UUP: Shannon Roddy, Foundation
First published in November 2012 edition of The Bullhorn. The original publication can be found here.
After the well-received Chapter Meeting featuring UUP Chief Negotiator Jamie Dangler (see pages 1—3 for more information), our chapter Treasurer Shannon Roddy found time for an interview on her support of union strength and her love for numbers, art, wellness, and public institutions.
What got you interested and involved in accounting? Maybe this is because I am an English major, but I see working with numbers all day as pretty dulling work.
When I was an undergraduate student, I dabbled at first as an art major, but after a semester I realized art is a hobby for me, rather than a career path. I ended up in finance and business and really loved the coursework I was doing. I went to work for my college, the College of St. Rose in Albany, in the Advancement Office while I was still an undergraduate student, full time, with a professional position in the public relations area. After I graduated, I worked for a bank for a little while, which I really did not enjoy. Then a position opened back up at St. Rose, in the accounting area for Advancement, which fit with my background, my education. So I was there for about another year. Then ten years ago, I came here to New Paltz, starting as the accountant for the SUNY New Paltz Foundation. Three years later, I was promoted to the director of the department. I love working on a college campus, as opposed to a private, for-profit industry. It’s certainly my niche.
Why do you like your time in the college environment more than the profit-driven industry?
First, there’s the interaction with students. For many years, I’ve had students in Accounting who were working in the office. I really enjoyed that, because I can see them apply what they’re learning. It makes such a difference, making them into well-rounded students -- and then going out into the workforce, and having them come back and say, “I learned so much in your office and it really helped me with my work!” Second, there are so many cultural opportunities. Every night there’s either a lecture or a show or something going on that we’re just a part of because we’re funding all the various departments. We’re really involved and invested, whether we’re keeping the books or fundraising for that area.
What’s your favorite event in the past year on this campus?
I enjoyed when we brought in Noam Chomsky; that was really exciting. It was amazing to see him here and it’s nice that New Paltz can bring in such a high-profile individual. I also really enjoy the shows at the Dorsky Museum. They are probably our most active fundraising group on campus so I really get to know what’s going on in the shows. There’s the “Shinohara Pops!” exhibition going on right now. I try to take a lunch hour and see each of the shows.
What brought you here to SUNY New Paltz specifically?
It was a really interesting opportunity to come here to New Paltz because the Foundation is its own separate organization. We’re running the whole organization, whereas if you’re at a private university, you’re running a division. It was a broad experience that you can’t get anywhere else. I learned so much my first couple of years here at New Paltz because we’re a really small office. At the time, there were two of us; now there are two and a half of us. You’re doing literally everything and given a lot of stuff you wouldn’t be given at a larger institution. It was a really exciting opportunity.
You’ve stated previously that you have been at New Paltz for ten years; what has been so great about the campus that has kept you here?
I had a very supportive supervisor; she really opened up the opportunity to me to lead this area seven years ago at a fairly early point in a career. There is never a status quo year. There’s always something new and interesting to keep you invested every year at New Paltz, and you’re constantly growing within the organization; it’s when you are not growing anymore that you just want to find another opportunity. We’ve moved into real estate development, property just off of campus. We’re working with a developer to build student housing, private housing with a small section reserved for faculty. That is going to allow us to give a housing option to transfer students. It’s such a huge need at New Paltz, because right now we can’t offer any transfer students housing. There’s a small section for faculty housing, which is really important for the campus as well. We’re finding it hard to recruit the kind of faculty that we’re looking for because it’s so expensive to live here. We can’t offer the kind of salaries that would allow faculty to move into this area; it’s completely unaffordable. We’ll also be able to offer something to interested faculty who are moving into the area or want to come and get to know it before making a huge investment. Students and faculty are living so far from New Paltz that we’re missing a community aspect of the college experience.
Can you describe your average workday?
I wish there was a regular workday, but lately it’s not really like that. We certainly oversee the finances for the New Paltz Foundation, recording all the revenue received, including great contributions from alumni, parents, faculty, and staff. Students support us on a really high level through an optional Student Alumni fee, and we have about an 80% student participation rate, which is amazing. I think a lot of folks don’t know that students are really supporting us. I monitor our endowment of about fifteen million, four million in non-endowed investments. We have about three hundred restricted accounts. For example, someone can donate to Friends of the Library; that money is segregated into a restricted account used to purchase books for the collection. We’re monitoring the disbursement requests that come in from all those accounts to make sure that the funds are being used for the purpose the donors requested. We monitor the budget for the Development office. We have a very active volunteer board that governs the Foundation, and I work closely with the board to make sure we are carrying out their objectives. Right now my staff members are really busy with our scholarships. The first scholarship disbursement of the year is happening next week. So, my staff is really busy with making sure we have all the information on students receiving scholarships this year, that we have a disbursement orders for each scholarship, and that the students are meeting the scholarship criteria. That’s the big fall project. Then we’re compiling the scholarship catalog that comes out in late February, including the application process for next year’s scholarships.
