News Archive

Over the years, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has given numerous Rockefeller students the exceptional opportunity to get involved in advancing energy solutions through its internship program. While the day-to-day life of workforces across the world were disrupted due to the ongoing pandemic, NYSERDA was still able to give students invaluable real-world experience with its 2020 remote summer internship. NYSERDA’s Allison Capello tells more about the internship program and Rockefeller students Ryan DeNardo, Leslie Green, Agata Pijanowski, and Brittania Smead share their experience interning at NYSERDA and offer advice to fellow students pursuing virtual internships.

As the effects of climate change have become more and more evident, the global conversation on energy policy has gotten louder and louder. Consequently, energy policy and climate change played a key role throughout the 2020 United States presidential election — in debates and on the campaign trail — as candidates stated their positions on policy and regulations regarding rising global temperatures. Taking the opportunity to look closely at those policies, Rockefeller College adjunct professor William Saxonis led his Spring 2020 students enrolled in PAD 475/575 “Understanding Energy Policy and Climate Change: A Federal, State, and Local Government Perspective” through a semester-long project to better understand the implications.

Leading up to the 2020 U.S. Presidential Election and in the weeks following, the University at Albany’s Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy hosted a series of virtual events, covering a range of topics impacting the election and future of the nation. Throughout the series, over 400 participants joined the interactive discussions led by UAlbany and Rockefeller College faculty and alumni experts.

Each year, Rockefeller College proudly bestows its highest honor on a number of distinguished individuals for their exemplary service to the public and to the College. This year, Rockefeller College is delighted to present Alumni Awards to the following extraordinary individuals for their achievements in the areas of political science, public administration, criminal justice, leadership, and continuing professional development.

Since receiving his PhD in political science from City University of New York in 1975, Jeffrey Straussman has dedicated his life to teaching, research, and institutional leadership for the past 45 years. Now, the former dean of Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy is turning the page to a new and well-deserved chapter — retirement.

With the second wave of COVID-19 raging across the U.S., researchers at the University at Albany are examining the role information can play in stemming the pandemic’s tide. Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy Associate Professor Erika Martin is senior author with current and former doctoral students on two new articles on the coronavirus.

Rockefeller College added two new faculty, Mikhail Ivonchyk and Mary Ellen Stitt, while Zsófia Barta, Gang Chen, Ashley Fox, and Timothy Weaver were awarded tenure and promoted to the rank of associate professor. In addition, Dana Peterson was appointed as the Senior Executive Director of the School of Criminal Justice.

In this Health Affairs blog article, Rockefeller College’s Sunyoung Pyo, PhD ’18, current PhD student Luigi Reggi, and Associate Professor Erika Martin explore how open data has been used globally in the COVID-19 response. They highlight major challenges in using the data and provide recommendations on how to foster an open data ecosystem that can be leveraged now and in future public health emergencies.