SUNY Oneonta’s 2024-25 academic year is off to a successful start, with the campus community celebrating the arrival of approximately 1,500 new undergraduate and 150 graduate students and the return of more than 5,000 upperclassmen.
Campus brimmed with anticipation, positivity and blue moving bins as new first-year and transfer students and their families arrived in waves on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. More than 40 student, staff and faculty volunteers wearing “Red’s Squad” T-shirts kept things running smoothly, checking students in, directing traffic, answering questions, and helping unload and bring belongings up flights of stairs and into residence hall rooms in Golding, Tobey, Littell, Wilber, Hulbert and other halls.
Once they were settled, members of the Class of 2028—who come from 14 different states and territories from Washington to Puerto Rico, and 11 countries—began to get acquainted with campus during orientation. They connected with Dragon Guide peer mentors, learned where to find everything from academic tutoring to Starbucks, and got tips for success from faculty and staff.
Class of 2028 Fast Facts
Most popular majors: Business Administration, Psychology, Biology, Early Childhood/Childhood Ed, Fashion and Textiles, Sport Management, Exercise Science and Criminal Justice
Average GPA: ~91
Most common first names: Sophia (x18!), Emma, Ryan, Matthew, Madison and Olivia
37.4% first-generation college students
On Saturday, members of the Class of 2028 and new transfer students officially joined the SUNY Oneonta community by participating in Academic Convocation and Pass Through the Pillars.
SUNY Oneonta is celebrating its 135th year as an institution. Since its establishment in 1889 as the Oneonta Normal School, more than 75,000 SUNY Oneonta graduates have gone on to make significant contributions in the fields of art, science, business and more. The university will recognize this anniversary in a number of ways, including special speakers, events and activities. Implementation of a new strategic action plan, the “Forward Momentum Agenda,” will also begin, safeguarding continued success for years to come.
Designed to welcome new students into the scholarly community and give them a sense of belonging and unity, the Academic Convocation ceremony, held in the Alumni Field House, featured several speakers, performances by the Allie Sandt Band (made up of recent alumni) and a special bell ringing, using a bell from the university archives. Wilman Castellon Bautista, a first-year student on the men’s soccer team, was chosen to ring the bell on behalf of his classmates.
Remarks were given by SUNY Senior Vice Chancellor for Student Success Donna Linderman, Vice President for Student Affairs Tracy Johnson, faculty member Dr. Kpoti Kitissou and President Alberto Cardelle, who emphasized the university’s core value of inclusivity and asked students to commit to denouncing hate, racism and bigotry. Students held up signs and chanted together “There Is No Space for Hate at SUNY Oneonta!”
"You are here because we know that you can be successful," Dr. Cardelle finished. "You need to leave this building today knowing that, regardless of how you define success, we are here to help you, not only this year, or next, but for your entire time with us. ... I am proud you chose SUNY Oneonta. I can’t wait to see all that you accomplish, because as the summer musical hit says you are “HOT-TO-GO!"
After taking a class photo together, new students participated in the Pass Through the Pillars tradition, walking between the pillars of Old Main—the university’s first building—and into a welcoming, cheering crowd, signifying the beginning of their journey at Oneonta. They will pass back through in the opposite direction as seniors before commencement.
.
The academic semester officially kicked off with the first day of classes, Monday, Aug. 26, and a celebratory campus-wide Opening Picnic near Milne Library.
