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More than 1,200 Return to Campus for Homecoming 2016 | SUNY Plattsburgh


Some 700 alumni and friends returned to campus for Homecoming 2016, which featured nearly 40 events on campus and in the community.

In addition to the alumni and friends who attended, more than 500 students participated in activities during the Oct. 14-15 event.

“That’s something we’re very pleased about,” said Kerry Chapin-Lavigne, associate director of alumni relations. “The majority of student participation was evident at the bonfire, but they also participated in the journalism panel career talk, the Campus March in Support of Diversity, Homecoming Fall Fest, the hall of fame induction, and the Alpha Phi Alpha Stroll Show. All in all, we had more than 1,200 people — students, alumni, faculty, staff and friends —participate in the weekend.”

In its second year, the bonfire was a success once again, Chapin-Lavigne said. This year’s inferno brought students and alumni together for cocoa, popcorn, peanuts and music. New this year was the Plattsburgh State Gospel Choir, which gathered around the fire to sing the college’s alma mater.

The fire, held Friday night behind Memorial Hall, was bordered again along the Saranac River Trail by the showcase of banners decorated by students from campus clubs and organizations, residence halls and athletic teams. First-place winner was the Vietnamese Student Association; Student Nurses Association took second; and Colleges Against Cancer came in third in the cash-prize contest.

Hall of Fame Induction

According to Chapin-Lavigne, more than 250 students, alumni and guests gathered in the Warren Ballrooms as Jennifer Clarke, Matt Deshane, and Matt Kahan, all Class of 2006, Jennifer Hasseltine ’95, Wayne Lashway ’62, and Lenny Pereira ’94 were inducted into the Cardinal Athletic Hall of Fame Friday night.

And more than 150 alumni and guests returned to Plattsburgh to participate in the rugby men’s 50th and rugby women’s 35th anniversaries.

Greek life was well represented over the weekend as well. The sisters of Theta Alpha Lambda descended on campus, with nearly 200 of the sorority celebrating five decades of Cardinal connections.

And Delta Kappa Delta fraternity saw nearly 70 alumni return to celebrate the DKD alumni endowed scholarship, which was established to benefit current and future students. The DKDers pledged to double that scholarship to $100,000.

Earlier in the day, journalism and public relations alumni Maura Danehey ’14, Yessenia Funes ’15 and John James ’13 returned for the annual Department of Journalism and Public Relations panel discussion.

Northcountry Planetarium Re-Opening

And after being shuttered for the last two years for renovations and repairs, the Northcountry Planetarium opened its doors for a reception Friday and a series of planetarium shows open to alumni and the public on Saturday, including a Kids in Space show, was a highly successful addition to the roster of Homecoming activities, according to Chapin-Lavigne.

Skating with Burghy in the Stafford Ice Arena, the Alpha Phi Alpha Stroll Show in E. Glenn Giltz Auditorium, and free wings and socializing at the Monopole were all widely attending by alumni and students alike.

Call to Action for Homecoming 2017

“We would like to encourage alumni groups that have special anniversaries or that want to hold a special celebration during Homecoming 2017 to contact the Office of Alumni Relations at (800) 964-1889 or to email [email protected],” she said. 

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