We are looking forward to another great academic year.
As a friendly reminder, we provide lunch at most (if not all) of our events! RSVPing at the Google Form links below helps us get an accurate count for lunch orders, so please fill them out if you intend to join us.
September
Chapter Meeting
September 9 || 12:00-1:00 pm Morris Conference Center, Le Café
As you know, one of our most significant victories in the past legislative session was winning the fight to “fix tier 6.” It took a great deal of work, as we had to convince the Governor and the legislature to undertake these reforms so as to benefit our younger members and to provide the means by which SUNY could attract and retain the best professionals and academics at our campuses and hospitals.
There has been a great deal of questions and some confusion about what we won. So, to help members get the clearest explanation of what the fix means, we’ve developed a one-page document that should be distributed far and wide at our chapters.
The document is attached. It delineates the statutory changes made to the Optional Retirement Program (ORP), the NYS Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) and the NYS & Local Retirement System (ERS) pension plans. Please note that the reforms made to Tier 6 are not uniform. If you have any questions, please email or call Chris Black, the Director of Legislative & Government Affairs. Chris can be reached via email at cblack@uupmail.org or via phone at 518-640-6600. (Chapter Presidents – feel free to share this document with members).
Thanks to all of you who took part in our legislative advocacy to get this win for our colleagues. It’s a big one and will benefit around 7,000 UUPers!
You are eligible to join as long as you became a member prior to June 5, 2026. Your union membership must be confirmed before you receive the zoom link.
Don’t know your membership number? Call 518-640-6624
You can still register without the number, but you will not receive the link until your membership has been confirmed. Thank you.
By Shirley A. Clark, Oneonta UUP Chapter President
The Spring 2026 Delegate Assembly saw a powerful turnout from the Oneonta UUP Chapter, demonstrating our chapter’s ongoing commitment to statewide union governance and member advocacy. Representing Oneonta were: President Shirley Clark, Vice President for Professionals Jessie Simpauco, Secretary William Simons, Acting Treasurer Michael McAvoy, Officer for Retirees Jerianne Jerminario, and Delegates Ed Wesnofske, Political Outreach Coordinator Ethan Fox, Achim Koeddermann, Matthew Unangst, Christine Edwards, Anthony Nichols, and Penina Kamina.
A Resolution Honoring the service of Richard F. Tyler, past Treasurer, was read by the Chapter President, Shirley Clark during the Spring DA. Held in Albany from April 23–25, the Assembly brought together UUP members from across the state to discuss priorities, vote on leadership, and strengthen our collective voice. While statewide leadership elections went uncontested, the Executive Board elections saw meaningful democratic engagement. Matt Smith of ESF unseated Susan Orr of Brockport for an academic seat, and Brendan McGovern secured a professional seat that had been vacated. These elections reflect the healthy, participatory nature of our union and the value we place on member-driven leadership.
Links to take the Administrative Assessment survey have been sent out to all active UUP Oneonta members via email.
Please check the email address you have on file with UUP Statewide for these communications and take the survey at your earliest convenience!
In order to ensure a high response rate, we will be sending out additional emails prompting our members to take the survey. If you have difficulty finding these emails or require a link to the survey, please contact us from the address that you have on file with the union:
Shortly, all members of the bargaining unit will receive the survey: Quality of Professional Life & Administrative Assessment: Part II. (Part I – Quality of Life was completed and then published in 2017). Working with Senior Chapter Officers, members of Executive Board, and other senior members, Robert Compton, the Interim VP for Academics created a streamlined survey. Ethan Fox (UUP Oneonta Communications Committee) and Dr. Jen-Ting Wang were gracious with their time, advice, and technical programing. Dissemination and tabulation of the survey will be electronic and guarantees the anonymity of the respondent. Our survey is periodic and ongoing, and this is our seventh iteration and the last complete survey response rate was 48.7% (full-time).
Those to be evaluated include the Offices of the President, Associate/Vice Presidents, and Associate/Deans across all divisions. The current or immediate occupant of the position will be identified in the survey. Please note that the draft survey below is provided for informational purposes below.
