After almost two years of offering virtual Open Houses to prospective students, SUNY Broome was able to proudly host an in-person Fall Open House on Saturday, November 6, 2021.

This year’s Open House encouraged attendees to truly explore SUNY Broome’s campus through division-based tabling in all of the major buildings on campus. Not only was this new layout more conducive with Covid-19 social distancing protocols, but it made the whole Fall Open House experience more immersive, as students could meet with faculty from all of our academic programs within their respective learning spaces. 

Associate Professor/Chairperson of Communications & Media Arts, Tim Skinner, demonstrates some of the technology in the studio.

Considering that SUNY Broome’s last few Open House events have been conducted via Zoom, the faculty and staff who represented the campus community at the Fall Open House were overwhelmingly pleased to be meeting with attendees in person. 

Professor/Chairperson of Business Information Technology, Mark Ryan, visits with prospective students.

“While I definitely miss the campus camaraderie and socialization that happens when all of the academic programs are tabled together either in the Baldwin Gym or the Ice Center, I think that this setup is ideal for hosting a socially-distanced event. We still get to personally meet with prospective students, but we are doing so in a safe way,” shared Professor Mark Ryan, Chairperson of Business Information Technology.

In conjunction with SUNY Broome’s 75th Anniversary celebrations, Open House guests were given 75th Anniversary themed giveaways and were encouraged to stop by the Gallery @ SUNY Broome to view the 75th Anniversary exhibit, which showcases a comprehensive, decade-by-decade, display of the College’s history through articles, letters, memorabilia, and photographs.

The planning and coordination of SUNY Broome’s Open Houses is a campus-wide effort. The Open House Committee, which is comprised of staff members from Admissions, Enrollment Management, and Marketing & Communications, meet for months leading up to the event to discuss and orchestrate every detail of the event. On the day of, over 300 administrators, faculty, staff, and student volunteers come together for one common goal – to open our doors and make each guest feel welcome and excited to explore a future at SUNY Broome.

Visitors who stopped by the Culinary table were treated to a cooking demonstration by student Justin Yap. During his preparation of a fresh Apple Crumble, he flambeed the Granny Smiths to heighten the wow factor of his presentation. Meanwhile, fellow culinary student, Darien House, dished out an incredible Apple and Butternut Squash Soup that kept guests asking for seconds.

Student volunteers are a huge part of the Open House team. Second year nursing student, Kaitlyn Dattoria, served as the event’s Social Media Ambassador. As the Ambassador, she curated a social media takeover and posted pictures and stories from across the Open House on all of SUNY Broome’s social media platforms. 

For some Open House visitors, this was their first time on campus, but for other guests like Johnson City High School Senior, Bill Marting, coming to SUNY Broome is a rite of passage. Bill attended the Fall Open House with his mother, Becky Marting ‘87. Bill’s parents first met as randomly assigned lab partners in a SUNY Broome biology lab.  Not only did Bill’s siblings, uncles, and aunts attend SUNY Broome as well, but his grandfather, David Rindge, was an engineering student in the 60’s, making Bill a third generation SUNY Broome student. 

Director of Admissions, Maja Szostak, happily reported that over 350 prospective guests attended the Open House. Over 10% of the attendees stopped by the Admissions Office to complete a SUNY Broome application! SUNY Broome’s Spring Open House will take place on Saturday, April 30, 2021. 

SUNY Broome’s application for both the spring and fall semesters are available on our website! Apply to SUNY Broome! The application is FREE and takes about 10 minutes to complete. If you have any questions about the application, a program of study, or about visiting SUNY Broome for a campus tour, please contact the Admissions Office at 607-778-5001. Learn about SUNY Broome’s Admission process!

View photos from the Fall Open House!

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