eizzo@adirondackdailyenterprise.com
Paul Smithâs College 2019 graduates process out of the tent where their commencement ceremony was held in May 2019.
(Enterprise photo â Elizabeth Izzo) Paul Smith’s College will celebrate the graduation of its senior class today. The outdoor graduation ceremony, which is closed to the public, marks the end of a school year defined in many ways by the coronavirus pandemic and restrictions put in place to curb the spread of the virus. Unlike many other colleges around the state, Paul Smith’s operated in-person with more than 800 people on its campus, including students, faculty and staff. But despite operating in person, the school which is located in a wooded area, about 10 miles from the closest population center never reported having a major outbreak of COVID-19. It ended its fall semester with zero students or staff receiving positive COVID-19 test results. The college has had one positive case of COVID-19 during this
the Enterprise staff
Marsh, as seen March 20 from a bridge over Shingle Mill Falls at the Paul Smithâs College Visitor Interpretive Center.
(Enterprise photo â Peter Crowley) The 2021-22 state budget includes funding for the Visitor Interpretive Center at Paul Smith’s College and the Adirondack Interpretive Center in Newcomb, run by SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. The budget’s Environmental Protection Fund allocates a total of $300,000 to the centers: $120,000 for SUNY ESF and $180,000 for Paul Smith’s College. Assemblyman Billy Jones, D-Chateaugay Lake, announced the news Thursday, saying he had advocated for a funding increase. “These centers not only offer information about the natural history of the Adirondack region, but also provide a safe and educational activity for visitors to the region, especially during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic last year,” Jones said in a press release. “I’ve long fought for additional fundi
Malone Telegram
State Sen. Dan Stec, right, speaks Monday afternoon at Debar Lodge in Duane, alongside Malone village Mayor Andrea Dumas, who works as a liaison for his office.
(Provided photo â Alexander Violo, Malone Telegram) DUANE A state senator and officials from the town of Duane paid a visit to Debar Lodge Monday afternoon as the state Legislature mulls a constitutional amendment that could save the building. Sen. Dan Stec, R-Queensbury, visited the Duane fire station before proceeding to the lodge with town officials. The lodge, built in 1939, sits in a strand of tall pine trees on the edge of Debar Pond. It is at the center of a proposed amendment to the state constitution to preserve it and use it in the public interest. A state management plan released in November 2020 called for removing the lodge and adding a new day-use area at Debar Pond. Local officials are working with a nonprofit group to preserve the building.
acerbone@adirondackdailyenterprise.com Max Dentone, a Paul Smithâs College student, runs a saw at the PSC forestry cabin, cutting boards for an accessible garden bed in a class led by Sara Dougherty, on the other end of the board.
(Enterprise photo â Aaron Cerbone) Dave Simmons proudly shows off his Popsicle stick mock-up of his classâ garden bed project. âDo you know how hard that was?â he said. Sara Dougherty stands behind him.
(Enterprise photo â Aaron Cerbone) Bridget Fajvan, left, moves boards to be cut for an accessible garden bed her class was building at the PSC forestry cabin. The beds may end up at one of the collegeâs parks and properties around the area.