The rationale for the conduct of this survey rests on several factors, amongst them:
UUP has an obligation to periodically survey its members about the quality of professional life and the performance of campus administrators;
All employees, including administrators, should be accountable and they should have the opportunity to received direct feedback on their performance;
Subordinate personnel are continuously evaluated;
UUP Oneonta has an on-going and established process and practice of periodic assessment of both professional life and the administration; and
Assessments of professional life and the administration provide useful feedback for both the administration and for UUP.
Offices to be Evaluated
The administration offices to be evaluated and the current occupants are noted (in parenthesis) below:
Chief Executive and Administrative Officers
Office of the President (Alberto Cardelle)
Office of Employee Services (Dia Carleton)
Academic Affairs Division
Office of the Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs (Enrique Morales-Diaz)
Office of the Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs (formerly Eileen Morgan-Zayachek)
Office of the Dean, School of Sciences (Tracy Allen)
Office of the Associate Dean, School of Sciences (Ursula Sanborn-Overby)
Office of the Dean, School of Education, Human Ecology, and Sports Studies (Mark Davies)
Office of the Associate Dean, School of Education, Human Ecology, and Sports Studies (Brian Beitzel)
Office of the Dean, School of Liberal Arts and Business (Jeanine Minge)
Office of the Associate Dean, School of Liberal Arts and Business (Brett Heindl)
Office of the Dean of the School of Graduate Studies (Gabriel Aquino)
Office of the Associate Dean of the School of Graduate Studies (Cynthia Falk)
Student Affairs Division
Office of the Vice President for Student Development (Tracy Johnson)
Office of the Assistant Vice President for Strategic Enrollment Initiatives (Karen Brown)
Office of the Associate Vice President of Student Affairs, Dean of Students (Michael Kush)
Office of the Associate Vice President of Student Affairs, Student Engagement (Jason Ostrowski)
Office of the Associate Vice President of Student Affairs, Residential Experience and Housing (Thomas Ragland)
Finance and Administration Division
Office of the Vice President for Finance & Administration (formerly Julie Piscitello; Interim VP Rebecca O’Donnell)
Office of the Associate Vice President & Controller (formerly AVP Rebecca O’Donnell)
University Advancement Division
Office of the Associate Vice President for University Advancement (Paul Adamo)
Equity and Inclusion
Office of the Vice President for Equity & Inclusion (Bernadette Tiapo)
Facilities, Safety, and Physical Plant
Office of the Associate Vice President for Facilities and Planning (Lachlan Squair)
This rally joins a coordinated national day of action, led by the May Day Strong coalition, bringing together workers, immigrants, students, and families in a growing list of thousands of rallies, marches, walkouts, town halls, and teach-ins.
Families across the country are facing rising costs of housing, healthcare, groceries, and child care while billionaires and corporations attack our neighbors, shred government budgets to fill their pockets, and reshape the rules to protect their power.
Tax the rich: Calling for a shift in fiscal priority so that families and public services come before the accumulation of corporate fortunes.
Fund Education, Not War and Deportation: A rejection of the diversion of public funds toward militarization and deportation efforts.
Freedom to Teach, Research, and Learn For All: A firm defense of academic freedom and free elections in a political climate increasingly hostile to intellectual autonomy.
Together, we will take action alongside workers, parents, students, and community members who are uniting to demand better, safer, and stronger communities — places that put the needs of working families first. We’re standing up for thriving neighborhood public schools, affordable housing, and access to high-quality healthcare, prioritizing people over the profits of billionaires and their corporations.
This May Day, we will reshape how our nation responds to the needs of working families by centering their lived experiences. We are building momentum toward a future that protects the rights, dignity, and well-being of everyone who works for a living.
A commitment to nonviolent action is a core principle behind all May Day events. All hosts and participants are expected to seek to de-escalate any potential confrontation with those who may disagree.
