Seawolves Fans

Old Chem is now... Frey Hall
http://commcgi.cc.stonybrook.edu/am2/publish/General_University_News_2/What_Was_Old_is_New_Again_SBU_Commemorates_the_Opening_of_Frey_Hall_A_High_Tech-Dedicated_Classroom_Building.shtml

youre right!  someone is reading!!! 

CEWIT - Center for Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology

That is located in the Stony Brook's Research & Development Park on Stony Brook Rd. Opened a few years ago.

Thank you Chairman.  I for one agree that the school needs to make a better effort in getting the football games to be a destination "event" for the students.  regardless of whether they go home on the weekends, or if they are commuter students, they can "get" the spirit of football and return to the games because their friends will be there, and it will be a "good" and "safe" and "orderly" time.  Also, with the heavy influx of Asian and other forgein students to SB, I wonder if football is just not part of their culture, so they could care less about attending the games.  in my mind, Homecoming is a no-brainer, it should be heavily attended by the community and the students.  what is disappointing to me is to see the other home games at La Valle consist of about 1/2 capacity or less crowds. that is just outright pathetic.  when our kids roll into any other CAA venue, the stadiums are rocking. Even the Rhody game last year, that I attended, they had a near capacity crowd.  we can do better at SB, I challenge the school, the student body and the athletic department to find a way to get it done.

Its amazing... All the points that Chair stressed are basically things that I found in my visits to UConn. As everyone knows by now... my gf attends Connecticut.

Its amazing how good of a job UConn does to build school spirit. I remember her freshmen year they grouped all of the freshmen in the crappiest dorms on campus (North Quad)... so crappy that I told her "I would never live in such conditions"... But you know what? The kids didn't complain.... They *****ing loved it. Sh*t would get wild in North Quad and those kids surely build a great relationship early on. Additionally, it kept their expectations of college to a reasonable level. They started out in the worst dorms all together, so no complaints of bathrooms (because no one has seen any better), crappy ceilings, and small dorms.

One thing that I experienced at SBU, is that many students get so much (especially for the cheap price) yet they always remain dissatisfied with their college experience and that's because there is little spirit across the campus. If there is campus spirit you start to forget about the $15k tuition, the student loans, the small dorms, and the crappy classes you have to deal with,  etc, etc.

So yes, the responsibility lies on the University to build an environment that promotes unity and spirit across the student body. The few of us that came out of Stony Brook with tons of school pride are those that were either marching band, involved in clubs, attended athletic events, and build strong friendships. The University has to take charge. I'm afraid that getting USG involve its only going to make things worst. Students are not gonna like the fact that all freshmen are grouped together in one quad and they'll probably vote against it. Some decisions to make improvements need to be made unilaterally.

Also, when it comes to dining halls. God sakes... Stony Brook can do better. We are a research university with 10,000 students that live in campus. Screw the itemized system they have in place that pretty much its meant to serve the commuter. Make it all-you-can eat  buffet so that students don't starve at the end of the semester. Change the dining hall system to avoid the long lines to get your food and then another long line to pay for your food. These things impact the community, and trust me, it makes a difference. By the time most kids graduate, they hate Stony Brook and food has to do a lot with it.

I can say that taking those trips to UConn those weekends made me more proud of Stony Brook because Stony Brook a ton of potential to improve, its a great school with even a better reputation than a school like UConn. But we just have to a better job at selling it. I myself set out to build some school spirit, and to mobilize my friends to attend the games and get involved. We had a blast, we got trashed, but those memories will never fade. But the average stony brook student never experiences that.

One additional thought is: Stony Brooks needs to become more diverse in its selection of students. I understand the school's mission is to serve Long Islanders... But its a public state university. It should be targeting kids from Western New York, The Capital District, Central New York and the Lower Hudson Valley... focusing on NYC kids and Long Islanders who live 30mins-2hrs away from home kills the vibe on campus.

