New Student Guide To Opening Weekend
Explore UAlbany
This is your chance to explore the many opportunities, resources, and services UAlbany has to offer! Meet faculty, staff, and current students and don't forget to hand in your passport at the end of the day to be eligible for great prizes!
Schedule of Events
Session Descriptions
A Guide to Africana Studies
Marcia Sutherland & Oscar Williams
Explore the relationship between the multidisciplinary focus of the Depart. of Africana Studies and the research activities of the faculty on diverse populations in this country and overseas. Learn the usefulness of a multidisciplinary and global perspective for success in the 21st century.
Activism in College: Finding and Creating Opportunities for Social Change Work
Loretta Pyles
Were you an activist in high school and wonder how you can incorporate this important part of your identity into your college experience? Or, are you interested in activism? Come strategize with others about ways to make this happen.
Be a GREATer DANE! Be the Change!
Sally D’Alessandro, Nancy Lauricella, & Clarence McNeill
Respect. Integrity. Civility. Responsibility. What do these words mean to you? Learn and talk about what makes these values so important to our UAlbany community and how YOU can be part of "the change"!
Be Healthy, Stay Healthy!
Peter Vellis
Did you know the University Health Center provides care and services to all registered students with no cost for office visits? Meet the Medical Director and learn about staying healthy and what to do when you’re not.
Career Services – It’s NOT Just for Seniors
Noah Simon
Learn how Career Services can help you in your first few weeks at Ualbany and the importance of starting the career process early (and what can happen if you don’t).
Choice Overload! Psychology, Economics, and the Paradox of Choice
Stephen Weinberg
Do more choices always make consumers better off? How many options do you want in a supermarket, or in an investment plan? We’ll look at scholarly evidence from economics and psychology.
Computational Thinking as a Fundamental Skill
Jeong-Hyon Hwang, Siwei Lyu, & S.S. Ravi
The maturity of Computer Science as a discipline has led to the use of “computational thinking” to address important problems in many areas. This workshop will discuss the topic and present examples to illustrate its applications.
Creating Campus Connections While Living Off-Campus
Beth Conrad & Commuting Members of The Driving Force
Albany commuters share their experiences on ways to connect home life with campus life, including parking, bad weather driving, and involvement. Session ends with a "tunnel walk" to the Campus Center & the Transfer & Commuter Lounge!
Cyber Security: Exploring the World of Hackers
Sanjay Goel
The Internet has become a haven for hackers who are able to break into networks and systems at will. We will explore the world of hackers and see how and why they hack.
Don’t Get Voted off the Island
Bob Rosellini
Don’t study psychology because it is fun, exciting, and a novel way of thinking about behavior. Come learn some basic psychological principles that will not only keep you on the island but will help you excel.
Engaging Difficulty: From Experimental Texts to Touchy Issues
Eric Keenaghan
Often college classrooms confront students with texts and issues that just don't seem to make any sense . . . at least at first. Such situations test what we know about ourselves and how we make meaning of our worlds. We will talk about three kinds of difficulty you might encounter in Humanities classes: (1) experimental literatures and films; (2) racial, ethnic, religious, and other cultural differences; and (3) sex and sexuality.
Genomics and Proteomics of Cancer at the UAlbany Cancer Research Center
JoEllen Welsh
Learn how scientists at the UAlbany Cancer Research Center are developing new strategies for prevention and treatment of common cancers. We will discuss the ongoing research focused on how environmental, dietary, and genetic factors impact cancer risk. Displays will include human cancer cells, animal models of cancer, gene chips, and molecular screening technologies.
Getting it at a Glance: How Information Drives the World
Catherine Lawson
How do we make decisions with the growing tidal wave of information? Learn new ways of capturing, visualizing, sharing, and reacting to information in an effective way. Discuss how to identify the right information for a problem and how it makes a difference.
How Do You Know?
David Rousseau
In every college class, students are exposed to a breadth taking array of claims. The difficult task is not summarizing these claims. It is deciding which claims are likely to be right. How do you know?
How I See UA: Advice and Information From Past UAlbany Transfers
Kelly Lamb & Panel of Past Transfer Students
Get the scoop on the transfer experience from students who have been through it before! Past transfers will be available to answer your questions and tell you about their transition to UA.
How Many Students Does It Take To Figure Out A SUNYCard?
Michelle DiDonna & Michelle McConville
Become a pro at using your SUNYCard at UAlbany for dining, Munch Money, Podium use and much more!
How to Prevent Your College Education From Becoming a Personal “Natural Disaster!”
Michael Landin
Oceans and “Natural Disasters” are used as examples of success stories for UAlbany undergraduates. “Oceans” presents Earth’s history from formation to current critical environmental issues. “Natural Disasters” presents events that altered Earth and human history.
Kids, Crime, Punishment, and the Constitution
James Acker
Can a 17-year old murderer be executed? A 13-year old rapist sentenced to life imprisonment without parole? What does (should) the U.S. Constitution say about limitations on the punishment of youthful offenders (in contrast to adults)?
