Friday Feature • The Voice of Our Students

Friday, February 23, 2024

To evaluate how we’re doing at Alfred State, student opinions are vital. ASC regularly takes surveys, plus Dr. Mauro is always eager to chat informally to see what’s on students’ minds.

It is hard to believe that the beginning of the semester is already gone, and we are already approaching the four-week mark of the term. It is an exciting time for many of our students as they approach the end of their journey at Alfred State and the beginning of their careers. 

These students will inevitably be prepared for success because of the excellent education they received and the time, dedication, devotion, and effort of our many faculty who go above and beyond to prepare our students for that future trajectory.

I recently had the pleasure of chatting with three students in our construction management program. They told me with great zeal and enthusiasm how terrific their time has been at Alfred State and the impact that it had on them, both in the classroom and outside through their participation in a construction club (where they are building a concrete ping pong table!) 

When I have these opportunities to engage students in this way, I always ask them what they would change at Alfred State. All three students told me that they wouldn’t change anything. Wow! That’s encouraging and says something about their experience.

I also ask students who their favorite teachers are. These students offered up two names to me, Professor Emeritus Tim Piotrowski who mentors students during internships, and Department Chair Erin Vitale. I am not surprised but wanted to take the time to publicly thank both Erin and Tim for their continued dedication to our students.