PLEASE NOTE: VISITOR PARKING PASS RESTRICTIONS HAVE BEEN WAIVED FOR THIS EVENT FROM 11:30 AM – 1:30 PM!YOU DO NOT NEED A VISITORS’ PASS TO PARK ON CAMPUS BETWEEN THIS TIME FRAME! Parking in pre-allocated visitor spaces is preferred but not required.
The campus has accessible parking, entry, and ramps. We will also have some tables and chairs for attendees. Please see the Accessible Campus Routes Map, and contact the Office of Facilities at 607-436-3224 or at facilities@oneonta.edu for more detailed information.
We have signs and posters available to pick up at our Chapter Office in IRC 105, and will have more to distribute to rally participants the day of the event!
Are you a student or community member who wants to connect with public higher education workers to learn about our concerns and priorities?Sign up to be a UUP Oneonta Rapid Responder and you’ll receive late-breaking opportunities to support the local fights that our members care about! We’ll alert you to calls for political advocacy, labor solidarity actions, ways to fight for a strong UUP contract and much more.
April 9 Professionals Luncheon Noon – 1:00 pm || Morris Hall – Le Cafe UUP Statewide Vice President for Professionals Carolyn Kube to give update on Professional Survey
May 17 UUP Oneonta Chapter Picnic 11:00 am – 4:00 pm || College Camp BBQ Chicken, Corn, Baked Potato, Vegetable Lasagna, and more! A family-friendly event – bring up to 3 guests.
Despite the date shifting to March 17 due to winter storm Hernando, the Oneonta UUP Chapter still turned out to be a strong group of members committed to advocating for investment in SUNY. A dedicated team of SUNY Oneonta faculty and professionals traveled to Albany for Advocacy Day, joining colleagues from across the state to push for meaningful funding for public higher education. Representing SUNY Oneonta were Ethan Fox, Penina Kamina, Anthony Nichols, Jessie Simpauco, Shirley Clark, and Marvin Rodriguez, each lending their voice to a unified call for a stronger, more equitable SUNY. Our team had the opportunity to speak directly with Assemblyman Brian Miller and advocate for our SUNY budget priorities. Ethan Fox stepped forward to make a video with a strong message to Governor Hochul: Tax the Rich! Meanwhile, Anthony and Marvin went on to distribute literature containing our requests to Legislatures inside the Capitol Building. Our district Senator, Peter Oberacker, unfortunately was not present at this meeting, so we followed up with an e-mail request outlining the UUPs Budget priorities for SUNY.
UUP Oneonta Advocacy Day Representatives: Penina Kamina, Ethan Fox, Jessie Simpauco, Shirley Clark, Anthony Nichols, and Marvin Rodriguez.UUP Oneonta President Shirley Clark with NYS Assemblyman Brian Miller at Advocacy Day.UUP Statewide President Fred Kowal gives an inspirational speech.UUP Oneonta Advocacy Day Representatives: Ethan Fox, Jessie Simpauco, Anthony Nichols, and Marvin Rodriguez enjoying the presentation.UUP Oneonta Chapter President Shirley Clark and Academic Delegate Penina Kamina.
Key Budget Priorities Presented by the Delegation
Campus Operating Aid
$141.8 million total, including:
$100 million in system‑wide operating support
$41.8 million in targeted aid to close structural deficits at the most fiscally stressed SUNY Campuses ESF, Buffalo State, Fredonia, and Potsdam. This funding is essential to stabilizing campuses, protecting academic programs, and preventing further cuts.
Full‑Time Faculty & Professionals
$53 million to expand and retain full‑time faculty and professional staff across all 29 state‑operated campuses This investment would help reverse years of staffing erosion and ensure students receive the high‑quality education they deserve.
SUNY Teaching Hospitals
Full coverage of employee fringe benefits and debt service costs for Downstate, Upstate, and Stony Brook for $75 million.
Requesting $82 million for Debt Service Costs.
Approve Executive Budget item maintaining Capital Funding Reappropriations. $750 million for Downstate and $450 million for Upstate Medical Centers.
