By Elisabeth Costanzo Stewart

For the past 35 years, the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce has hosted the Broome Leadership Institute (BLI), a six month, intensive training program that connects professionals from industries across the region to expand their networks, learn about community resources, and enhance the economic and social development of the Southern Tier. The most recent BLI cohort included a member of SUNY Broome’s campus community – Senior Associate to the Vice President of Academic Affairs, Dani Berchtold. Dani now joins over 500 BLI alumni, whose collective goal is to continue strengthening relationships within the community to foster future collaborations. 

Dani Berchtold first arrived at SUNY Broome as a Liberal Arts and Sciences: A.A. student. An active member of the student body, Dani served as the student speaker during her commencement ceremony. She continued her undergraduate and graduate studies at SUNY Cortland, then Binghamton University, before transitioning to a career in human services. She held roles in residential housing for Catholic Charities of Cortland, in case management and HIV education as the Assistant Director of Prevention Services for the Southern Tier AIDS Program,  and in health care access navigation as the Director of an AmeriCorps program at Rural Health Network of South Central New York.

In 2006, Dani began working as an adjunct instructor within the History, Philosophy, and Social Science Department, based primarily at SUNY Broome’s Owego campus. She returned to her alma mater of SUNY Broome in 2014 full time to assume the position of Senior Associate to the Executive VP and Chief Academic Officer. As the Senior Associate to the VPAA, Dani collaborates with the faculty, staff, and leadership team within academic affairs to ensure the College’s academic rigor and integrity. She is involved with many projects in academic affairs and is a liaison with SUNY and New York State Education Department (NYSED) on curriculum matters. 

Dani was vaguely familiar with the Broome Leadership Institute, but it wasn’t until her SUNY Broome colleagues, Maureen Breck and Danielle Britton, shared their insights on the positives of the program, that she considered applying for a seat in 2022-2023. When building a Broome Leadership Institute class, the Greater Binghamton Chamber looks to select a balanced group of professionals from a cross-section of the community. BLI hopefuls complete an application, as well as in-person interviews. 

“I truly love my role at the College, and while I work with a lot of faculty and staff, I do not work directly with our students or with community organizations. Having worked in human services for fifteen years, participating in BLI allowed me to build on my knowledge of community based work to build potential partnerships on behalf of the SUNY Broome, which is gratifying,” said Berchtold. 

The Broome Leadership Institute kicked off their program with an immersive retreat that came with a catch. Each member in attendance was encouraged to connect with the group at large, but leave out one critical facet to their lives – where they work. 

“This team-building exercise made an impact on all of us. So much our identity centers around where we work and what we do,” she said. “After spending the whole day getting to know each other through various activities, we finally got to introduce ourselves fully at the end of the evening. Having a ‘big reveal’ moment heightened the intrigue.” 

Twice a month for the following six months, Dani and her BLI classmates participated in mini-conferences throughout the region, consisting of presentations from industry leaders, open panel discussions, and facility tours. Each day had a designated theme with a corresponding itinerary. Themes included the region’s agriculture, economic development, human services, education, sports and recreation, business and industry, government, Broome County history, diversity, arts, health care, courts and penal system, media, and more. 

“I was blown away by the breadth of the program. I thought that I was somewhat in the know about the industries and resources in our region given my previous roles in the community, but I was consistently learning new things in each meeting. It was such an encouraging and reinvigorating experience to be reminded that our region is booming and has a lot to offer,” shared Berchtold. 

For Dani, the highpoints of each BLI session were the corresponding facility tours. Throughout her time within the program, Dani had the opportunity to visit locations across the Southern Tier including Visions Federal Credit Union, the Broome County Courthouse, Lourdes’ Dental and Mammo Vans, Tri-Cities Opera, American Civic Association, Willow Run Foods, Broome-Tioga BOCES, and many more. 

“Spending six months with a group of people and learning about their work and their organizations naturally sparks ideas. It was wonderful to be able to be part of discussions and include SUNY Broome in the conversation,” said Berchtold. “Could SUNY Broome partner with your organization as a clinical rotation for students in our Health Science division? Could SUNY Broome offer some training for your employees through a microcredential or a certification? Are you hiring and are looking for recent SUNY Broome graduates? Do you need an event space that our Culinary & Event Center could provide? As the community’s college, SUNY Broome can never have too many partners!” 

As part of the program, Dani and her classmates were asked to participate in a collaborative service project. The 2022-2023 BLI cohort selected to partner with “A Room to Heal,” a local non-profit organization that provides redesigned, therapeutic spaces for children suffering from critical illnesses. The group was matched with a seven year old girl from Waverly, NY. Together, they crafted the ultimate cool kid room, outfitted with sensory toys, a montessori bed, custom lighting, and a perfectly cozy reading nook. In order to create this special space, BLI members divided up tasks ranging from designing the room, to painting, to sewing blinds, to building furniture.The recipient and her family were overwhelmingly appreciative of the efforts of the volunteers. 

Beth Richards, Dr. Kim McLain, Dr. Penny Kelly, Dani Berchtold, Marty Guzzi, Danielle Britton

As a culmination to the program, a graduation ceremony was held at the Riverdale Banquet Hall to honor the 2022-2023 Broome Leadership Institute class. Colleagues from SUNY Broome including Danielle Britton, Marty Guzzi, Dr. Penny Kelly, Dr. Kim McLain, and Beth Richards attended the celebration. 

“I am so appreciative that SUNY Broome supported and encouraged me to participate in the Broome Leadership Institute. I value the opportunity that participating in this program afforded me and I look forward to continuing to use the experience to build networks and relationships for the work that we do at SUNY Broome.”