"This was another great opportunity to learn more about what’s happening on the SUNY Potsdam campus. The college president, Dr. Kristin Esterberg, had talked up the math and science departments at a meeting we had earlier this fall, and I’ve been eager to learn more about the STEM programs being offered on campus," she said.
"I’ve also been looking at steps the college is taking to address the looming teacher shortages, as we know there are already severe shortages in math and science teaching candidates," Assemblywoman Jenne said.
She noted she had a few takeaways from the roundtable discussion, but the strongest message she heard was the commitment the faculty have to their students.
"The class sizes allow them to support students that are struggling and those that are somewhat apprehensive about math and science career options or not sure they can handle college coursework in those programs," Assemblywoman Jenne said.
"It became clear listening to the professors that while they are doing important research, their focus is on their teaching. It was a message shared by the students that were part of the roundtable as well. I also noticed the focus from the faculty members was their interest in improving the educational experiences of their students through investments in equipment and state-of-the-art technology," she added.
Linghong (Lily) Li, associate professor of physics, told Assemblywoman Jenne that was one of her major concerns.
"There’s a lack of resources for decent and up-to-date technology. In science, you need that equipment for learning," she said.
Assemblywoman Jenne said a recent donation to the college – announced a day after the roundtable discussion – will help address that concern.
Donald (Hon. ’54) and Kathryn Kofoed Lougheed ’54 have pledged $5.25 million, the largest gift commitment in the college’s 201-year history, to support applied learning initiatives at SUNY Potsdam.
In order to impact the greatest number of students and contribute to the transformation of the college’s curriculum, the gift will be used to support faculty and staff activities that improve their ability to facilitate student participation in high impact and applied learning activities.
This includes, but is not limited to, curricular transformation, laboratory materials and equipment, transportation costs, professional development, course releases, travel delegations and new program development.
Funds will also be used to directly support students’ involvement in activities that allow them to apply theoretical learning outside the classroom environment, such as internships, national and international study abroad opportunities, student research, field experiences, creative projects, service learning and entrepreneurship.
Assemblywoman Jenne said the Crane School of Music and teacher education training are the best known programs on the SUNY Potsdam campus, but she noted the math, science and computer science majors typically make up between 21 to 25 percent of the college's undergraduate students.
SUNY Potsdam ranked second among SUNY Comprehensives for the proportion of students enrolled in STEM fields in three of the last four years. This is especially impressive when compared with other arts-centric campuses, which average between 11 and 13 percent.
There was also a lengthy discussion about diversity in the math and science programs on campus.
Over the past five years, females with STEM majors account for between 15 and 19 percent of the student body, while males make up between 31 and 34 percent of the student body. Those ratios carry over to the workplace.
"For instance, in mathematics in this country we are looking at a pyramid," Victoria Klawitter, chair of the college's Mathematics Department, pointed out.
"As you go up in the pyramid, you see fewer and fewer women. We’re looking at how to increase the number of women and minorities in our programs," she added.
Dr. Klawitter also pointed out the American Mathematical Society (AMS), the largest professional organization for mathematicians, released rankings of institutions producing bachelor degrees in mathematics in the summer of 2016 that ranked SUNY Potsdam among the nation's first 50 institutions based on the combined total of math-related bachelors degrees awarded per 1,000 FTE undergraduate enrollments for Academic Year 2012–2013.
"Our math program is nationally recognized for what we are doing on this campus. We want math majors be able to do dance, art, pursue all their interests. This is an amazing institution," Dr. Klawitter stressed.
Martin Walker, a chemistry professor, said some programs have a higher percentage of women in their classes than other majors.
"We see about a 50-50 male-female ratio in our chemistry and biochemistry classes," he said.
But Tanya Hewitt, exercise science program coordinator, said there are definitely gender issues in the field of exercise science.
"There are a good number of women in PT (physical therapy) and OT (occupational therapy), but a very low percentage of women in strength and conditioning and athletic training," she said.
She said women can face struggles seeking to gain credibility, for example, advising men on strength and conditioning training.
"You can have all the experience and credentials, but you have to overcome being a female," she acknowledged, noting that was based in part on differences in body size.
Dr. Rygel said the issue of retaining women in the field of science needs to be a priority. "We need to make sure there are policies in place that don't penalize biology," he suggested.
