May 9, 2024 – Urban CNY

Syracuse Press Club announces 2023 Professional Recognition Award Winners ‘urbancny.com is awarded 1st Place Best News Website’

by Urban CNY News
May 9, 2024

No other News Website will list all winners. It is customary that outlets highlight their professional recognition awards, urbancny.com posts results of all SPC Awardees. Congratulations to the Winners of the 46th annual Syracuse Press Club Professional Recognition Awards 200 guests attended the banquet on Saturday, May 4 to receive their awards and placements. Glenn “Gomez” Adams of TK99 and Violet Scibior of CNY Central served as esteemed hosts for the evening. Urban CNY/urbancny.com Awarded 1st Place Best News Website Judge’s comment on winner: The mission of a news outlet is to provide information that serves its readers and customers. Urban CNY does that in today’s polarized news climate by serving and informing a community that is often overlooked and underrepresented in news coverage. According to Publisher, Kenneth Jackson, “We are one year into our massive redesign of urbancny.com. Phase 2 involves more content, more writers, features and investigative reports. I thank our designers Code Munkeys from Auburn, the Syracuse Neighborhood Business Development Office (SEDCO) and CenterState CEO’s Calvin Corridors. This is even more significant, as i faced major health issues during the entire redesign process.” The club also distributed several special honors including the Newcomer Award, the Transparency Awards, the Professional Standards Award, the DeVesty-Williams Scholarship and the Bill Carey Award for Journalist of the Year. Finally, the club inducted Donna Ditota and Mike Waters, longtime sportswriters for syracuse.com and The Post-Standard, into the Syracuse Press Club Wall of Distinction. Congratulations to our winners and thanks to all of this year’s entrants for providing Central and Northern New York with essential journalism. Next week, find more photos by photographer Herm Card of the 2024 awards ceremony and winners on the SPC Facebook page. Why do some categories have more finalists? To make our contest more equitable across categories and increase competitiveness, we introduced a rule in 2021 that limits the number of awards in each category based on the number of entries. For example, if a category only has three submissions, only the top-ranked entry will receive a prize. If a category has 15 or more entries, first place, second place, and up to three honorable mentions could be awarded. You can review the complete scale on the contest’s rules and eligibility page. We do give the judges discretion. If the judges determine some entries in a category fail to meet the threshold of award quality, they may choose to select as few award recipients as they deem appropriate. Full List of Syracuse Press Club Awardees Magazine Best Overall Magazine Best Newsletter or Trade Publication Judge’s comment on winner: Great mix of articles, with a cohesive format. A clean, inviting publication with something for everyone in the industry. Digital Journalism: All Best Multimedia Story Best Breaking News Best News Website Judge’s comment on winner: The mission of a news outlet is to provide information that serves its readers and customers. Urban CNY does that in today’s polarized news climate by serving and informing a community that is often overlooked and underrepresented in news coverage. Best Use of Social Media Judge’s comment on winner: A superb use of all social media platforms to drive listeners to the podcast. Every click led to wanting more information about the disturbing murders. A top-notch and magnificent way for alternative story telling in today’s media environment. A magnificent effort. Best Blog Judge’s comment on winner: Luke Parsnow does a wonderful job breaking down the politics without losing the journalism, something that’s still hard to come by in blogs. Graphics Judge’s comment on winner: Great educational piece about the ins and outs of voting. The pictures adds a fun element to the informative graphics. Digital Video Journalism Judge’s comment on winner: The remembrance of Brexialee Torres-Ortiz moved me to tears, the profile of chef Cristos Stelios made me laugh and learn something deeper and the dog rescue story put helpers in the spotlight. A well-rounded mix of online video storytelling with range and spirit. Photography Carl Single Award for Spot News Photography Judge’s comment on winner: Raw life and death and how our human spirit draws us to try to claw our loved ones and keep them on the life side. Recalls Michaelangelo’s pieta with even more humanity. Amazing composition. Best Feature Photo Judge’s comment on winner: Striking photo … so much emotion, color and fascinating light. Best Photo Essay Judge’s comment on winner: A weepie … not easy when the subject is a silent epidemic. You can feel the participants’ courage and see the human cost. Bravo. Best Portrait Judge’s comment on winner: This shot stands out for its unexpected use of both setting and light. You don’t often see a golfer teeing up for a drive in the middle of the street — and the mix of dramatic lighting in the distance with a well-lit subject makes for a visually stirring image. Best Sports Photo Judge’s comment on winner: What emotion captured here. A feast for the eyes and soul. Print News Best Front Page Design Judge’s comment on winner: Clean format, informative headlines and well-chosen photos make these pages a complete package. Print/Digital News: All Best Editorial Judge’s comment on winner: A strong argument with compelling evidence, this editorial just does what an opinion piece should do: inform and convince. Best Spot News Judge’s comment on winner: Ken Sturtz presented a blow by blow account of the courtroom verdict in the case of a man convicted of “depraved indifference” in the death of a disabled teen. He’s got a great eye for detail, describing the tears of women on both sides of the case. This description jumped off the page: “The 17-year-old weighed just 55 pounds and he had numerous open and bleeding pressure sores on his body as well as an exposed tailbone and a hip implant that was visible through the skin.” Best Column Judge’s comment on winner: Biting, potent commentary filled with context and easy to understand. Best Critique Judge’s comment on winner: Terrific review of a concert that had a newsy angle to it. Headline Writing Investigative Story or Series Judge’s

