Awards List

The following list, in alphabetical order by the last name of the principal investigator, includes all current awards at SUNY Cortland. Each section shows the investigator name(s), project title, project performance period, sponsor name, allocated funding approved for the project, and estimated project amount over the life of the award.

 

"Development of a Statewide Inclusive Recreation Resource Center at SUNY Cortland"

  • New York State Developmental Disabilities Planning Council
  • Anderson, Lynn - Recreation & Leisure Studies
  • 1/1/07 - 12/31/10
  • Award: $525,000

The purpose of this Award is to sustain a Statewide Inclusive Recreation Resource Center (IRRC) at SUNY Cortland. This mission if the IRRC is to promote and sustain participation by people with disabilities in inclusive recreation activities and resources throughout the state. The mission will be achieved through: 1) educating future recreation and park professionals in best practices in inclusive recreation; 2) developing collaborative and ongoing relationships with self advocates with developmental disabilities, local and state recreation agencies, and the IRRC, to initiate systems change that is sustainable and relevant; 3) assessing the availability of inclusive and accessible recreation opportunities in the state with rigorous tools and protocols, and cataloging the results in a user friendly, sustainable online database, in collaboration with other recreation and self-advocacy agencies; 4) developing and sustaining a referral service that helps people with disabilities and their families find services and facilities for the recreation activities they desire, and assisting them in accessing those resources; 5) providing technical assistance to recreation providers to help them move toward more inclusive models of recreation service delivery; and 6) carefully studying, through a rigorous research/evaluation design, best practices in improving inclusion in recreation for people with developmental disabilities.

"Math Plus"

  • New York State Education Department
  • Barduhn, Marley - School of Education
  • Miller, Deborah - Coordinator
  • 2/1/08 - 10/31/08
  • Award: $74,056

Math Plus is a Migrant Education Program Consortium Incentive Grant designed in response to substantial needs identified in migrant students in the lead state of Texas and the consortium receiving states of Arkansas, Illinois, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, and Wisconsin. The goal of Math Plus is to increase migrant student achievement in mathematics by operating a multi-state consortium aimed at offering high-quality curriculum, instruction, professional development, and innovative uses of technology through interstate and intrastate collaboration. Beyond offering a high-quality curriculum in both classroom and home-based settings, Math Plus will achieve success by aligning intensive professional development, innovative technology tools to support the delivery of instruction for teachers and students, and meaningful parent involvement activities and materials to enhance student achievement.

"Migrant Education Outreach Program 2007-2008"

  • New York State Education Department
  • Barduhn, Marley - School of Education
  • Miller, Deborah - Coordinator
  • 9/1/07 - 8/31/08
  • Award: $856,004

The Cortland Migrant Education Outreach Program (MEOP) was established in 1978 after an intensive needs assessment of the migrant population was completed in the Central New York area . Over the past 25 years, SUNY Cortland's MEOP program has provided educational and health services to thousands of migrant children and their families. The project is coordinated by Ms. Deborah Miller and currently is the fourth largest MEOP in the state, providing direct services to approximately 1,313 migrant students in 2000-01. Each year the Cortland MEOP has been evaluated during the summer and school year program by the State Education Department peer review team and each time the program evaluations have been extremely positive. The Cortland MEOP currently has a staff of 23. Over two thirds of the Cortland MEOP staff have between 6 and 24 years of experience working in Migrant Education. The MEOP staff provides direct tutoring, ESL, advocacy, family literacy, secondary credit exchange, interstate cooperation, Portable Assisted Study Sequence (PASS), High School Equivalency Program (HEP), agency coordination and/or referral, preschool education and career exploration. Secondary students have attended programs such as WIN (Women in the Nineties), GAIN (Getting Ahead in the Nineties for boys), Leadership School and Adolescent Outreach Program activities. During the summer, three summer schools have been conducted, in Wayne County, Cayuga County, and Cortland County. A Summer In Home Program services the remainder of the program areas. Additionally, MEOP hosts one of the three Family Centers in New York State which is located on campus. Parents visit this Center to hone their own skills (GED), make educational activities with their children, have access to computers, conduct research, etc.

