State University of New York at Potsdam

State University of New York at Potsdam
Motto	"To Learn - To Search - To Serve"
Type	Public college
Established	1816; 208 years ago
Parent institution	State University of New York
Endowment	$38.1 million (2020)
President	Suzanne Smith
Academic staff	304
Students	3,098 (fall 2020)
Undergraduates	2,870 (fall 2020)
Postgraduates	228 (fall 2020)
Location	Potsdam, New York, U.S.
Campus	Rural, 240 acres (97 ha) maintained
Colors	Maroon & gray
Nickname	Bears
Sporting affiliations	NCAA Division III – SUNYAC
Mascot	Max C. Bear
Website	www.potsdam.edu

The State University of New York at Potsdam (SUNY Potsdam or simply Potsdam) is a public college in Potsdam, New York. Founded in 1816, it is the northernmost member of the State University of New York (SUNY) system, it is composed of the College of Arts & Sciences, the School of Education and Professional Studies, and the Crane School of Music.

History

Potsdam was founded by Benjamin Raymond in 1816 as the St. Lawrence Academy. In 1834, the academy was chosen by the New York State Legislature to exclusively offer a teacher education program for its senatorial district. With funds from the state, and from support by preceptor Reverend Asa Brainerd, the first diploma in teaching was given in 1836, thus beginning the academy's and eventually the college's longstanding tradition of excellence in the field of teacher education.

In 1866, the State Legislature ended its funding of teacher education departments in private academies, and began establishing several normal schools throughout the state. The Village of Potsdam was thus named as one of four locations for new normal schools, and in 1867, the St. Lawrence Academy became the Potsdam Normal School.

By 1886, the Potsdam Normal School had become the first institution in the United States to offer a normal training course for public school music teachers in the United States. Founded by Julia E. Crane, the Crane Normal Institute of Music continues today as the world-renowned Crane School of Music as a leader in the field of music education.

The State University of New York was founded in 1948, and Potsdam became one of its founding members, and was thus renamed New York State Teachers College at Potsdam. In 1964, the college's mission changed to providing multiple programs, and the university adopted its current name.

During the 1980s, despite the college's traditional strengths in music and education, the college gained recognition for its quickly blossoming mathematics program under the guidance of Clarence F. Stephens. Known as the Potsdam Miracle, Stephens transformed a practically non-existent department to having the third largest number of mathematics majors of any institution in the United States during his tenure.^{[citation needed]}

In 2010, the college had a total enrollment of approximately 4,500 students, with approximately 930 freshmen entering, the largest first-year class since 1982.

Since that time, enrollment has declined by 43%, and the student body now hovers at around 2,500 students. In response to declining enrollment, in September 2023, SUNY Potsdam president Suzanne Smith announced a plan to reduce the deficit of $9 million by eliminating up to 14 degree programs over the next three to five years.^[3]^[4]

Campus

The campus is in the village of Potsdam, near the Canada–United States border. It is situated in the St. Lawrence Valley, between the St. Lawrence River and the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains, approximately 20 miles from the border of The Adirondack Park. The Raquette River flows through the middle of the town of Potsdam.

The school sits on 240 acres (97 ha) and consists of 44 buildings. Barrington Drive runs through the center of the campus, with all academic buildings on the northwest side of the street, and all campus life and residence buildings on the southeast side. The Crane School of Music campus is in the northern part of the campus, east of the academic quad.

The college has two libraries, the Frederick W. Crumb Memorial Library in the center of the academic quad, and the Crane Music Library in Schuette Hall at the Crane complex. The college also has six performance facilities: Hosmer Hall, Snell Theatre, and Wakefield Recital Hall (three venues in The Crane School of Music), the Proscenium Theater, the Black Box Theater, and the Dance Theater (three venues in the college's new Performing Arts Center). The college also houses an art gallery and the Maxcy Hall Athletic Facility.

SUNY Potsdam is home to the Charles T. Weaver Anthropology Museum, a teaching museum that allows students to curate exhibitions and have hands on experience with the museum's collection.^[5] Also on campus is the Art Museum at SUNY Potsdam, also known as the Gibson Gallery, which stresses its mission to connect students, faculty and all those on campus with visual art.^[6]

The affiliated non-profit organization that provides dining services and runs the union market and college bookstore on campus is known as PACES or Potsdam Auxiliary College Education Services. This organization is the largest financial supporter of the college, annually donating significant portions of their proceeds back to the college in support of scholarships and other initiatives on campus.

