BINGHAMTON, NY - The SUNY Business and Education Cooperative of the Southern Tier (SUNY BEST) will host "College Towns: Boston, Berkeley... & Binghamton?" at 10 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 4, in room 220 at the Binghamton University Downtown Center, 67 Washington St., Binghamton. This presentation is free and open to the public.

Kevin E. Drumm, president of SUNY Broome Community College, will kick off this fall’s speaker series which focuses on how expanding higher education institutions are shaping and redefining Greater Binghamton and Broome County. He will discuss how college towns have for centuries sprung up organically around the country and show how, beginning late in the 20th century some communities intentionally set out to build college towns as an economic and community development strategy. Notable among them are Storrs, Conn., and Las Vegas, Nev. Today UCONN and UNLV are mentioned in the national lexicon of great university towns. How might we design the Greater Binghamton region to join these ranks?

Drumm became the seventh president of SUNY Broome in 2010, after serving six years as president of the Northern Wyoming Community College District.

Pre-registration for this discussion is required through the SUNY BEST website at http://ceo.binghamton.edu/sunybest. For additional information, e-mail sunybest@binghamton.edu.

Directional signage to the meeting room will be visible for those entering the main entrance of the Downtown Center from Washington St. Parking is available in the Collier Street Ramp, the Water Street Ramp, (both within two blocks of the Downtown Center) or if available, any of the metered parking spots in front of the building on Washington St.