Greetings and Happy New Year from Binghamton University’s EOP!

January always signifies a fresh start! It presents the space and a new opportunity to set goals and make plans. But a new year is also a great time for reflection. As EOP embarks on its 55th year of operation on the Binghamton campus, we have spent some time reflecting on the growth of our program. We remain one of the top programs in the SUNY system and I am honored to work with a motivated group of students and a multi-talented group of counselors, administrators and support staff. Their expert care and support allow EOP to stand strong supporting student success.

We begin this 55th year still celebrating the well-deserved retirement of Vanessa N. Young, who served as senior EOP counselor, senior associate director and interim director on three occasions, each time providing a bridge for continuity of our success at EOP. As you continue to read this newsletter you will hear from her, in her own words, about what a beautiful and challenging experience this has been. Vanessa was the last EOP professional staff member who had the privilege of working with Michael V. Boyd, Binghamton EOP director from 1986–1994. She would often share stories about him with us and she took every opportunity to be sure that students knew who he was, sharing his sentiment: “someone dreamed of you being here.” That statement has always garnered the attention and respect of our students as they connect to the purpose of EOP and learn to understand the battle against academic injustice and its importance.

This January also represents the departure of Jill Murphy, secretary to the director, after 15 years of service to EOP. Jill has been a staple in the EOP Office, bringing order to what can be a pretty fast-paced environment under the last four directors, including Randall Edouard, Interim Director Vanessa Young and Calvin Gantt. We are proud of her promotion and we wish her the best.

We have so many great things to celebrate as we enter this new year. We are working with Executive Director for Alumni Engagement Matthew Winston and plan to honor our past at Homecoming 2023. We welcome you this October. It will be a great time for sure and we cannot wait to see you!

Walk boldly,

Karima Legette ’01, MA ’05
EOP Director