"Documentation of Macrofungal Biodiversity in Tropical Cloud Forests on the Highest Peak in Belize"

  • National Geographic Society
  • Baroni, Timothy- Biological Sciences
  • 8/15/07 - 9/1/07
  • Award: $11,725

In August of 2004 a 10 day scientific expedition utilizing helicopter drop and retrieval by the British Forces Belize to one of the highest, if not the highest peak in the Maya Mountains of Belize, produced 20-30 new species of macro Basidiomycetes (fungi), including at least one new genus from over 400 fungal collections documented in the field and preserved for later study.  Our team, made up of three mycologists, was able to join that 12 person scientific expedition because we were working in Belize at that time studying the biodiversity of Basidiomycota under the auspices of a National Science Foundation (NSF) funded project.  Unfortunately, the expedition coincided with an abnormally dry period, and not typical for what should have been a wet cloud forest.  Our mycology team could easily have found double or triple the number of these ephemeral organisms in more favorable conditions.  We have been offered a second opportunity to explore this cloud forest for new and rare fungal species in August of 2007.  The Director of the Belize Zoo, Biologist Sharon Matola, has secured the services of the British Forces Belize to again, clear a landing site on the top of the mountain, set-up a temporary work area with tables, chairs, tarps, etc. and carry in 12-15 scientists to continue the exploration and documentation of the biodiversity of this pristine cloud forest in Belize.  On that upcoming expedition that Conservation Biologist Matola is organizing, there will be scientists collecting and studying the plants, frogs, snakes, birds, butterflies/moths and if we join the group, fungi.  We are asking for support to help us return to this biologically highly diverse site, to continue our research work on documenting the diversity of macrofungi (Basidiomycota and Ascomycota or mushrooms, polypores, coral fungi, tooth fungi and their relatives and cup fungi) in Belize.  We believe a second trip into this site would double or triple our growing list of new species of macrofungi found in this one small refugium-like area in Belize.  We could well discover more new genera of fungi, but will certainly, without a doubt, bring back many new species.

"Cortland Area Early Childhood Professional Development Service"

  • New York State Office of Family and Children Services
  • Bridge, Heather - Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • 9/1/06 - 8/31/08
  • Award: $148,297

This goal of this project is to improve the delivery and quality of childcare and educational services offered to preschool children in public, private, and not-for-profit early childhood settings in the Cortland area by creating the Cortland Area Early Childhood Professional Development Service. This goal will be achieved by offering professional development services to meet specific needs of early childhood educators who host SUNY Cortland students for a 75-hour preschool experience. The key aspect of this program is that educators and practicum students will receive professional development services together in their early childhood settings. This approach will improve upon existing practice by: 1) ensuring that educators and practicum students use the same educational practices shown to be effective by current research; 2) helping educators deal with problematical areas of their curriculum, using action research; and 3) enabling educators to be good role models and supervisors of practicum students. The SUNY Cortland Early Childhood Program and the Cortland Area Childcare Council will collaborate in order to provide the professional development services, thereby ensuring due emphasis on both education and care.

"Cortland Center for Economic Education"

  • Appalachian Regional Commission
  • Burke, Kathleen - Economics
  • Phillips, Timothy - Economics
  • 7/1/07- 12/31/08
  • Award: $122.480

This project will establish the Cortland Center for Economic Education (CCEE) for the purpose of providing entrepreneurial education and training for New York State teachers, students, business persons, and Cortland County’s current and future workforce.  This CEE is part of a multi-pronged outreach effort linking the College with the community and will be located at the Main Street SUNY Cortland facility.  The goals of the CCEE are to: 1) improve the job-skills level of Cortland area workforce; 2) improve Economic and financial literacy of local area teachers and students; 3) provide a resource library for school aged curriculum development as well as workforce training and management; 4) train SUNY Cortland interns to assist with CCEE functions; and 5) develop a network of local area teachers, business and non-profit organizations affiliated with the CCEE.  Overall, this project will impact some 300 adults and 500 students throughout the region over an 18-month project period.

"Teacher Opportunity Corps Program 2007-2008"

  • New York State Education Department
  • Burns Thomas, Anne - CURE Program
  • 7/1/07- 6/30/08
  • Award: $31,913

As one of the largest teacher certification programs in New York State, SUNY Cortland impacts hundreds of preservice and inservice teachers each year. The goal of this four-year project is to institute a program focusing on the preparation of teachers for work in urban schools. Teacher education programs throughout the nation have instituted a variety of reforms to prepare teachers for successful experiences in urban schools. SUNY Cortland's program aims to develop a program that incorporates strategies proven successful in existing urban teacher education programs and that fully addresses New York's commitment to teaching to higher standards. This program provides scholarship support to teacher candidates from underrepresented groups who are committed to teach in urban schools; provides a developmental teacher education program wherein students take courses focusing on urban and multicultural education, methods courses incorporating New York state teaching and learning standards, and field experiences in urban schools; collaborates at local levels with the Syracuse City School District for early field and student teaching experiences beginning in the first year and, as part of a broader SUNY Urban Teaching Initiative, with the New York City Department of Education for student teaching experiences by the fourth year; provides professional development opportunities and support for teacher mentors in collaboration with SUNY Cortland's Center for Educational Exchange; and promotes successful placement, mentoring and follow-up evaluation of graduates in urban schools.