My best buddies in college came from the middle-of-nowhere-NY.... it doesn't matter whether they are asian americans or whatever... those people party too but they need to come from other areas of NY, not just downstate. Also, I don't mind having a sizable international community. Those international kids actually get quite involved. My rommie was from Bangladesh, and I had a ton of fun with that guy. We drank, we smoked, we studied, we partied, it was awesome

Lastly: Please please. Demolish the current Student Union. A school like Stony Brook should have a respectable center for student life. The current union is disgusting, and it really summarizes student life at Stony Brook. We can do better. I mean, look at our peers (Penn State, UMass, Maryland, Ohio State, UCLA, UC Berkeley, UConn) with the impressive Student Unions while we have a crappy old building. That building is beyond repair and the administration is looking to make a renovation instead of knocking it down.

Make a new Union 3 or 4x the current size where you can house an impressively large food court (for a school with 24k students), make it the home of USG, add a sports TV lounge, Game room, ballroom, a legit Friday night movie screen, etc, etc. The current union is a perfect location (near the arena and stadium) so it can be built there again


Not everything is depressing though. We have achieved a lot since I first became a freshman back in 2007. I'm extremely proud of Stony Brook's accomplishments and I wouldn't change my experience at SBU for nothing. But there is no doubt that there is a lot work left to do. Stony Brook has the potential to be a Penn State or an Ohio State. Our academics are at par already, we just have to work on everything else that makes college memorable. As alumni, and community members its our job to be supportive also through athletic events, donations, and booster blogs, creating enthusiasm, and Rewriting wikipedia (has anybody looked at the makeover I've done to the Stony Brook related articles in wikipedia. I've put a lot of effort to write the articles in a neutral POV but with as much info as possible about the university)

I love SBU, and I'm sure we all do. So lets keep writing and maybe the administration takes a look at the board from time to time...

This forum is  really has grown  I went to   Buffalo State years ago.  Their  Student Union of today is gorgeous. They really did a nice job  and they are a state  college not a global research university.  Things can change at SBU  we just need voices.  If you go on the Buff St virtual  tour  check out the union which is still the center of campus life.

Maybe we can put these ideas on paper and start lobbying. We can do it right. We are nice group of passionate fans of Stony Brook. We can send out emails. No? Wouldn't it be great...

good to see there is someone as crazy as i am...

i like a lot of these ideas and i encourage more.  crazy eddie yes money is an issue but we have an annual budget; its time to manage it better, which is to say we have matters of more urgency than others.  its mismanaged just like our federal, state, and local govt. 

today i saw mud and dirt fields everywhere.  its unsightly and needs to be fixed.  the SB Arena is unbelievable though.  and there are big plans for the atrium just outside the main entrance. 

i think before they spend on anything- they need to marshal resources and improve the social atmosphere.  that means, to me, things like the visitor center are great, but room and $ should be used to create a college town.  visitor center is a great idea though.

youre right that the union should be more centered and the area where ESS is is a great idea.  and yes it does block the academic mall!  they can even move that parking lot easily, as, its a parking lot.  grass or new union sounds great to me.  yes it needs to be more centered to the south dorms, and thats the perfect spot near the arena.  and when they condemn the union, that will open up more prime space.  pubs and restaurants?  houses?   

agreed on making the academic mall grass.  sure it will raise maintenance costs but this is one of those things that has to be done.  example:



we can afford to knock down a building here and there.  we have more than enough buildings to house students temporarily while one gets flattened. 

for F, they are planning on putting an SB athletics store in the atrium where the old concessions are in the arena.  it should be connected to the arena.

also i agree that we need an alumni association, but not yet, not at the cost of something can improve the social interaction of current students at the brook.  i love your idea of replacing the union with houses, pubs, cafes, restaurants, etc.  Your idea to overhaul toll drive is great too.  it should be a destination; not a thoroughfare.

we have to dream it before it becomes a plan.

Really something to work toward !