Earth Day Marks Signing of New - SUNY Oneonta-SUNY Cobleskill Lake Management Partnership

COOPERSTOWN – On Earth Day, SUNY Oneonta and SUNY Cobleskill announced a collaborative agreement providing qualified SUNY Cobleskill students the opportunity to earn a bachelor’s degree in fisheries science while simultaneously taking classes during their senior year at the SUNY Oneonta Biological Field Station to complete their master’s degree in lake management – accelerating dual degree completion in five years, rather than six.

The Biological Field Station is a facility of SUNY Oneonta consisting of 2,600 acres with 12 major buildings that house laboratories, classrooms, conference spaces, offices and equipment for research support. The Biological Field Station supports a variety of SUNY Oneonta programs including the Biology Department Lake Management graduate program, which trains students to become effective water resource management professionals. This innovative program blends scientific training in aquatic biology, limnology and quantitative skills with professional training in project design, management, and reporting in a real-life setting, working with lake stakeholders directly or with established lake management professionals.

“Earth Day is an apropos time to celebrate the SUNY Oneonta Biological Field Station – it is unique point of pride for our campus.  The station and its scientists are an amazing resource for our students and the broader community.  The lessons we learn from Otsego Lake impact the health of lakes across New York and beyond,” said Dr. Alberto Cardelle, President of SUNY Oneonta. “We are excited about how this partnership will give access to SUNY Cobleskill undergraduates as they advance their studies with SUNY Oneonta’s lake management program.”

"This partnership between SUNY Cobleskill and SUNY Oneonta represents the convergence of student aspiration and societal need. In creating pathways from undergraduate research to graduate specialization, we're preparing the next generation of environmental stewards who will protect our vital water resources,” said Dr. Marion Terenzio, President of SUNY Cobleskill. “Our students will move between campuses with purpose, carrying forward our shared commitment to environmental science and management at a time when our natural resources face growing challenges. This Earth Day, we celebrate what higher education can accomplish when we combine our strengths in service of both student mobility and ecological sustainability."

“The agreement we are celebrating today is a product of a partnership at the field station between SUNY Oneonta and SUNY Cobleskill that has been in place for decades, said Dr. Florian Reyda, Director, SUNY Oneonta Biological Field Station and Rufus J. Thayer Otsego Lake Research Chair. “Faculty and students from both institutions have collaborated on a variety of projects over the years. The complementary strengths of biologists from both institutions have enabled us to offer opportunities that have opened many doors for our students. These students have gone on to serve the region and the country by working in the fields of conservation biology, resource management, and a variety of other fields in the sciences.”

"This partnership exemplifies what makes our two schools exceptional, that's our ability to collaborate in ways that benefit students while addressing critical environmental challenges," said Mark Cornwell, Associate Professor of Fisheries and Aquaculture at SUNY Cobleskill. "Our hands-on, experiential approach to education aligns perfectly with SUNY Oneonta's field-based training model, creating pathways for students to seamlessly transition from undergraduate studies to master's programs and then to the job field."