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places to go and things to do, page 12 VISIT www.ALLOTSEGO.com, OTSEGO COUNTY’S NEWSPAPER/ONLINE
COMPLIMENTARY
Oneonta, N.Y., Thursday, May 2, 2024
Volume 16, No. 27
SUNY Oneonta Downtown Space To Support Otsego Area Learners
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ONEONTA UNY Oneonta President Alberto Cardelle was joined by state, city and community leaders on Monday, April 29 to officially open the new SUNY Oneonta Extended and Community Learning Center. Located at 2-4 Dietz Street, the ExCL Center is designed to strengthen the region by offering training for pressing job vacancies within Otsego County, officials said in a press release. SUNY Oneonta was awarded more than $450,000.00 from New York State and the SUNY system to support Otsego area learners and local workforce development through two initiatives. The new space will act as a local destination for learning, including highschool students looking to get a head-
Photo by Gerry Raymonda
DR. ALBERTO CARDELLE
start on college courses, community members who want to receive training for a new career, or new drivers seeking the five hour pre-licensing course. It will also facilitate the expansion of affordable, convenient trainings for career paths in key local industries with high needs, to fill vacancies through strategic partnerships with Bassett Healthcare, Springbrook, Pathfinder Village, The Arc Otsego and the Otsego Northern Catskill Board of Cooperative Education Services. “SUNY Oneonta is excited to open the downtown ExCL Center and position learners across Otsego County for upward mobility,” said President Alberto Cardelle. “Local business leaders tell us they have job openings and want to hire locally. As an academic institution, we can be of value and service to our regional partners by providing access to the training programs necessary to align with local needs.” Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek emphasized that the success of the City of Oneonta is tied to the engagement of its colleges in the creation of a vibrant and vital downtown. “On behalf of a grateful city, I applaud the vision and commitment of Dr. Cardelle, SUNY Oneonta, and our strategic partners, and salute the New York State and SUNY leadership for their commitment to the education and training of our local workforce, as well as for their embrace of the potential of our high-school students and community through the creation of the ExCL Center and its placement in the heart of our downtown. I am excited for our Continued on page 7
Photo courtesy NYPA
Iron String Press columnist Terry Berkson received second place last week for “Best Column, Division 3” in the New York Press Association’s 2023 Better Newspaper Contest.
Iron String Press Writers Earn Accolades from Their Peers STAFF REPORT COOPERSTOWN ron String Press, parent company of “The Freeman’s Journal,” “Hometown Oneonta” and AllOtsego.com, has received three awards from the New York Press Association. The results of the 2023 Better Newspaper Contest were announced during NYPA’s Spring Conference, held Friday and Saturday, April 26 and 27, in Albany. According to organizers, 142 newspapers submitted 2,530 entries. The entries were judged by members of the Tennessee Press Association. Of the 379 awards presented last weekend, “The Freeman’s Journal” received both second- and third- place nods for “Best Column, Division 3” as well as an honorable mention for “News Story, Division 4.”
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Columnist Terry Berkson was awarded second place for his column, titled “Life Sketches.” The three columns submitted—“Yellow Submarine Haunts Coney Island Creek,” “On the Bug Bus to San Antonio,” and “Turkey Fishing: a Christmas Story”—were described by the Tennessee judges as “entertaining, well-written columns.” Berkson has a master of fine arts degree in creative writing from Brooklyn College. His articles have appeared in “New York” magazine, “The New York Daily News Sunday Magazine, and “Automobile” magazine. He lives on a farm in Richfield Springs with his wife, Alice. “Thanks so much for the great news,” Berkson said when he learned of the award. “It makes me want to get back home to my writing table.” Jamie Zvirzdin’s “Citizen Science” columns—“False Alarms in Science and the Media: Examining Cause and Continued on page 11
Otsego Abroad
INSIDE ► happy birthday, elva! page 3
Chief Uncas Finds New Purpose on the Susquehanna
► more than 100 animals seized, page 3 ► energy demystified with jamie zvirzdin, page 4 ► show features works by mcs students, page 6 ► new facebook page for cemetery group, page 8 ► berkson on editing, page 8 ► news briefS, page 9 ► coop tennis still undefeated, page 9 Follow Breaking News On
AllOTSEGO.com
By EMILY HILBERT
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WRIGHTSVILLE, PA ave you ever wanted to take a scenic river cruise on a century-old boat once owned by a famous beer tycoon? Well, now you can. The Susquehanna National Heritage Area is preparing to hoist the metaphorical sail on its 2024 River Discovery season, featuring tours of the Susquehanna River aboard the Chief Uncas. Set to finish its regular maintenance and launch in early May, the Chief Uncas was built for beer mogul Adolphus Busch in 1912 by the Electric Launch
Photo courtesy SNHA
The Chief Uncas, once a familiar sight on Otsego Lake, is now the flagship tour boat of the Susquehanna National Heritage Area.
Company, later renamed Elco Motor Yachts. Busch used the boat to take leisure cruises at his summer estate on Otsego Lake.
It stayed within the family for decades before being used for public tours. Per an SNHA brochure, “the
Chief Uncas is 55 feet long with a 9.5 foot beam and 2.5foot draft, displaces 12 tons, and is constructed of mahogany planking with white oak ribs and frames…powered by two 4-hp electric motors and sixteen 12-volt batteries that propel the boat at 8 mph with an endurance of 8-10 hours.” It also adds that “with its well-documented family heritage, eco-friendly power, and historic association with the Susquehanna River at its source, the Chief Uncas is a fitting vessel to showcase SNHA’s mission and focus on history, environment, and the river.” Continued on page 7
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