Athletics

In 1981 and 1986, under Hall of Fame coach Jerry Welsh, the Potsdam Bears basketball team won the NCAA Division III national championship. In 1979, 1982, and 1985, the Potsdam Bears were national runners-up for this title.

The SUNY Potsdam men's ice hockey team has competed in the NCAA since 1976. Most recently, they played in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC),^[7] which is a Division III athletics conference. The 1995-96 men's ice hockey team won the program's only SUNYAC title in school history, under Hall of Fame coach Ed Seney.

SUNY Potsdam athletics were recently^[when?] placed on NCAA probation due to an inadvertent error in the awarding of international student grants. The teams affected by the NCAA probation are men's and women's hockey, women's volleyball, men's and women's lacrosse and women's soccer.

A Cappella

SUNY Potsdam has four a cappella groups on campus – The Potsdam Pointercounts (1993–Present), The A Sharp Arrangement (1994–Present), The Potsdam Pitches (2007–Present) and Stay Tuned (2012–Present). All four groups have competed in the ICCA (International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella) run by Varsity Vocals. In 2018, The Potsdam Pitches made their way to the ICCA finals and performed at the Beacon Theatre in New York City. This was the first time that a SUNY Potsdam group had made in to finals.

Notable faculty emeriti and alumni

Ernest Blood, Basketball coach, enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame
Stephanie Blythe, Opera singer, mezzo-soprano
T. Coraghessan Boyle, Author
Marc Butler, Politician and member of the New York State Assembly
Michael J. Colburn, 27th Director of the United States Marine Band
Mike Deane, Former Division 1 head basketball coach
Daniel Decker, Composer and recording artist
Renée Fleming, Opera singer, soprano
Stacey Fox, Percussionist, composer, filmmaker and animator
Arthur Frackenpohl (Professor Emeritus), Composer and Author
Marion Fricano (professor), Major League Baseball pitcher for the Philadelphia and Kansas City Athletics^[8]
David J. Hanson (Professor Emeritus), alcohol researcher
Maurice Kenny (Emeritus Writer-in-Residence), poet, editor/publisher, and essayist
Stanley Kunitz, former U.S. poet laureate
Chris Lee, Professional Hockey Player, KHL All-Star, 2018 Canadian Olympian
Chuck Lorre, television director, writer, producer, composer, and actor^[9]
Brock McElheran (Professor Emeritus), conductor and author
C. J. Rapp, Entrepreneur and Beverage Executive (creator of Jolt Cola)
William Buell Richards, First Chief Justice of Canada
Stephen Savoia, Two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer
Daniel Schaefer, politician, former U.S. Representative from Colorado
Clarence F. Stephens (Professor Emeritus), mathematics educator
Joy Tanner, actress
David Valesky, Politician and member of the New York State Senate
Lisa Vroman, Singer and stage actress, soprano
Tim Welsh, Former Head Basketball Coach at Providence College
John Zakour, writer / cartoonist

References

^ As of June 30, 2020. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. February 19, 2021. Retrieved February 21, 2021.
^ "Quick Facts | SUNY Potsdam". Archived from the original on September 2, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2021.
^ Wheeler, Catherine; Sommerstein, David. "SUNY Potsdam announces downsizing plan to cut $9M deficit". NCPR. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
^ "SUNY Potsdam announces major restructuring to close budget deficit". wwnytv.com. September 19, 2023. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
^ "Weaver Museum | SUNY Potsdam". Archived from the original on March 7, 2014. Retrieved March 1, 2014.
^ "The Art Museum | SUNY Potsdam". Archived from the original on March 7, 2014. Retrieved March 1, 2014.
^ "SUNY-Potsdam Statistics and History". hockeydb.com. Archived from the original on September 6, 2010. Retrieved December 12, 2010.
^ "Marion Fricano of Baseball Fame Named to Staff of Teachers College". The Clarkson Integrator. October 1, 1955. p. 5. Archived from the original on March 14, 2024. Retrieved March 14, 2024 – via NYS Historic Newspapers.
^ Rice, Lynette (January 8, 2007). "Why is Chuck Lorre so angry?". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 21, 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2023.