Four things to know as thousands of students return to Long Island college campuses

Thousands of college students are returning to local campuses this fall where new initiatives, leaders and facilities have become part of the higher education landscape.

There are two new leaders at schools, as well as new residence halls and programs. An astronomy dome with Nassau County's most precise telescope will make its debut at Hofstra University. Students at New York Institute of Technology will live in a newly renovated residence hall. Molloy University has designed a student lounge specifically for veterans. SUNY Old Westbury will welcome more than 760 freshman this year — a milestone for the campus.

"We're excited to welcome more first-year students than we ever have before," SUNY Old Westbury President Timothy Sams said Thursday. "We're looking forward to helping them grow as they study."

Challenges in higher education also remain. There's another delay this year for federal financial aid forms. Stony Brook University has had to continue to deal with storm damage that left two dorms uninhabitable right at move-in day.

Here are four things to know about the upcoming academic year:

Facilities

Hofstra in Hempstead plans to unveil an astronomy dome on the roof of Herman A. Berliner Hall — home of the university’s Department of Physics and Astronomy, as well as the Department of Chemistry. The dome will house a 20-inch, permanently mounted telescope — the largest and most precise in Nassau County.

“The larger telescope with a digital camera will enable us to observe objects 3.3 times fainter than we can currently observe with our best 11-inch telescope,” said Christina Lacey, professor and chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy.

Hofstra also is scheduled to reopen the 10th floor penthouse of the Joan and Donald E. Axinn Library featuring enhanced work and study spaces. Also underway is the painting and refurbishing of the Hofstra Unispan across Hempstead Turnpike.

A vacant Hampton Inn in Jericho has become the Jericho Residence Hall for New York Tech students, who will start moving in at the end of August. Shuttles will ferry students from the residence hall to campus. It's the first time the school will have its own residence hall for its Old Westbury campus. The school had leased space in prior years at SUNY Old Westbury; students living off campus had to make their own arrangements.

Jericho Hall can accommodate more than 180 students, and more than 70 students are scheduled to move in for the fall term.

"I'm here for all the experiences — dorming, making friends. I am here for all of it," said Jeremiah Latimer, 18, from West Orange, New Jersey, who is studying mechanical engineering.

Molloy University opens two new student spaces this fall: the Center for Multicultural and Intercultural Affairs, and the Military and Veteran Student Lounge. The center will be a hub for learning, education and community building where students can explore cultural differences and how cultures interact. The Military and Veteran Student Lounge is a space designed to support the unique needs of military-affiliated students, including veterans, active-duty service members, reservists and dependents. 

After losing their food vendor in the spring and turning to food trucks to serve students, Nassau Community College in Garden City will have a permanent new dining service vendor on campus.

Suffolk County Community College’s nursing school will be officially named the Jane F. Shearer School of Nursing, honoring the memory of Shearer, who dedicated 30 years of service to the college. Shearer died from cancer in 2019 while serving as the eastern campus associate dean for academic affairs and president of the Guild of Administrative Officers.

Programs

Farmingdale State College has launched a bachelor of science degree in Artificial Intelligence Management, the first of its kind in the SUNY system. This online program is designed for transfer students with business or computer science backgrounds. It explores AI's role in transforming industries and provides skills in machine learning, algorithms and AI applications across business functions.

The college is offering a new master of science degree in Nursing Administration — a 100% online program designed for registered nurses aiming for advanced roles.

St. Joseph's University in Patchogue will welcome the first class of students for a master's in its Family Nurse Practitioner program.

Up to 100 SUNY Old Westbury first-year students are part of the first phase of the OW STEAM program, in which they'll be participating in advanced science, technology math, arts classes and co-curricular programs until their senior year.

The first two years will focus on understanding of STEAM-related fields and topics and orienting students to the research mindset and culture, according to the college. Then, they'll match up with researchers to publish and present their work. The capstone will be a presentation for the campus of their experience and research.

Financial aid

After a botched rollout last year, federal officials announced that the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, known as FAFSA, will be delayed again this year. The U.S. Department of Education announced earlier this month that the form opens Dec. 1 — about two months later than in prior years.

Submissions for FAFSA statewide were down 12.3% this year compared with last year, according to SUNY. Schools use that data to calculate a student’s financial aid package. Students use the package to decide where to commit and what they can afford. 

"We closely monitor FAFSA delays and maintain open communication with our students and families to ensure they're prepared to complete the FAFSA promptly and understand their college financing plan," said Shawana Singletary, Adelphi University’s vice president and chief enrollment officer.

In July, SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. announced a $500,000 award from the nonprofit ECMC Foundation to boost funding for SUNY’s FAFSA Outreach to students, including for communication, multilingual support and marketing.

Leaders

Robert S. Prezant, a provost and vice president at Southern Connecticut State University and a graduate of Adelphi, was named Farmingdale State's 10th president in June and takes over this year for John Nader, who has retired. 

Stony Brook has a new interim president — Richard McCormick, a former president of Rutgers University. He took over for Maurie McInnis, who stepped down in May to lead Yale University.

The fall semester got off to a chaotic start at Stony Brook with storms knocking two dorms out of service just as students were about to arrive on campus this past week. Students have been put in triple rooms and offered incentives to cancel housing for the year.

Classes are expected to start on schedule Monday.

By Joie Tyrrell

joie.tyrrell@newsday.com@JoieTyrrell

Joie Tyrrell is a Long Island native and covers education for Newsday, where she has worked since 1998.