"The Big Read"

  • Nationial endowment for the Arts
  • Sheila G. Cohen, Literacy/Intercultural and Gender Studies
  • Karen E. Stearns, English
  • 1/1/08 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $7,500

“The Big Read” is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the Institute of Museum and Library Services designed to revitalize the role of literature in American culture and bring the transformative power of literature into the lives of its citizens.  “The Big Read” brings together partners across the country to encourage citizens to read for pleasure and enlightenment.  In the Spring of 2008, SUNY Cortland, in conjunction with its coalition members, seeks to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the publication Fahrenheit 451.  The novel testifies to the ability of a good book to bridge time and space and continue to speak to new generations of readers.  The theses of the novel will support dialogue on topics from abridgement of personal freedoms to the omni-presence and influence of electronic media in, especially, Millennial youths’ lives.  Under the direction of Drs. Cohen and Stearns, they propose 37 “Big Read” direct and affiliated programs over a three-month period that are aimed at engaging teens and adults in reading and discussing Fahrenheit 451.  “The Big Read” principal themes are:  1) creating a “burning” desire to read; and 2) advancing civil liberties as endorsed by a coalition team that includes area schools, libraries and not-for-profit organizations.  Together with coalition members and graduate assistants, Cohen and Stearns will:  a) organize a kick-off event to communicate and excite the community about “ The Big Read” events; b) provide opportunities to engage young readers; and c) link activities throughout the community so that events incorporate and promote reading and discourse.  In particular the coalition members will focus on engaging rural audiences through schools and libraries to enlist reluctant readers.  There exists a long-standing, strong partnership between SUNY Cortland’s Literacy Department and English Education Program that seeks opportunities and strategies to both prepare SUNY Cortland pre-service teachers in current research in literacy and serve host schools.  The coalition network will focus the 2007-08 academic year theme on “The Big Read”, directing programs to improving literacy for reluctant readers and address censorship, especially in schools of high need.

"Amphibian and Reptile Conservation in New York: Investigative Research and Protocol Development"

  • NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
  • Ducey, Peter - Biological Sciences
  • 4/1/04 - 3/31/09
  • Award: $118,992

Construction of a permanent habitat module (PHM) and two wetland connections in the northwest quadrant of Onondaga Lake is complete. Further construction of similar or modified structures may be advisable, depending on the effectiveness of these structures in enhancing the local environment for increased population growth, health, and diversity of aquatic plants and animals. A post-construction monitoring period of sufficient duration is necessary to make a defensible assessment of efficacy. The purpose of post-construction monitoring is to identify the effectiveness of the PHMs and hydrologic exchange between lake and wetland waters in producing viable littoral habitat for spawning and young-of-the-year fish. This project will assess the effects of the constructed PHMs and wetland connections on habitat quality as indicated by amphibian reproduction, reptile recruitment, and bird visitation.

"Comparative Analysis of Korean and American Organization and Business Models of Sport"

  • Seoul Olympic Sports Promotion Foundation
  • Ted Fay, Sport Management
  • Peter Han, Sport Management
  • 3/1/08 - 2/28/09
  • Award: $10,000

This grant has been made to the Department of Sport Management from the Seoul Olympic Sports Promotion Foundation (SOSFO) as part of its on-going legacy activities from the 1988 Summer Olympic Games.  The SOSFO seeks to develop key international academic and industry partnerships throughout the world.  It is sponsoring Mr. Hyo-Hyoung Chung as a visiting international scholar with the Department of Sport Management to spend a year (April 2008 – April 2009) at SUNY Cortland to develop a new international project entitled:  Comparative Analysis of Korean and American Organization and Business Models of Sport.  It is expected that this grant will directly support project-related costs (i.e., travel and conference activities) for Sport Management faculty who will be working closely with Mr. Chung in his research activities.  It is expected that this grant will also assist in the further development of formal partnerships between the Department and College with key Korean universities, national sport organizations and aspects of the Korean sport industry.

