Alfred State reflects on top stories for 2017

As 2017 comes to a close, Alfred State is taking a look back at some of its biggest stories from the year.
The following are some major highlights, in no particular order, from 2017:

• The college held ribbon-cutting ceremonies to celebrate the opening of several new facilities, including the Micro-Nano Fabrication Laboratory, a locker room structure at Pioneer Stadium, and the Motorcycle and Power Sports Technology Building.
• Thanks to the generosity of 954 donors, Alfred State’s second annual Day of Giving exceeded goals with $152,788 raised.
• Three new programs were added: construction supervision (BTech), criminal justice (BS), and healthcare management (BTech).
• The culinary arts program added new equipment to the bakery’s storefront, a new walk-in freezer, and menu additions to the Refinery Restaurant for farm-to-table and healthier choices.
• Students completed construction on the 54^th house that the college has built for the Wellsville community and the home is sold. Construction on house 55 is now underway.
• The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) awarded $1.5 million to Alfred State for its Biorefinery Development and Commercialization Center.
• Student Nathan DeMario (mechanical engineering technology, South Wales) was named the co-inventor on a patent application for a revolutionary new cooling system.
• The Nursing Department graduated its 50^th anniversary class in May.
• Alfred State continues to excel in the US News & World Report’s Best Colleges list. Among all Northern Regional Colleges in an 11-state region, ASC is ranked No. 14 overall, No. 6 for public schools, and No. 1 for all SUNY institutions in the category. US News also ranks the college the No. 3 Best College for Veterans when listing public colleges in the north.
• For the first time ever, Alfred State hosted a bulls and barrel rodeo during Homecoming and Family Weekend.

Other notable highlights from this past year include the opening of the college’s new tubing hill, student Justin King’s team coming in fourth place in the governor’s “Making College Possible Coding Challenge,” former President John Anderson being honored with a portrait in the Student Leadership Center, and the Basic Utility Vehicle (BUV) Team earning a second straight first-place finish in the annual intercollegiate BUV Design Competition in Batavia, OH.