How does the SUNY New Paltz Foundation function with the broader community? Does it reach out to alumni, companies, etc? How much does your work play in these connections?
Finance is part of that team; we come in and help analyze projects that the Development staff members are going to undertake. We look at things like cost-evaluations and help sort through what is the best use of our time, which project yielded a good result. We expand on the projects we can, and evaluate the things that did not resonate with our donors. We’re definitely in the back office, but we do play a role in the overall decision-making.
I figure you don’t surround yourself with numbers all day; that would be quite exhausting! What do you do to relieve yourself from your work at the end of the day?
I love cooking, so I do a lot of cooking at home. I work out. I walk my two Yorkies; they’re a lot of fun! I focus on wellness. I joined the Athletic and Wellness Center this year, and I really like it; there’s good equipment and it’s convenient.
How did you get involved with the UUP chapter?
I’ve been on campus for ten years, so I’ve been a member of UUP since coming to campus. In terms of getting involved on the Executive Committee, one of my colleagues, Alan Dunefsky, was the Treasurer before me. He was looking for a replacement and to move on to other things. I really wanted to learn more about what the UUP does. It’s been an interesting experience, how hard everyone works, Peter Brown works incredibly hard for the organization. I got involved just a year ago as Treasurer. Things were moving along, and I felt I could take on something like that role. It’s within my skill set, and that’s made it very manageable. I also like to be able to give back whenever I can.
What keeps you committed to the chapter, especially despite your heavy workload?
It’s very important for the union to be strong. I see all the work that my colleagues do to the union, for the strength of the UUP. The work my colleagues do benefits so many people, it helps the students, parents, and everyone for whom this institution serves. Seeing the dedication and commitment to the union helps me keep going.
If someone were to come up to you, unsure about the benefit of getting involved and their time commitments, what would you tell them to encourage them to get involved?
I would just reinforce that it is so important to the union that it’s kept strong, and it is not strong if your members are not involved. Voting on a contract is important, but you all have to work together, support one another. Even if you may not have to rely on the union for help during your career, your colleagues will, so being there for them makes the University stronger.
What got you interested and involved in accounting? Maybe this is because I am an English major, but I see working with numbers all day as pretty dulling work.
When I was an undergraduate student, I dabbled at first as an art major, but after a semester I realized art is a hobby for me, rather than a career path. I ended up in finance and business and really loved the coursework I was doing. I went to work for my college, the College of St. Rose in Albany, in the Advancement Office while I was still an undergraduate student, full time, with a professional position in the public relations area. After I graduated, I worked for a bank for a little while, which I really did not enjoy. Then a position opened back up at St. Rose, in the accounting area for Advancement, which fit with my background, my education. So I was there for about another year. Then ten years ago, I came here to New Paltz, starting as the accountant for the SUNY New Paltz Foundation. Three years later, I was promoted to the director of the department. I love working on a college campus, as opposed to a private, for-profit industry. It’s certainly my niche.
Why do you like your time in the college environment more than the profit-driven industry?
First, there’s the interaction with students. For many years, I’ve had students in Accounting who were working in the office. I really enjoyed that, because I can see them apply what they’re learning. It makes such a difference, making them into well-rounded students -- and then going out into the workforce, and having them come back and say, “I learned so much in your office and it really helped me with my work!” Second, there are so many cultural opportunities. Every night there’s either a lecture or a show or something going on that we’re just a part of because we’re funding all the various departments. We’re really involved and invested, whether we’re keeping the books or fundraising for that area.
What’s your favorite event in the past year on this campus?
I enjoyed when we brought in Noam Chomsky; that was really exciting. It was amazing to see him here and it’s nice that New Paltz can bring in such a high-profile individual. I also really enjoy the shows at the Dorsky Museum. They are probably our most active fundraising group on campus so I really get to know what’s going on in the shows. There’s the “Shinohara Pops!” exhibition going on right now. I try to take a lunch hour and see each of the shows.
What brought you here to SUNY New Paltz specifically?