Assemblywoman Jenne said state lawmakers have addressed the issue of challenges facing women and men in the workplace in recent years, recognizing the challenges of mixing work and caregiving needs.
"We are doing that in the state at the policy level. We passed paid family leave legislation earlier this year and that bill was signed by the governor," she said.
The roundtable discussion also included discussion about the needs for more funding to allow the college to do more outreach.
Assemblywoman Jenne asked faculty members about their efforts to market their programs.
Jan Trybula, biology department chair and associate professor, said they host college high school laboratory days and science olympiads. He said SUNY Potsdam picked up a regional science fair last year.
SUNY Potsdam hosted the inaugural Terra Northeast Regional Science and Engineering Fair (TNRSEF) last March for students in grades 6 through 12 for students from Clinton, Essex, Franklin and St. Lawrence counties.
Faculty members also suggested science needs to play a more prominent role in the elementary school curriculum.
Assemblywoman Jenne said she was aware from her own children's experiences that teachers simply have a limited time - –due to other priorities in the curriculum and state testing - – to work science into their already packed school day.
Sara Bier, an assistant professor in the Geology Department, suggested there needs to be more of an effort to introduce science to younger students.
"Kids are scientists when they are young. They are constantly making observations, but we kind of squelch that interest when they get into school," she said.
Assemblywoman Jenne said she was also heartened to hear the comments about the college's math and science programs from students taking part in the roundtable discussion.
Sydney LaPan, a biology major from Ballston Spa, acknowledged she struggles in the classroom, but she said she has developed relationships with her professors and has found her niche working on research projects, including work at the WISER greenhouse. Fellow student Toni Wahl also shared that enthusiasm about working in the greenhouse.
Dr. Walker said students graduating from SUNY Potsdam are enjoying success once they leave campus.
"I'm very proud of our students. We had a very large graduating class in chemistry last year. We have two graduates pursuing their doctorate degrees at Cornell, and a student studying toxicology at the University of Rochester. We have everything from North Country farm kids to students from all sorts of backgrounds," he said.
IN THE PHOTOS:
TOP PHOTO:
SUNY Potsdam students Sydney LaPan (center) and Toni Wahl (right) visit with Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne about their experiences working at the WISER (Wagner Institute for Sustainability & Ecological Research) greenhouse.
BOTTOM PHOTOS:
Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne (right) talks with Sydney LaPan (foreground left) and Toni Wahl (background left) about their experiences in math and science programs at SUNY Potsdam.
Sara Bier, an assistant professor of geology at SUNY Potsdam, discuss the need to increase science offerings for elementary-school age students.
Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne recently took part in a wide-ranging roundtable discussion with faculty members from the science and mathematics programs at SUNY Potsdam. Pictured are (l-r): Page Quinton, assistant professor, Geology; Michael Rygel, department chair and associate professor, Geology; Assemblywoman Jenne; Jan Trybula, department chair, associate professor, Biology; and Rachel Wallace, professional staff, Biology.
Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne recently took part in a wide-ranging roundtable discussion with faculty members from the science and mathematics programs at SUNY Potsdam. Pictured are (l-r): Page Quinton, assistant professor, Geology; Michael Rygel, department chair and associate professor, Geology; Assemblywoman Jenne; Jan Trybula, department chair, associate professor, Biology; and Rachel Wallace, professional staff, Biology.
Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne, far left, and Michael Rygel, department chair and associate professor, Geology, far right, discuss the role of females in leadership roles in STEM programs at SUNY Potsdam.
Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne recently had a roundtable discussion with faculty members from the biology, chemistry, geology, physics, exercise science and mathematics departments at SUNY Potsdam. Pictured are, front row (l-r): SUNY Potsdam students Sydney LaPan, Toni Wahl, Sara Janus and Miranda Yates. Second row: Martin Walker, professor, Chemistry; Sara Bier, assistant professor, Geology; Assemblywoman Jenne; Linghong (Lily) Li, associate professor, Physics; and Lawrence Brehm, associate professor, Physics. Third row: Michael Rygel, department chair/associate professor, Geology; Page Quinton, assistant professor, Geology; Tanya Hewitt, Exercise Science Program coordinator; Victoria Klawitter, department chair/professor, Math; and Jan Trybula, department chair/associate professor, Biology. Missing from photo: Fathima Nazeer, assistant professor, Chemistry, and Rachel Wallace, professional staff, Biology.