"Cortland County Communities That Care Coalition Project"

  • New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services
  • Forster, Robyn - Counseling and Support Services
  • 9/15/04 - 9/14/08
  • Award: $236,400

"Challenging College Alcohol Abuse" is a cooperative effort involving the local business community, SUNY Cortland and the Cortland County community-at-large. This three-year, initiative will create a social marketing campaign and implement environmental strategies specifically targeted to reduce alcohol use and abuse for 18-25 year old SUNY Cortland students as well as 18-25 year old non-students who work and reside in Cortland County. This project is funded by the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services through the United States Department of Health and Human Services. Robyn provides excellent leadership for the SUNY Cortland campus in targeting ways to reduce alcohol use and abuse.

"Seven Valleys National Writing Project"

  • National Writing Project
  • Franke, David -English
  • 2/1/08 - 6/30/09
  • Award: $30,000

Cortland's participation in this long-term renewable matching grant brings together direct college support and national support for K-12 teachers as writers, researchers, and professional teachers.  Recently designated as a Writing Project "site," the Seven Valleys Writing Project at SUNY Cortland is committed to the belief that the best way to learn is through writing, and, furthermore, that teachers together can determine their own intellectual paths and passions.  The heart of the Writing Project is a four-week "Summer Institute" which grants graduate credit while supporting teachers' practice and study of writing in all its forms, from creative to scholarly. David Franke (Associate Professor, English and Professional Writing) is the Principal Investigator of this project.  The Seven Valleys Writing Project Planning Committee, made up of six regional educators, was pleased to recently choose and invite fifteen master teachers to its inaugural 2008 Summer Institute that runs from July 7 to August 1 of this year.  The Summer Institute, housed in the newly renovated Beard Building, is a perennial matching funds grant, serving area teacher centers, schools and districts which employ graduates of the Summer Institute to deliver high-quality writing-based professional development workshops to their faculty during the academic year.

"Carbon Tetrachloride Hydrolysis Experiments"

  • Pacific Northwest Laboratory
  • Jeffers, Peter - Chemistry
  • 1/1/06 - 9/30/08
  • Award: $109,299

The determination of hydrolysis rates of volatile organic compounds such as CCl4 is a highly specialized task in which few scientists have any experience. Peter Jeffers has a great deal of experience with this type of experiment and has published several key scientific articles examining the hydrolysis rates of volatile chlorinated compounds. Due to the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory's need for technical assistance in determining the hydrolysis rate of carbon tetrachloride at temperatures relevant to groundwater conditions at the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, Peter is investigating the development of techniques and conducting experiments in parallel with similar efforts performed on-site. The results will be used in part by the U.S. Department of Energy to help determine whether active remediation is needed for the carbon tetrachloride plume located in the 200 West Area. This work will include design and fabrication of experimental vessels, selection of experimental conditions and parameters, and development of analytical procedures.

"Infants' Use of Intersensory Cues in Operant Learning"

  • National Institutes of Health
  • Kraebel, Kimberly - Psychology
  • 8/16/07 - 7/31/09
  • Award: $156,500

This project will examine human infants' ability to utilize cross-modal information within a learning and memory task. It will also determine if there are any age-related differences in the ability of cross-modal correspondences to facilitate learning and memory processes. The long-term objective of this project is to study the role intersensory integration plays in learning and memory processes in human infants, to determine the functional significance of this role, and examine how this role changes across development.

"SUNY Cortland Teacher/Leader Quality Partnership Program 2007-2008"

  • New York State Education Department
  • Lachance, Andrea - Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • Benton, Cynthia - Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • Klein, Elizabeth - Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • 9/1/07 - 8/31/08
  • Award: $73,577

This collaborative initiative is aimed at building partnerships among the Department of Childhood and Early Childhood Education, the School of Arts and Sciences, and the Cortland City, Cincinnatus and McGraw School Districts to improve teacher education. Through these partnerships, a structure will be developed to provide activities in both preservice and inservice teacher education which combine best practices in pedagogy with strong content understandings in the arts and sciences. In addition, grant activities will attempt to address and respond to the self-identified professional development needs of area schools. Ultimately, this five-year project seeks to establish a permanent system through which college and district partners will continue to work collaboratively to support the development of quality teachers in this geographic area.

"Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Foreign Languages"

  • United States Air Force
  • LeLoup, Jean - International Communications and Culture
  • 7/6/07 - 5/30/08
  • Award: $103,889

Beginning July 2007, Jean LeLoup will serve as a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Spanish for ten months at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Department of Foreign Languages (DFF).  As a Professor of Spanish, Jean’s duties will include teaching language and culture classes to the cadets at USAFA, Colorado.  In addition, Jean will serve the DFF in a consultant capacity on issues of second language pedagogy.  This secondary role will entail conducting workshops and classroom observations with the purpose of expanding and enhancing methodological approaches currently in use. Jean was invited by the USAF based on selection criteria of being among the nations’ most distinguished civilian professors of Spanish in the United States.  Jean served the USAF in this capacity one earlier time.

