Empire State University has launched its new Master of Public Administration (MPA) program, a degree designed for civil servants and others who aspire to career advancement in public service or the not-for-profit service sector. 

Applications are open for the fall 2023 term.

The MPA is a 30-credit master’s degree program that involves 10, three-credit courses and a final project. The program prepares students for careers such as social and community service managers in the public and nonprofit sectors. 

The degree will provide students with advanced skill sets that are necessary for supervisory and managerial positions. It will also introduce students to the history of the field, as well as recent trends in public administration. By understanding the interplay of governmental interventions, political factors, and ethical implications, students will be able to analyze, evaluate, and formulate policies.

By R.J. DeLuke

A Quebec-based company that makes high density polyethylene (HDPE) pipes wants to build a plant in the W.J. Grande Industrial Park in Saratoga Springs.

Soleno Inc., based in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, presented its plans to the city Planning Board on March 23 and received approval for the project, estimated to cost about $22 million. The new plant will be situated on 22 acres.

According to Benjamin Robitaille, a vice president for Soleno, 35 to 50 jobs would be created, with an average salary of $70,000 per year. Those jobs would be engineers, operators, technicians and sales and administrative personnel.

Munter Enterprises will be the general contractor. Company president John Munter appeared before the planners along with Robitaille.

Robitaille said the company is family owned, founded in 1977. They have 10 plants in eastern Canada and employ more than 500 people. The plant in Saratoga Springs would be its first U.S. location.

Soleno has applied for a tax incentive package from the Saratoga County Industrial Development Agency. The Saratoga Economic Development Corp. is assisting the company in that process.

A two-phase project is planned, Munter explained. The board approved construction of a 45,480-square-foot factory and office building. Some 25,000 more square feet could be added if the business is strong enough to justify it.

By Paul Post

The reinvention of Clifton Park Center, with exterior storefronts providing direct easy access, kept it thriving while many malls across America dwindled in the face of stiff competition from online shopping platforms.

The 630,000-square-foot property continued to flourish despite major challenges such as the Great Recession of 2008 and the more recent COVID-19 pandemic.

But after achieving its goals there, Clifton Park-based DCG Development recently passed the torch to a new owner—Albany-based CPC Development I, LLC, for a reported $55 million.

“DCG did extraordinary work transforming the former Clifton Country Mall into the town center that it is today,” said Faraz Khan, CPC principal, who purchased the site with an investment group of family and close friends. “We hope to continue DCG owner Don Greene’s vision and legacy by further the developing the property in years to come. We appreciate the opportunity to continue as stewards of this very important community asset.”

By Christine Graf

Certified prosthetist Joe Fairley has established himself as an innovator in the field of prosthetics and orthotics. 

His company, Ascent Fabrication, utilizes CAD (computer-aided design) and 3D print technology to create highly functional and innovative prosthetic and orthotic devices. 

Fairley developed an interest in CAD while a student at Saratoga Springs High School, and it was while pursuing a physics degree at Siena College that he taught himself how to use his department’s new 3D printer. After mastering the device, he established a group at Siena to create hero-themed, prosthetic hands for kids. 

They partnered with e-NABLE, a global community of volunteers who use 3D printers to make free and low-cost prosthetic upper limb devices for children and adults in need.

It was through volunteering with e-NABLE that Fairley became interested in the clinical side of the field of prosthetics and orthotics. After working as a prosthetics technician at Sampson Prosthetics and Orthotics in Schenectady, he attended Northwestern University where he earned a M.S. in prosthetics and orthotics.

Empire State University inaugurated Lisa Vollendorf, Ph.D., as its sixth president on March 23 in a ceremony  at the Saratoga Springs City Center. 

SUNY Chancellor John B. King performed the presidential investiture.

Vollendorf began her tenure at SUNY Empire on July 1, 2022. With more than 26 years of experience in public higher education, she is deeply committed to the values of access, inclusivity and academic excellence. 

In her short time at SUNY Empire, she has led the implementation of numerous initiatives to advance the institution and enhance the student experience, including overseeing the institutions change from SUNY Empire State College to Empire State University, creation of a new strategic plan, new academic programs, and initiatives to improve access, diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Prior to SUNY Empire, Vollendorf held faculty appointments and leadership positions at numerous universities, including Wayne State, Cal State Long Beach, San Jose State, and Sonoma State. A Spanish professor by training, she  has published two monographs and six edited collections on women in early modern Spain and colonial Latin America. She holds a Ph.D. in Romance Languages from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in both