our transferring students, dubbing the initiative “Position Your Transition.” working
in conjunction with admissions offices at participating four-year institutions, we
arrange for groups of 20-40 of our students to visit Long-island based four-year
institutions they are interested in applying to for transfer admission. ose institutions
agree to provide roundtrip bus transportation, transfer admission information, speakers,
a campus tour and lunch with some of their currently enrolled students. in addition,
Suffolk students are eligible for instant transfer credit evaluations and an application
fee waiver if they enroll. e visits are a great opportunity for our students to
experience another campus culture, discuss their transfer options, and engage directly
with current students who attend the college or university under consideration.
is year’s transfer trips included visits to Hofstra University, Adelphi University, and
St. Joseph’s College.
College administrators met with a field representative from the Student and exchange
visitor Program (SevP). SevP mandates site visits of all institutions that are certified
to issue student visas for international students. During the visit, SevP was given a
complete overview of the College’s international student program, as well as the
policies and procedures for the processing of international students’ admission
applications. e field representative was impressed by our use of the Google
Translator tool, which allows all of the College’s international student admissions
website information to be translated into a student’s native language, leading to easy
completion and submission of required documents. following the visit, the College
received approval notification for its recertification submission. is allows the
College to continue issuing visas for international students.
in June 2012, the State University of New York’s Board of Trustees passed a resolution
endorsing the establishment of a “Tobacco-free SUNY” policy. To gather input on this
important health and wellness initiative, at my direction, the College developed an
online survey for faculty, staff and students. Nearly seven
out of ten respondents (69.9%) strongly supported or
somewhat supported the College becoming a 100%
tobacco- and smoke-free institution. e Suffolk County
Legislature approved the College’s roll-out of smoke- and
tobacco-free campuses and passed a resolution giving the
College’s Board of Trustees permission to deviate from
County parameters related to a ban on smoking and
tobacco products. Suffolk County Legislators Dr. william
Spencer and Monica Martinez attended a Board of Trustee
meeting to show their support for our new tobacco-free
policy. i formed an implementation team charged with
presenting the college community with education,
communication and enforcement elements associated with
this policy. Team members included representatives from
our partners at North Shore LiJ Health System, the
College’s medical director and health services nurses, as
well as our communications and Public Safety staff. on August 27
th
, the first day of
the fall 2015 semester, the College will officially become smoke- and tobacco-free. in
order to provide a clean and healthy campus environment, the policy will:
• Protect Suffolk students, faculty, staff and visitors from unwanted and
involuntary exposure to tobacco and passive smoke;
• Prohibit the use of all tobacco and tobacco-derived products on all College
grounds; and
• Provide resources for tobacco users to get the help they need to quit for good.
2014-2015 Review of Accomplishments
❘
13
As part of the “Position Your Transition” initiative,
Suffolk students visited Hofstra University, Adelphi University,
and St. Joseph’s College.
All of our campuses are tobacco free starting on August 27
th
.