"Building Smart & Good Schools: Multi-year Research, Development, and Dissemination to Help Schools Implement a New Paradigm of Character Education"

  • John Templeton Foundation
  • Lickona, Thomas - Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • 5/1/07 - 4/30/11
  • Award: $959,010

This project calls for a four-year expansion of the Smart & Good Schools: Integrating Excellence and Ethics for Success in School, Work, and Beyond that was previously supported by the John Templeton Foundation. The new work will take the Smart & Good School model to a new level of national prominence, validation, and implementation.  This four-year project will work with pilot schools and other school reform organizations to design, field-test, and disseminate the instructional materials, professional develop manuals, and assessment instruments that schools need to fully and effectively implement the Smart & Good  vision. The Smart & Good Schools vision focuses on integrating excellence and ethics, redefining “character” to give equal emphasis to performance character (needed to realize one’s potential for excellence in school, work, or any other performance environment) and moral character (needed for successful relationships and ethical behavior), and argues that the mission of every high school is to develop performance character and moral character within an ethical learning community. 

"Live from the Heart of New York"

  • New York State Music Fund
  • Little, Craig - Sociology / Anthropology
  • Kattau, Colleen - International Communications and Culture
  • Cohen, Sheila - Literacy / Multicultural & Gender Studies
  • Neal, David - Performing Arts
  • 1/1/07 - 12/31/09
  • Award: $500,000

"Live from the Heart of New York," is a two-year collaborative project comprised of seven local arts and community development partners,offering a broad spectrum of musical fare such as jazz, blues, folk and world music. The project will present a series of concerts and events incorporating a range of educational activities including composing workshops and master classes and use technology to enable "on demand" access via podcasts and broadcast.

"Main Street SUNY Cortland: Community Outreach Partnership Center"

  • J.M. McDonald Foundation
  • Little, Craig - Sociology/Anthropology
  • Kendrick, Richard - Sociology/Anthropology
  • 5/1/06 - 4/30/09
  • Award: $100,000

This grant supports the start-up phases of the Main Street SUNY Cortland project, concentrating the purchase of equipment and technologies necessary to develop quality programming in the new downtown facility at 9 Main Street. Main Street SUNY Cortland is a bold initiative, consistent with a powerful trend in American higher education in which universities are being called upon to increase the civic engagement of their students and assist in the economic development of their surrounding communities. The Main Street SUNY Cortland facility houses two classrooms on the second floor outfitted with state-of-the-art teaching technology and a ground level storefront space to be used as a multi-function space for community meetings, faculty sponsored student research projects, service learning, activities sponsored through the college's Institute for Civic Engagement and, not least important, an informal setting for college and community members to interact socially and culturally. Also on the first floor, the offices of the new Cortland Downtown Partnership represent developing college and community partnerships for mutual benefit.

"Bivalve Richness and Ecological Diversity of the End-Triassic Mass Extinction: Faunal Analyses from the Lombardy, La Spezia, and Kössen Basins of the Western Tethys (Italy and Austria)"

  • National Science Foundation
  • McRoberts, Christopher - Geology
  • 9/15/05 - 8/31/08
  • Award: $50,900

The end-Triassic mass extinction some 200 million years ago represents one of the five biggest biotic crises in Earth's history in which approximately 75% of known species became extinct. Although this event is known to have severely affected many invertebrate and vertebrate species from the marine and terrestrial realms, the precise timing, magnitude, and ultimate cause(s) of the biotic crisis remain poorly understood. By virtue of their abundance and diversity in the nearly complete Triassic/Jurassic boundary strata of Austria and Italy, bivalve mollusks can be used to test hypotheses surrounding the tempo and mode of extinction. To understand better which organisms were affected and the sequence of events in the late Triassic, this research involves an analysis of taxonomic richness and paleoecology of Triassic/Jurassic bivalve faunas of the Alpine areas of Austria and northern Italy in the Lombardy, La Spezia and Kössen depositional basins of the former Tethys seaway-an ancient shallow tropical seaway now represented by the major limestone deposits of the Austrian and Italian Alps. Two related hypotheses will be investigated: (i) following a period of ecologic stability, the end-Triassic extinction was both severe and abrupt; and (ii) bivalves within the extinction and early survival interval exhibit an ecologic pattern of selective extinction and survival. To address these questions, this two-year project involving intensive field and institutional based research will be: (i) to develop new taxonomic data on latest Triassic through earliest Jurassic bivalve-dominated faunas from the western Tethyan realm; and (ii) to develop high-resolution paleoecologic and paleoenvironmental data from identified stratigraphic sections spanning the Triassic/Jurassic boundary from five critical sections identified from the Lombardy, La Spezia and Kössen depositional basins of northern Italy and Austria. This work will involve substantial new collaborations with scientists from Italy, Austria and The Netherlands with expertise in micropaleontology, palynology, stable isotope geochemistry and regional geology, The research will also actively involve undergraduate students, both as assistants and as independent researchers and provide for their training and preparation for future graduate studies.

