LOCH SHELDRAKE –– SUNY Sullivan President Jay Quaintance discussed opening plans at last week’s board of trustees meeting, calling it an ever evolving process.

He said they recently met with the core group of people tasked with deciphering SUNY’s and the CDC’s guidance, seeing where they contradict and overlap, figuring out what that means and what the college is going to do.

They are also still waiting for FDA approval to mandate vaccination for students in the SUNY system.

“Pending that we’re just in a very strongly encouraging posture for students to become vaccinated and faculty and staff to become vaccinated,” said Quaintance. “We are opening to the extent that if a person is vaccinated and demonstrates evidence of that to the college, they don’t need to wear a mask, they don’t need to be socially distanced.

“If they choose not to provide the evidence or are not vaccinated, then we ask that people continue mask wearing, social distancing, and cleaning protocols as though we were still back before the vaccines were available,” he continued.

Quaintance said he has spoken with Public Health Director Nancy McGraw about the possibility of holding vaccination clinics for returning students, and that he’s hopeful they can get some students to take advantage of being able to get vaccinated at the college.

“We are working hard to ensure a safe transition back to in-person learning for the Fall of 2021,” Quaintance told the Democrat. “We have learned a great deal about keeping our college community safe, and are one of very few colleges with no on-campus transmission of the COVID-19 virus. The best protection and hope for a full college experience is to get vaccinated! In addition to classes, campus will be alive again, with athletics, a new daycare center for the children of students and staff, a robust wellness program and a new food pantry for our students.”

Nursing success
It’s no secret that SUNY Sullivan’s nursing program has experienced growth since Garnet Health Medical Center- Catskills Nursing Administrator Laura Northrup joined the college in 2019 as their director of nursing.
As the Democrat reported in April, when she first came on board the program had 13 graduates. Thirty-six were on track to graduate this past May, and at that time, there were 56 students on track to graduate in May 2022.

Rose Hanofee, SUNY Sullivan’s Dean of Liberal Arts, Sciences and Health Sciences, revealed at last week’s meeting that the program will be serving 104 freshmen and sophomore nursing students this fall.

Hanofee praised Northrup, saying that her experience and credentials have played an important role in the changes made to the program over the last few years and ultimately in the program's growth in enrollment.

“In addition to program revisions and streamlining the admissions process, Mrs. Northrup contributes the program’s success to a dedicated team of faculty and staff serving our students,” said Hanofee. “Full-time Nursing faculty are also academic advisors who coach students to completion. A flexible schedule that includes evening and weekends is another contributor, as well as high tech simulation experiences and other learning modalities.”

Familiar and new faces
The college’s board of trustees elected their annual slate of officers at last week’s meeting. There are no changes from last year, with Dr. Nancy Hackett continuing as chair, Dr. Theresa Hamlin as vice chair, Paul Guenther as treasurer and Patricia Adams as secretary.

In other news, Dr. Lawrence Weill was introduced as the interim vice president of academic and student affairs, as Dr. Keith Pomakoy recently separated from the college.

Weill is a former philosophy professor who became an academic dean then a college president, most recently at Gordon State College in Barnesville, GA. He is also a writer with four novels in print as well as one nonfiction book. Weill said he is loving the Catskills.