The CHIMES

Issue date: 5/7/10 Section: News

Willliam Snyder, the professor of fish and wildlife managmenet and the chair of the environmental science department has been awarded the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in teaching. Snyder has been teaching for 26 years, 17 of which have been at Morrisville. Photo by Nicole Williams, '12 | Staff Reporter

A humble carpenter at Morrisville State College for over 20 years, Clair Wilbur, has few words to say about his winning of the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Classified Service. "I don't really have much feeling about it," Wilbur says of his winning. "I do my job, that's all."

Wilbur was nominated for the award by the Director of the Physical Plant, Mike Nataluk, and the Senior Staff Assistant Charles Pronto, who Wilbur calls Chip. Nataluk credits Wilbur as having "saved the college thousands, if not millions with his decisions." Pronto explains Nataluk's statement, that Wilbur often salvages discarded materials, because eventually Wilbur knows he will use the materials in some fashion. Pronto says, Wilbur is the most talented trades person he has worked with in his 30 years of the job. From masonry jobs to carpenter jobs, Pronto says, Wilbur "has an analytical mind, there's nothing he can't do."

For the past 22 years, Wilbur has attended graduation as an employee who sets up chairs. This year will be different though, because he must be dressed up to receive his certificate and medallion. Wilbur says he considers his job to be, "an opportunity to maintain the campus for the students."

Associate Professor of Architectural Studies and Design, Dr. Anne Englot won the Distinguished Faculty Award. Englot was not overly surprised by her winning, because she knew she was nominated and had to submit her resume. She says, "It was very nice to be recognized by my colleagues and to know that they have confidence in me."

With life's "day to day grinds," Englot says as a professor, sometimes it is hard to "always keep your energy up," and keep, "your enthusiasm for what," professors are here to do. But she says professors are here to, "help the students out and help them to get where they're going to reach their goals." Englot says, doing this keeps her going.

Englot has worked at MSC since 1997. The most rewarding part of Englot's job is when she sees her students graduate. She says it is really "neat" when her students leave MSC with, "the confidence they have to pursue their dreams."

The Chancellor's Award of Excellence has been given to David Symonds for professional service. The prestigious award is based on outstanding academic achievement and service and leadership on campus and in the community. Nominations for the award must be drawn from individuals presently serving in full-time professional service capacities with more than 50 percent of the assignment in non-teaching services.

"There is not many things that I wanted, I was honored to be nominated for this award," says Symonds. He is the second person in the disability services to have won the award. Symonds has been the disability service director for 14 years and plans to continue with it. "I was very pleased to win the award, and the thing that I was most pleased about was being nominated by a student," Symonds says.

"David truly deserves the recognition of SUNY for his tireless dedication, astute intellect, and his high respect and regard for the students of SUNY Morrisville," says Elizabeth Dana International Students Services Coordinator. "He takes what society deems as a handicap and changes handicap and sees it as enrichment, and instills that competence in the students. The man has class," Dana says.


A professor of fish and wildlife management, and the chair of the environmental science department, William Snyder, won the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching. Associate Professor of journalism, Gladys Cleland, says she nominated Snyder because there are many unsung heroes on MSC's campus. Having worked on several committees together, Cleland says Snyder engages in "wonderful projects" with his students, including his involvement in the aquaculture center which is off campus.

Cleland says she is in "awe" of what students do at the aquaculture center. Cleland asked several of Snyder's students for some input about Snyder. She was surprised to learn that students say Snyder has changed lives, by helping them in their careers and always being there for them. As a professor Cleland says, professors, "just got to do what you've got to do" because "it's just nice to know, that you do make a difference in somebody's life."

Snyder has been teaching for 26 years, 17 of which have been at MSC. He was surprised to learn that he won, but knew that last year he was nominated. Snyder says, "I try not to place too much value on receiving awards." He considers the nomination to be a "tremendous honor," because it is recognition by his peers.

Since he was ten, Snyder knew he wanted a profession in conservation work. He says he was raised in the outdoors with a very high standard of environmental ethics. With his degrees in fish and wildlife management, Snyder assumed he would go into research. But after grad school, because jobs in natural resources were sparse in the 1980's, Snyder fell in love with technical education when he first experienced teaching fish management courses at a two year college in Ohio.

Originally from Ohio, Snyder came to MSC to teach in the aqua culture program. Eventually as the program changed however, Snyder is teaching fish and wildlife management again. He says, "you can't run away from true love."

As a professor, Snyder hopes he can "share my knowledge and train generations of new conservationist," because he never saw that in his academic preparation. He uses the cliché, "I can go fishing, and feed people with the fish I catch, or I can train lots of people to fish."

Snyder would like to think that he is instilling conservation ethics and the love of the outdoors with his students. He teaches for the students and says, "My students are my contribution to conservation and the environment."

With no intention of retiring anytime soon, Snyder asks if "a professor falls in the woods and there's nobody around to hear him, does he make a noise?" When retirement is near Snyder says he will probably have to be taken, "out of my office on a gurney or more likely haul me out of the woods."

Besides his impact on students, Snyder also loves his job because he is continuously learning new things. Snyder calls himself a lifelong student, and quotes an author and biographer from the early 20th century, George Ile, 'whoever ceases to be a student, has never been a student.'

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