Protection from federal Medicaid cuts. These measures would safeguard the hospitals’ ability to provide care, train medical professionals, and serve vulnerable communities.
Educational Opportunity Programs
$20 million increase for EOP
$5 million for Pre‑Medical EOP
Enactment of MHEOP (S.2046/A.3607) with $5 million in funding
These programs remain vital pathways for first‑generation and economically disadvantaged students.
NY Opportunity Promise Scholarship
Expansion to all SUNY campuses offering associate degrees in high‑demand fields Currently, the scholarship is limited to community colleges, leaving many SUNY students without access to this opportunity.
SUNY Research Fund
Creation of a state‑sponsored fund to offset frozen federal NIH/NSF grants This would protect faculty research independence and ensure SUNY remains competitive in securing and sustaining research talent.
A Unified Message for a Stronger SUNY
The SUNY Oneonta delegation’s presence in Albany underscored a simple truth: New York’s public universities are indispensable, but they cannot thrive without meaningful state partnership. Our commitment and strong turnout for Oneonta UUP on Advocacy Day reflects a shared assurance to strengthening SUNY; not just for today’s students, but for generations to come.
For a downloadable, printable version of this article please click here or see below:
UUP collaboration with the Indivisible movement continues in the campaign to defend an embattled American democracy. Cooperstown-Oneonta Indivisible invited UUP Oneonta representatives to participate in a small group discussion with Congressman Josh Riley (19th NYS Congressional District) on Friday, February 19, 2026, at 5:30 PM. Christ Church (Episcopal), 46 Fair Street, Cooperstown, graciously provided meeting space for this non-sectarian event.
Cooperstown-Oneonta Indivisible group leader Virginia Kennedy, a UUP member, introduced the Congressman and moderated the event. I wore a UUP red shirt and cap reinforcing that the union was in the house.
Setting the tone for the discussion, the Congressman said “call me Josh.” An Endicott native and the son of a maintenance worker, Riley graduated from Harvard Law School despite growing up in a neighborhood without professionals. His parents and boyhood neighbors are Republican, a demographic that contributes to Riley’s respect for freedom of expression. In build and demeanor, Josh Riley resembles the tall, lean, idealistic, fearless, humble Jefferson Smith as portrayed by Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. Informal in dress and styling, as evidenced in the accompanying photo, Josh wears boots that have trodden many barns.
Cooperstown-Oneonta Indivisible Group Leader Virginia Kennedy and Congressman Josh Riley
Dialogue rather than oration provided the template for interface with the Congressman. During the two hours that followed, Riley listened intently and responded candidly to a range of specific questions on diverse domestic and international issues. I shared ideas about augmenting activism on campuses. Unlike the cultish insistence on absolute conformity to the MAGA leader, enforced by threats to dissenters, the alternative, emphasized Riley, is to recognize that spirited debate and differences are ok, even healthy. Indeed, fostering civil, respectful political discourse is a Riley priority as is the defense of democracy from autocracy.
Upbringing and constituency have educated Riley to the importance of representing diverse people. The New York State 19th Congressional district comprises a large, sprawling, primarily rural/small town area, encompassing 7,848.2 square miles. It includes the entirety or parts of 11 counties, extending from Ithaca in the West past the Hudson River to the Massachusetts border. Delaware County alone is larger than Rhode Island. No party affiliation is dominant in the district, and independents are a large component of its electorate. A key swing district, the 2026 electoral outcome in the 19th will have importance to organization of the U.S House of Representatives.
From the grassroots, Riley finds that many people struggle to pay housing, grocery, medical, and education bills. As he seeks to restore a culture of respect, empathy, and dialogue, Riley believes that affordability and safeguarding democracy are common denominator issues that provide shared ground in our America.
Please join us for “The Latest on AI and Our Work: A UUP Virtual Forum.” We’ll hold sessions on March 9 and March 16 for UUP members to hear about major recent developments in AI that impact us. You can register here, and are invited to share the flyer below with UUP colleagues:
