About the Capital Region

The Capital Region includes the city of Albany - the state capital of New York - and surrounding cities and towns, such as Rensselaer, Troy, Saratoga Springs, and other suburban and rural communities. Albany's location - in "upstate New York" (versus "downstate New York," or what's more popularly known as the New York City area) - is ideal in its bridging of urban and rural communities and of local and state governments. Albany is a multiracial and mixed-income city that provides ample opportunities for community engagement and social activism and immense travel to various neighboring big and small cities, as well as picturesque neighborhoods and rural towns in both New York state and New England. While UAlbany students have made a name for themselves as partygoers - taking advantage of the many bars, clubs, restaurants, coffehouses, and other social venues in the area - the Capital Region is also filled with a variety of arts centers, museums, and galleries. The GSO (Graduate Student Organization) routinely offers graduate students free and discounted tickets to several arts events throughout the school year (consult the GSO office). Below is a list of local community groups, organizations, and arts venues.

Local Community and Activism | Arts and Entertainment | Places to Visit | Women's History

Local Community and Activism

Albany Area NOW - local branch of NOW (National Organization of Women) advocating women's rights through political lobbying and grassroots organizing, located in downtown Albany.

Albany Girls Club, Inc. - a non-profit organization serving the youth in Albany and Rensselaer, located near downtown Albany on Western Avenue.

Albany Social Justice Center - local grassroots community organization committed to ending oppressions and advancing social change, located in downtown Albany on the corner of Central Avenue and Henry Johnson Boulevard.

Capitalize on Community - a 5-year collaborative HIV-Prevention community development project between University at Albany's Department of Sociology, School of Public Health, and the School of Social Welfare in partnership with local health and community centers, specifically focusing on HIV-Prevention in African American and Latino communities in the Capital Region.

CDGLCC (Capital District Gay & Lesbian Community Council) - an organization serving the Capital Region's LGBT community, including programs, support groups, and cultural events.

Capital District Underground Railroad Workshop - a local educational outlet that organizes walking tours of historic locations and an annual conference, scheduled each February, to highlight the history of the Underground Railroad in Albany, New York.

CRAAB! (Capital Region Action Against Breast Cancer) - a non-profit, community-based organization that has as its mission the eradication of breast cancer through education and advocacy. Contact Prof. Bonnie Spanier, Women's Studies Core Faculty and CRAAB! Co-President, for more information: spanier@albany.edu.

Holding Our Own/Women's Building - a women's foundation that issues grants for local activism focusing on women and girls, including a partnership with the Women's Building - the only community center in the Capital Region that houses offices and cultural activities for women and girls, located in downtown Albany on Central Avenue.

In Our Own Voices - an organization that serves the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered people of color in the Capital Region.

NYSCASA (New York State Coalition against Sexual Assault) - local organization providing services, including rape crisis programs, education, and awareness of sexual assault, located in downtown Albany.

Popular Technology Workshops - local action in Troy and Albany that bridges education and activism while exploring the impact of high-tech development on employment, living wage, social services, and social justice organizing. Contact Prof. Virginia Eubanks, Women's Studies Core Faculty and Founder of the workshops, for more information: veubanks@albany.edu.

Sanctuary for Independent Media - a local community media arts center in Troy, New York, providing facilities for performances and film screenings, training in media production, and a meeting space for artists, activists, and independent media makers.

Save the Pine Bush - a volunteer, non-profit organization devoted to environmental justice issues, specifically saving the Albany Pine Bush, a globally rare ecosystem in New York State. Similar local organizations include the Arbor Hill Environmental Justice Corp, which highlight issues of environmental racism in working class and working poor neighborhoods.

Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood - local branch of Planned Parenthood, serving the women and men of the Capital Region seeking health services promoting reproductive choice and education, located in downtown Albany on Lark Street.

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio - local radio station, located in downtown Albany on the corner of Central Avenue and Quail Street, broadcasting public radio and offering a variety of community radio programs, including 51%, which highlights women's issue.

Women against War - Capital District organization of women devoted to peace and an end to the War in Iraq.

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Arts and Entertainment

Museums and Galleries
Albany Institute of History and Art - museum featuring local art and history, located on Washington Avenue in downtown Albany.

Hamilton Hill Arts Center - African and African American cultural arts center in Schenectady, NY.

MASS MOCA - Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in the Berkshires of Massachusetts.

National Museum of Dance - national museum highlighting American professional dance and its history, located in Saratoga Springs, NY.

New York State Museum - historical museum and research institution of The University of the State of New York, located on the south side of Empire Plaza, Madison Avenue, in downtown Albany.

Tang Museum - teaching museum and art gallery at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, NY.

University Art Museum - contemporary art museum at the University at Albany, located on the uptown campus near Collins Circle.

Theaters
Capital Repertory Theatre - one of Albany's most celebrated theater companies, bringing to the Capital Region live shows and dramatic arts, located in downtown Albany.

The Egg - Center for the Performing Arts in the Empire Plaza of downtown Albany.

New York State Theater Institute - live theater in Troy, NY.

Palace Theatre - one of Albany's central entertainment venues in downtown Albany, featuring variety shows and concerts.

Proctor's Theatre - live theater in Schenectady, NY.

SPAC - Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs, NY. Special festival events highlighting music, opera, and dance are held every summer.

The Spectrum - movie theater featuring art house and foreign language films, as well as the latest box office movies, located on Delaware Avenue near downtown Albany. Students receive discount movie tickets on Wednesdays.

Times Union Center - an arena featuring major concerts, sports games, circuses and other extravagant shows.

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Places to Visit

New York City (2.5 hours away) and Boston (3 hours away) are easily accessible by car (take I-87 or I-90) and by public transportation: Greyhound and Amtrak stations can be reached by taking Albany city buses, which are free for students carrying their SUNY cards. During the school year, Greyhound bus tickets are sold to students at discount rates at the Campus Center; the Greyhound bus also schedules special pick-ups at Collins Circle on the uptown campus for trips to New York City. Adirondack Trails buses, which venture out in the Capital Region and New England, also schedule special pick-ups at Collins Circles.

Other cities accessible by Greyhoud and Amtrak: Montreal, Canada (4 hours away), Toronto, Canada and the Niagara Falls area near Buffalo (7 hours away).

By car, scenic routes through New York State and New England (including Massachusetts, Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, and Connecticut) offer splendid views during the Autumn season and skiing opportunities during the winter.

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Women's History Places of Interest

The state of New York has been home to a number of important and famous women in history, including Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Eleanor Roosevelt, Madame C. J. Walker, and others. A few of their homes and meeting spaces are open to the public:

Eleanor Roosevelt National Historic Site - located in Hyde Park, NY.

Harriet Tubman Home - located in Auburn, NY.

Susan B. Anthony House - located in Rochester, NY.

Women's Rights National Historical Park and Elizabeth Cady Stanton House - located in Seneca Falls, NY.

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