SUNY Cortland

SUNY Cortland's 40th Annual Student Leadership Recognition Banquet honored 51 students. Each spring, the university hosts the event to recognize student leaders chosen for their outstanding service and commitment to the campus and community.

SUNY Cortland's Sustainability Office kicked off a year of planet-friendly action by introducing the campus to its newest Green Reps. The mission of these nine students is to inspire more environmentally conscious lifestyles through peer-to-peer environmental education programs that encourage a more eco-friendly and sustainable campus and lifelong behaviors. Green Reps work to bring sustainability to their peers and the campus community by developing sustainability communications and outreach campaigns, such as newsletter articles; hosting programs at residence halls; and collaborating to create campuswide events each semester.

There were 29 students honored with SUNY Cortland's Part-time Student Award for Academic Achievement during the Fall 2024 semester. The honor recognizes academic excellence among part-time undergraduate students.

There are 1,051 SUNY Cortland students who earned President's List honors for the Fall 2024 semester. To qualify for the President's List, students must earn a grade of A- or better in each of their classes while carrying a course load of 12 hours or more.

There were 2,971 students recognized for academic excellence on the SUNY Cortland Dean's List for the Fall 2024 semester. The Dean's List is the highest ranking for undergraduate students in their respective academic areas of the university. Students must earn a minimum 3.3 grade point average for the semester to make the list. Each of SUNY Cortland's three schools publishes its own Dean's List. They are the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Professional Studies and the School of Education.

Twenty SUNY Cortland students were recently elected as members of The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society. Membership is by invitation only and requires nomination and approval by a chapter. Only the top 10 percent of seniors and 7.5 percent of juniors are eligible for membership. Graduate students in the top 10 percent of the number of candidates for graduate degrees may also qualify, as do faculty, professional staff and alumni who have achieved scholarly distinction.

The 9th annual Michael J. Bond '75, M.D. Alumni/Undergraduate Research Science Symposium featured two students chosen to deliver the event's William C. Baerthlein '76, M.D. Student Presenter lectures. The symposium was created to connect Cortland undergraduates and faculty with alumni researchers, demonstrating that important science careers are launched from SUNY Cortland with the experience gained through undergraduate research.

Twenty-six students earned SUNY Cortland's Part-time Student Award for Academic Achievement during the Fall 2023 semester. The honor recognizes academic excellence among part-time undergraduate students.

Seventeen students representing nine student organizations spoke with New York Lieutenant Governor Antonio Delgado when he visited SUNY Cortland. While here, Delgado discussed the university's wide-ranging community service efforts and how the students can help inspire a new statewide initiative. The student input will help inform the early development of New York's Office of Service and Civic Engagement, a state office announced by Governor Kathy Hochul in January that Delgado is tasked with developing.

SUNY Cortland's football team made history when it won its first Division III football national championship at the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, in Salem, Virginia, on Dec. 15. The Red Dragons defeated North Central College (Ill.), the previously unbeaten top-ranked Division III team in the country and last year's national champion, in a game broadcast on ESPNU and ESPN+. Ranked 11th nationally in the final D3football.com poll before the playoffs, Cortland went 14-1 on the season and is the first school from New York state to win the Division III title game since 1991. Full coverage is available at cortlandreddragons.com.

Three SUNY Cortland students traveled to Cuba to present their undergraduate research efforts, marking the university's first student visits to the communist island nation since the COVID-19 pandemic. The Cortland group flew to the country for the 2nd Cienfuegos International Scientific Convention at Cuba's Universidad de Cienfuegos. There, the students presented their Cortland research to a wider international audience.

Twenty-four SUNY Cortland students presented their original scientific research at the 8th annual Michael J. Bond '75, M.D. Alumni/Undergraduate Science Symposium. The event, which features seminars, research presentations, informal networking and student poster sessions, is a unique university tradition that brings students interested in science careers together with successful alumni scientists on the Cortland campus.

Eighty-four SUNY Cortland students received Kente stoles reflecting an African tradition of accomplishment and passage during the university's 21-year-old Kente Celebration on April 1. These symbols of honor will be worn during Commencement ceremonies this May. The Kente Celebration commemorates the rite of passage for scholars transitioning from institutions of higher learning to the next chapter of their lives. is an important experience for Cortland's multicultural students and their allies. Kente cloth is a traditional African weaving with colors and design that hold a specific meaning. Over time it has become an important symbol for African Americans, people of color in general, and their supporters to highlight their achievements and connection to the first learning centers of the world in Africa.

More than 950 students received bachelor's degrees from the State University of New York at Cortland this spring. "Commencement is a time of great pride on campus," university President Erik J. Bitterbaum said. "For students, their families, the faculty and for SUNY Cortland as an institution, it gives us all a wonderful sense of satisfaction to imagine the future accomplishments ahead of our graduates and to know they will make a positive difference in whatever endeavors they pursue."

Artwork from the creative minds of SUNY Cortland students was featured during Student Select 2023 at the Dowd Fine Arts Center's Dowd Gallery Hallway Gallery and Critiques Space. The annual free exhibition demonstrates the imagination, acquired skills and enthusiasm of art majors, nontraditional students and non-art majors alike, while letting participants share their creations in a gallery setting and learn about formal presentations.

Major General Ray Shields, the Adjutant General for the State of New York, announces the promotion of members of the New York Army National Guard in recognition of their capability for additional responsibility and leadership.

SUNY Cortland congratulates the physical education majors recognized for excellence by the national Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE). Two seniors earned the society's Major of the Year award, one of the highest pre-professional honors given by SHAPE to undergraduates in the fields of health, physical education, recreation and dance. They are among 113 students selected this year.