"Liberty Partnerships Program 2007-2008"

  • New York State Education Department
  • Porter, Gerald - School of Education
  • Rightmire, Jean - Coordinator
  • 7/1/07 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $340,647

Liberty Partnerships Program is part of New York State's initiative to develop comprehensive programs for high risk youths to complete their education and seek further education or meaningful employment upon graduation. The Liberty Partnership Program based at SUNY Cortland is comprised of fifteen school districts, three colleges, a university, and numerous community based organizations and business organizations who work collaboratively to identify and engage existing resources for identified students. Specifically, programs are geared for middle and high school students which provide variations of the following components: mentoring, tutoring, academic/career/personal counseling, case management, parenting, enrichment classes, special events/field trips, and staff development.

"Access to College Education 2007-2008"

  • ACE Consortium
  • Porter, Gerald - School of Education
  • Barduhn, Marley - School of Education
  • 7/1/07 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $52,606

ACE (Access to College Education) is a consortium of four area institutions: SUNY Cortland, Tompkins Cortland Community College, Cornell University and Ithaca College, working in partnership with 15 local school districts. The program is designed to help academically capable high school students overcome barriers to college education. Throughout the four years, students and their parents are offered a wide variety of opportunities to experience various aspects of college life. ACE is funded by the four colleges in cooperation with participating schools.

"New York Higher Education Support Center for Systems Change Research Grant"

  • Syracuse University/NYS Department of Education/US Department of Education
  • Kimberly A. Rombach, Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • Susan K. Stratton, Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • 9/1/07 - 8/15/08
  • Award: $22,062

Dr. Kimberly Rombach and Dr. Susan Stratton are the Mid-State Regional Co-Liaisons for the Taskforce on Quality Inclusive Schooling. The Taskforce is part of the Systems Change Project, a collaborative effort of the New York State Education Department's Office of Special Education Services and Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID) and higher education institutions.  This project works with regional higher educational institutions, New York State government offices and school districts to reach the following goals:  (1) to help institutions better prepare preservice teachers to teach in inclusive classrooms; (2) to assist regional in-service teachers to implement promising inclusive education practices; and (3) to work to create partnerships between schools who are using promising inclusive practices and schools that are in need of assistance.

"The American Dream Project"

  • US Department of Education / OCM BOCES
  • Sheets, Kevin - History
  • 7/1/07 - 6/30/10
  • Award: $328,419

“The American Dream Project” is a federally funded Teaching American History grant designed to enhance the professional development of K-12 teachers of American history.  Sponsored by the U. S. Department of Education, Teaching American History grants identify elementary, middle, and high school American history teachers and provide them with rigorous professional development experiences in content and pedagogy.  These grants aim to deepen teachers’ knowledge of American history and sharpen their teaching skills and practices to positively affect their students’ achievement in history.

The American Dream Project, funded for three years, works with teachers from the 23 school districts in the Onondaga-Cortland-Madison Board of Cooperative Educational Services OCM BOCES and the city of Syracuse.  Each year, the project recruits a different cohort of teachers and immerses them in the events, personalities, and ideas of a distinctive era in America’s past.  Teachers enroll in a series of graduate -style seminars, culminating in an intensive one-week summer institute.  Project historians, including SUNY Cortland faculty and other distinguished historians from around the country, lead workshops, discussions, and seminars.  Historians and pedagogy experts introduce teachers to cutting edge scholarship and showcase best practices and innovative approaches to teaching America’s past.  The project will result in a number of outcomes:  a cohort of trained teacher-leaders who can continue the work of professional development in their districts and an archive of project-created resources for teachers’ classroom use, including an innovative “podpast” collection of short history-based audio and video podcasts featuring historian interviews, virtual tours of historic sites, and tutorials.