Klingon 101: Insights in the Stucture of Language
Lee Bickmore
Klingon, a language constructed for the Star Trek series, raises a number of fascinating questions about the structure of language itself. How unusual could a sound system or syntax be and still be communicative. Could humans acquire it?
NASA: What Does it Mean To Be Human?
John Delano
NASA is seeking to discover the origin and distribution of life in the galaxy. Instruments have recently been launched by NASA to locate Earth-sized planets orbiting other stars. The next step is to measure the presence/absence of life on those planets. What are the implications and meaning for whatever the results are?
Robotic Scientists: From the Ocean Deep to Deep Space
Kevin Knuth
We will explore how robots are being used in the scientific exploration of extreme environments, such as our oceans and other planets, and demonstrate how advances in machine learning are making this possible.
Secrets to Survive Your First Week of Classes
John Donoghue & Vanessa Downing
LC, ED, permission numbers, syllabi, drop date, AVN ….what does it all mean? Learn how to “speak UAlbany” and other tips to navigate your first week in college.
Storytelling with New Media
Vivien Ng
In the 21st- century university, we have available to us an array of New Media tools to present our research and/or creative endeavors. This interactive workshop showcases some of these tools.
The Good, Bad, and Ugly of Electronic Media
Clarence McNeill
Do you download music and watch movies and TV programs on your computer? File sharing is a slippery slope, and we wouldn’t want to be caught doing something considered illegal! Learn how you can avoid electronic media traps and what this all means.
The Social Origins of Health & Illness
Benjamin Shaw
Begin to investigate the root social causes of some of today’s most pressing public health problems, including cardiovascular disease and cancer, infant mortality, tuberculosis, and HIV.
The Value of My University Education for Me and for Others
Glyne Griffith
Statistical data (USA Today) indicates that in 2005 only 29% of Americans earned a bachelor's degree. Beginning with the premise that UAlbany's entering undergraduate class, the class of 2013, is already an elite group, this workshop presentation examines some of the responsibilities and expectations that accompany such achievement and privilege.
The Wheels on the Bus!
Rose Anne Dorsman, Ben Fischer, Michael Koch, Dale Hinterburg, & Brian Zell
Take a virtual ride on a UAlbany Public Bus and discover how you don’t need a car to travel around Albany. Learn how using our FREE public transportation system saves you money and helps save the environment.
UAlbany Sex Talk: What is Your Sexual IQ?
Carol Stenger
So what do college students need to know about sex and sexual health that they don’t know already? Come and find out! Test your sexual intelligence quotient and see if it is up to par! Who knows, you may even win a small prize and learn something about your sexual health.
UPD is here for YOU!
Steven Grassman
Meet your University Police Department, learn about self defense programs, meet the canine unit, and discover how we can work together to make our community safer.
Urban Landscapes: the Scene and the Unseen
John Pipkin
We will look together at some local urban scenes – including this campus - probing beneath the forms and styles, trying to uncover a little of what the built environment reveals and conceals about our culture and ourselves.
Using the University Libraries in the Google Age
Greg Bobish, Daryl Bullis, Carol Anne Germain, Irina Holden, Trudi Jacobson, & Vivien Zazzau
Library resources and librarian assistance can be critical to your academic success. Learn about the types of support and materials available in your search for the best information sources. Early familiarity with the libraries will put you a step ahead, and be a great time saver.
What is the Stock Market About?
Christophe Faugere
In the field of Finance, the topic of Investments is about understanding the factors that drive stock prices. Using online stock quotes, students will discover by their power of reasoning some of the basic factors that govern stock behavior.
What’s a Nice Philosopher Like You Doing in a Field Like Bioethics?
Bonnie Steinbock
Bioethics, including topics like abortion, assisted suicide, stem cell research, and enhancement, is constantly in the news. Learn what the ancient discipline of philosophy has to contribute to these cutting-edge issues.
Who Kills and Who Kills a Lot: Explaining Terrorist Organizational Behavior
Victor Asal
The majority of terrorist organizations kill no one while some organizations kill thousands. Why? Political Science and Public Administration professors are researching why. The reasons may surprise you.
Yiddish Music, From Nostalgia to Hip Hop
Joel Berkowitz
By examining both a traditional version and a Hip Hop reinvention of a popular Yiddish song, we will discuss features of Yiddish culture and its place in the contemporary world.
“You Do What?” Learning About Others’ Faith and Your Own
Chapel House Staff and Student Leaders
Come meet students from a wide variety of religious backgrounds. Mix and mingle as you learn about different faith traditions and what Chapel House has to offer students. FREE SNACKS!!!
Your Financial Resume
Jenny Stasack
A strong resume can help you land that dream job, but you might not have given much thought to your credit report - your "financial resume." Learn what goes on a credit report and how it can influence future career choices, finding an apartment, your interest rates on loans and more.
Questions - Comments - Suggestions?
OVPSA@uamail.albany.edu
University Hall 206 - 1400 Washington Avenue Albany, NY 12222
