • The title of the core course PAD 681 Organizational Management has been changed to PAD 681 Strategic Management for Public Organizations. 

If you have any questions about the department's policies, please contact your advisor directly or the Department of Public Administration office at (716) 395-2375.

Faculty Activities
  • Professor Ed Downey submitted a panel proposal on E-Government for the National ASPA Conference in March 2001, which has been approved.
  • Dr. James Fatula was recently elected to the corporate board of directors of United Way of Rochester.
  • Dr. John Phillips, professor emeritus, is planning on offering his course, Comparative Health Care Systems/Public Policy in London-Scotland.  This course will be offered for 10 days in May or June 2001 with mandatory meetings before and after the trip. It is three graduate credits and may be used as an elective toward the MPA.  If you are  interested, contact Dr. John Phillips at (607) 753-9541 as soon as possible or e-mail him at jphillip@brockport.edu.
  • Dr. Wendy Wright will be a panelist at the New York State School Boards Association convention on Sunday, October 22, at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center.  The topic is the NY Senate race and the  panel discussion is the featured event of the convention's final general session.

Congratulations MPA Graduates 

DECEMBER 1999:
Marilyn Bader
DeAnna Baker
David Boswell
Susan Fite
Edith Hill
Karen Kolstee
Lisa Lewis
Mary Louise Meisenzahl
Mary Patterson
Daniel Perna
John Sapienza
Jennifer Topinko
Holly Waye

MAY 2000:
Dean Ashby
Becky Bianchi
Paul Bishop
Barbara Bloomer
Donald Bowe, Jr.
Paula Bryant
Kathleen Coughlin
Karen D'Agostino
Scott Deming
Joan DeRoo
Wendy DeVinny
Ashley Eckman
Michele Faillace
Linda Fisher
Constance Herrera

Kellie Kennedy
Christine Krzanowicz
Nicole Martin
Wilton Martin
Catherine Moran
Maureen Murphy
Jennifer Piedmont 
David Nutting
Michelle Pietroboni
Anne Podolak
Delia Rhodes
Edward Riley
Linda Robbins
Sandra Scheibel
Adam Standish
Allyn Stelljes
Christopher Tolhurst
Catherine Tracey
Steven Ventura
Jonathan Welch

AUGUST 2000:
Catherine Loiacono
Michelle Mould
Maureen Nupp
Barbara Zappia
Richard Sasscer
Raymond Pipitone
Winifred Weber