Fiat further enhancing the student experience at Alfred University

Dear Alfred University students, staff, and faculty:

Three teams of Alfred University students enrolled in the LEAD 301 leadership class participated in an annual competition Monday, May 9, in which they presented ways our University can enhance the student experience. As co-instructors of the course, Gabrielle Gaustad ’04, dean of our Inamori School of Engineering, and yours truly can attest to the hard work each team put into developing their proposals.

The competition, which awards a cash prize of $10,000 to the winning team, is underwritten by a gift from Charlie Joyce HD ’22, a member of our Board of Trustees, and alumna Sherry Walton ’80, MS ’88. Winning team members will share in $5,000 of the prize money; the remainder will be used to implement their proposal.

The winning team, “Empowering Powell” — comprised of students Isa Hamilton ’24, Howard Lang ’22, and Jamall Lewis ’23 — addressed how to make Powell Campus Center more of a student activity hub. Among other recommendations, the team proposed renaming the building the Powell Student Center and locating a “one-stop Student Solution Center” on the second floor staffed by representatives from offices such as Financial Aid, Student Accounts, Residence Life, Advising, Career Development, and Dining Services.

Video of 2022 LEAD 301 competition

Other teams competing Monday were:

• “Jericho Hill” — Joe Copp ’24, Jason Doud ’22, Adam Enders ’23, and Mackenzie O’Brien ’22. The team focused on how philanthropic support for developing property on Jericho Hill in the town of Alfred would allow Alfred University to increase the student experience for existing student athletes while attracting more student athletes by adding teams (such as women’s field hockey and rugby, and men’s and women’s archery) and expanding our track and field facilities.

• “Project Evolve” — Briana Broadwell ’23, Merveille Bulonza ’22, Samuel Erickson ’23, and Kolton Hadsell ’22. The team pitched developing an electric vehicle ride-sharing service for students, ideally through our University’s relationship with Tesla (through alums employed by the firm), thereby improving the student experience.

Please join me in thanking Charlie Joyce and Sherry Walton for their philanthropy, which makes this valuable educational experience possible for our students. We also want to thank the judging panel—Greg Connors ’92, chair of Alfred University’s Board of Trustees; fellow trustees Bryan Hill ’90 and Charlie Joyce; Laurie Lounsberry Meehan ’91, Alfred University archivist; Gary Ostrower ’61, emeritus professor of history at Alfred University; Nadine Shardlow, ’86, MS ’17, co-interim vice president for Student Experience at Alfred University; and Randy Shayler, mayor of the village of Wellsville—for their time. Lastly, we congratulate the students who participated in the competition. Their ideas were compelling and will assist our University in developing strategies to further strengthen the experience of our students at Alfred University.

Fiat further enhancing the student experience at Alfred University!

Mark