"Teaching American History Program"

  • US Department of Education / WFL BOCES
  • Sheets, Kevin - History
  • 9/1/04 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $78,000

"Crossroads of Change" is a three-year collaboration between the State University of New York-Cortland, National Women's Hall of Fame, Women's Rights National Historical Park, Seneca Falls Heritage Area, Seneca Falls Historical Society and the Wayne-Finger Lakes BOCES. Funded by a million dollar grant through the U.S. Department of Education, the project will create an on-line professional development system in traditional American history for intermediate and high school teachers. With a focus on the period 1825-1860, bounded by the opening of the Erie Canal and the beginning of the American Civil War, the grant will strengthen the historical knowledge of teachers while providing training in historical methods and teaching strategies. On-line courses will provide professional development opportunities for more than 250 teachers in 300 school districts participating in the AccelerateU consortium.

"Healthy Choices for a Winning Future"

  • NCAA
  • Sitterly, Joan - Athletics
  • 9/1/07 - 6/30/10
  • Award: $30,000

During the first year of the program the primary focus of the "Health Choices for a Winning Future" will address problematic drinking behaviors through students' perceptions that drinking is wide-spread and essential to SUNY Cortland's campus life. This project will provide a coordinated and comprehensive delivery of programs to educate students about effective and responsible decision making concerning alcohol consumption. The second year of this project will build upon student experiences to guide the effectiveness of program delivery. There will be an increase in the peer mentor and student coordinator visibility on campus. In particular, the peer mentors and student coordinators will use SUNY Cortland's highly visible "Cortaca Jug" football game to spread healthy messages about alternative choices to drinking. Year three will include dedicated efforts to institutionalize the program at SUNY Cortland. The Athletics Department will establish regular meetings with other collaborating organizations within the College to assure delivery of educational programming well into the future.

"NCAA Division III Ethnic Minority and Women's Internship Program"

  • NCAA
  • Sitterly, Joan - Athletics
  • 8/2/06 - 8/1/08
  • Award: $44,220

The SUNY Cortland Athletics Department is the recipient of one of 15 National Collegiate Athletic Association's Ethnic Minority and Women's Internship Award: s funded in the U.S. in 2006. This two-year Award: is designed to support an intern with opportunities for learning and contributing to administrative leadership and coaching activities. At SUNY Cortland, the selected individual will work with event management, corporate sponsorships and serve as an assistant coach for one of the sports.

"The Byzantine Period at Çadir Höyük:  A Rural Community in the Byzantine Hinterland"

  • Dumbarton Oaks
  • Steadman, Sharon - Sociology/Anthropology
  • 7/1/07 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $10,000

The Dumbarton Oaks Research Center, in Washington D.C., provides grants for research on Byzantine, Pre-Columbian, and Garden and Landscape Studies. Dumbarton Oaks Award: ed a grant for continued research at the Byzantine period at the site of Çadır Höyük in central Turkey. At most other Byzantine towns and cities the research has focused on the religious and administrative areas. Almost nothing is known about how the average Byzantine farming family lived and how their fortunes changed during the long but rocky Byzantine occupation of central Turkey. The Dumbarton Oaks grant will allow us to continue our excavations in the outer town where we have uncovered a series of farm houses, the earliest established in the 6th century and the last in the 11th century when the settlement was abandoned. Our work at Çadır is designed to reveal how the vast majority of the Byzantine population managed to survive during 500 years of the peak, decline, and finally the collapse of the Christian occupation of central Turkey. Continued support from Dumbarton Oaks will allow us to make a significant contribution to the field of Byzantine studies.

"Çadir Höyük: An Agricultural Community on the Anatolian Plateau"

  • Loeb Foundation
  • Steadman, Sharon - Sociology/Anthropology
  • Marisa Cassis - History
  • 7/5/08 - 5/19/09
  • Award: $25,000

The Loeb Classical Library Foundation supports a wide variety of research including publication projects, travel to libraries or collections, and excavation expenses.  Sharon Steadman, Field Director for the Çadir Höyük excavation project in central Turkey was awardeda grant to continue work on the Byzantine periods at the site.  The grant will support continued excavation on the northern plateau of the settlement where a Byzantine farming community was situated.  We will also carry out ground-truthing magnetometry (ground-penetrating radar) work to document other subsurface architectural remains in order to outline future excavation strategies.  Çadir is one of only two sites in Turkey that offers evidence on non-elite and non-military life in the western Asian portion of the Byzantine Empire.  This grant will allow us to make substantial progress in documenting what life was like for the majority of residents who lived in the mid-to-late first millennium CE.