It was a really interesting opportunity to come here to New Paltz because the Foundation is its own separate organization. We’re running the whole organization, whereas if you’re at a private university, you’re running a division. It was a broad experience that you can’t get anywhere else. I learned so much my first couple of years here at New Paltz because we’re a really small office. At the time, there were two of us; now there are two and a half of us. You’re doing literally everything and given a lot of stuff you wouldn’t be given at a larger institution. It was a really exciting opportunity.
You’ve stated previously that you have been at New Paltz for ten years; what has been so great about the campus that has kept you here?
I had a very supportive supervisor; she really opened up the opportunity to me to lead this area seven years ago at a fairly early point in a career. There is never a status quo year. There’s always something new and interesting to keep you invested every year at New Paltz, and you’re constantly growing within the organization; it’s when you are not growing anymore that you just want to find another opportunity. We’ve moved into real estate development, property just off of campus. We’re working with a developer to build student housing, private housing with a small section reserved for faculty. That is going to allow us to give a housing option to transfer students. It’s such a huge need at New Paltz, because right now we can’t offer any transfer students housing. There’s a small section for faculty housing, which is really important for the campus as well. We’re finding it hard to recruit the kind of faculty that we’re looking for because it’s so expensive to live here. We can’t offer the kind of salaries that would allow faculty to move into this area; it’s completely unaffordable. We’ll also be able to offer something to interested faculty who are moving into the area or want to come and get to know it before making a huge investment. Students and faculty are living so far from New Paltz that we’re missing a community aspect of the college experience.
Can you describe your average workday?
I wish there was a regular workday, but lately it’s not really like that. We certainly oversee the finances for the New Paltz Foundation, recording all the revenue received, including great contributions from alumni, parents, faculty, and staff. Students support us on a really high level through an optional Student Alumni fee, and we have about an 80% student participation rate, which is amazing. I think a lot of folks don’t know that students are really supporting us. I monitor our endowment of about fifteen million, four million in non-endowed investments. We have about three hundred restricted accounts. For example, someone can donate to Friends of the Library; that money is segregated into a restricted account used to purchase books for the collection. We’re monitoring the disbursement requests that come in from all those accounts to make sure that the funds are being used for the purpose the donors requested. We monitor the budget for the Development office. We have a very active volunteer board that governs the Foundation, and I work closely with the board to make sure we are carrying out their objectives. Right now my staff members are really busy with our scholarships. The first scholarship disbursement of the year is happening next week. So, my staff is really busy with making sure we have all the information on students receiving scholarships this year, that we have a disbursement orders for each scholarship, and that the students are meeting the scholarship criteria. That’s the big fall project. Then we’re compiling the scholarship catalog that comes out in late February, including the application process for next year’s scholarships.
How does the SUNY New Paltz Foundation function with the broader community? Does it reach out to alumni, companies, etc? How much does your work play in these connections?
Finance is part of that team; we come in and help analyze projects that the Development staff members are going to undertake. We look at things like cost-evaluations and help sort through what is the best use of our time, which project yielded a good result. We expand on the projects we can, and evaluate the things that did not resonate with our donors. We’re definitely in the back office, but we do play a role in the overall decision-making.
I figure you don’t surround yourself with numbers all day; that would be quite exhausting! What do you do to relieve yourself from your work at the end of the day?
I love cooking, so I do a lot of cooking at home. I work out. I walk my two Yorkies; they’re a lot of fun! I focus on wellness. I joined the Athletic and Wellness Center this year, and I really like it; there’s good equipment and it’s convenient.
How did you get involved with the UUP chapter?
I’ve been on campus for ten years, so I’ve been a member of UUP since coming to campus. In terms of getting involved on the Executive Committee, one of my colleagues, Alan Dunefsky, was the Treasurer before me. He was looking for a replacement and to move on to other things. I really wanted to learn more about what the UUP does. It’s been an interesting experience, how hard everyone works, Peter Brown works incredibly hard for the organization. I got involved just a year ago as Treasurer. Things were moving along, and I felt I could take on something like that role. It’s within my skill set, and that’s made it very manageable. I also like to be able to give back whenever I can.
What keeps you committed to the chapter, especially despite your heavy workload?
It’s very important for the union to be strong. I see all the work that my colleagues do to the union, for the strength of the UUP. The work my colleagues do benefits so many people, it helps the students, parents, and everyone for whom this institution serves. Seeing the dedication and commitment to the union helps me keep going.
If someone were to come up to you, unsure about the benefit of getting involved and their time commitments, what would you tell them to encourage them to get involved?
I would just reinforce that it is so important to the union that it’s kept strong, and it is not strong if your members are not involved. Voting on a contract is important, but you all have to work together, support one another. Even if you may not have to rely on the union for help during your career, your colleagues will, so being there for them makes the University stronger.