"Development of a Study about Uses of Passenger Rail for Tourism between Binghamton and Cortland"

  • State Appropriations Fund 2007-08
  • Todd, Sharon - Recreation and Leisure Studies
  • Anderson, Lynn - Recreation and Leisure Studies
  • 7/1/07 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $50,000

The purpose of this Senate Initiative is to develop and implement a study about the use of expanding passenger rail between Binghamton and Cortland to increase tourism, as well as operational aid for support of expanded passenger service along the New York Susquehanna and Western (NYS&W) Railroad mainline.  The study will be completed under the leadership of Dr. Sharon Todd, with assistance from Dr. Lynn Anderson and a project assistant.  The study will be completed during the academic year as a part of the graduate research course sequence, REC 601 (Fall 2007 semester) and REC 602 (Spring 2008 semester), Research and Evaluation I & II, a required course sequence in the Master’s degree program in the Recreation and Leisure Studies Department, taught by Dr. Sharon Todd.  As a part of the course sequence, graduate students, under the guidance of Dr. Todd, will review the relevant literature and best practices in historic rail lines as tourism attractions, design a needs assessment/feasibility study, obtain human subjects approval from the institution’s Review Board, implement the study (tentatively conceptualized as a phone survey of citizens in Cortland and Broome Counties, focus groups, and on-site interviews on the train during special events), analyze the data, and prepare a written and oral report with findings to be used by the New York State Senate, by the NYS&W Railroad, and by tourism officials in the affected counties.  The report will be delivered by July, 2008.  The operational aid for tourism trains will be a contractual service provided by the NYS&W Railroad.  The NYS&W Railroad will run the train for tourism destination events in Central Upstate New York, with an initial market focus on Cortland and Broome Counties.  The Maple Fest is an example of a tourism destination event that brings large numbers of people to the region.  Tourism destination opportunities and expanded passenger rail service that result from the market analysis will be promoted jointly between the railroad and local entities such as the Cortland and Broome County Industrial Development Agencies, and partners such as Binghamton University, SUNY Cortland, local Chambers of Commerce, Convention and Visitors Bureaus, Cultural Councils and more. 

"Study Habits of Thai Gifted and Talented Science Students: Implications for Education at all Levels"

  • Srinakharinwirot University, Thailand
  • Orvil L. White, Childhood/Early Childhood Education
  • 5/16/08 - 5/15/09
  • Award: $36,934

Researchers:  Dr. Orvil L. White Assistant Professor Childhood/Early Childhood Education Department SUNY Cortland, Dr. Sumalee waiyarod, Academic teacher in Physics, Mahidol Wittayanusorn School.  This research project includes a pilot study (December 2008-January 2009) with the full research project (July-August 2009) being conducted onsite at the Mahidol Wittayanusorn School and is an exploratory mixed method study (Creswell, 2002).  The research plan includes the collection of data through the use of questionnaires, teacher/student interviews and observations of the study habits of Thai gifted and talented (G/T) students. This will include Olympiad students (top 6% academic scorers) that are in residence during March and throughout the time between school years.  In this research, the study habits of G/T students in the sciences and how these students’ study habits may have changed over time will be assessed.  Results from the pilot study will guide the full research and findings from the final research will have implications for informing Thai teachers and students as to best practice for improving study habits in the new Thai educational system.  The results of this research will be useful for both teachers and students.  Understanding the findings from a study of Thai G/T students’ study habits in science would yield ideas as to how other students can improve their learning in the sciences, mathematics, and computer science.  Teachers will know how their students study and how much time is spent in studying their content areas.  These findings will also facilitate the development of ideas and guidelines on how to nurture and facilitate G/T students in these areas.  Additionally, students at other grade levels who want to improve their knowledge in science, mathematics, and computer science can adopt these habits of study.  The experiences and findings will assist in designing professional development to be given to Thailand’s secondary teachers and students through the Institute for the Promotion of Teaching Science and Technology (IPST), Bangkok, Thailand.

"2007-2008 Coordinated Collection Development"

  • South Central Regional Library Council
  • Wood, Gail - Memorial Library
  • 7/1/07 - 6/30/08
  • Award: $11,896

Funds received through the 2004-2005 Regional Coordinated Collection Development Aid program will be used to purchase needed library materials for the Memorial Library at SUNY Cortland. In accordance with Education Law 273.5, SUNY Cortland in receiving the Award: has demonstrated a continued commitment to using these and other funds to maintain or expand its effort to keep Memorial Library materials current and topical for the students and other patrons of the library. Acquisitions are consistent with the Regional Coordinated Collection Plan of the South Central Regional Library Council in Ithaca, New York.