Health

Governor Hochul Announces $15 Million For Expansion of Pancreatic Cancer Center of Excellence

by Urban CNY News
May 9, 2024

Funding for Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory to Support $500 Million Expansion Plan Lab to Advance Research to Diagnose and Treat Pancreatic Cancer Builds on $55 Million Previously Committed by New York State Governor Hochul on May 4th, announced $15 million for the expansion of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s Pancreatic Cancer Center of Excellence. The funding from Empire State Development will be used for the Lab’s $500 million expansion plan and builds on the $55 million previously committed by New York State, making the State one of the labs largest benefactors for the project. The new Center will advance research to diagnose and treat pancreatic cancer, one of the most lethal forms of cancer. “New York State is leading on innovation in the healthcare space and this funding will advance research to better understand pancreatic cancer, one of the most devastating forms of cancer,” Governor Hochul said. “We are making important investments to ensure New York is on the cutting edge of biomedical research, creating new jobs, and ensuring we remain competitive in the 21st century economy.” PCCE is expected to create 25 new direct jobs at the facility, attract entrepreneurial scientists from CSHL and other institutions, and generate two to four new spin-off companies per year. This increased commercial activity could create over 100 new high-value local scientific jobs, further stimulating economic growth in the region. Pancreatic cancer remains one of the most lethal forms of cancer, with a survival rate of less than 10 percent for patients diagnosed after the cancer has spread. To address this urgent need for new approaches in diagnosis and treatment, CSHL researchers, led by globally renowned scientist, Dr. David Tuveson, have developed scientifically valuable model systems. The PCCE aims to utilize these models in collaboration with neighboring medical facilities to develop innovative therapies and diagnostics, ultimately improving patient outcomes. CSHL is an anchor of Long Island’s innovation corridor and, with approximately 1,000 high wage life science jobs and clinical trial research collaboration with Northwell Health, is one of the State’s most important life science institutions. CSHL is home to eight Nobel Prize winning scientists and has a history of commercializing research. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory President and CEO Bruce Stillman said, “Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory has already made significant breakthroughs in pancreatic cancer research, including the discovery of new drug targets. Our new Pancreatic Cancer Center of Excellence will help validate these targets, enabling our commercial partners to develop innovative therapies and diagnostic strategies that ultimately improve patient outcomes. I’d like to thank Governor Hochul and the State of New York for continuing to support cutting-edge bioscience at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.” Founded in 1890, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is one of the world’s leading centers for biomedical research and has shaped contemporary biomedical research and education with programs in cancer, neuroscience, plant biology and quantitative biology. For over 130 years, CSHL scientists have made many significant discoveries that have advanced knowledge and brought about a deep understanding in areas as diverse as cancer, identifying the first cancer gene, uncovering genetic changes that give rise to autism, the functioning of the brain, and mathematical approaches to biology. CSHL’s research programs tackle some of the most challenging problems facing society, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, the impact of cancer on the body’s physiology, and advancing artificial intelligence by building on understanding of how our natural intelligence develops. Through strategic investments, New York fuels the creation of cutting-edge advancements in biomedical research and development. The biotech and life sciences industries have become powerful growth engines for New York State, turning key regions of the state into dynamic life science hubs that includes organizations and institutions dedicated to various stages of research, development, technology transfer and commercialization. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s Neuroscience Research Complex will contribute to research and development of new scientific and medical innovations and accelerate Long Island’s growing life sciences economy.

City Scuffle Colleges & Universities Events

Syracuse University and SUNY ESF Team Up to Convene Food Justice And Sustainable Agriculture Thought Leaders Together, They Will Host This Year’s 2024 AFHVS-ASFS Conference

by Urban CNY News
May 9, 2024

(Syracuse, NY, May 08, 2024): This year’s annual joint conference of the Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Society (AFHVS) and the Association for the Study of Food and Society (ASFS) will take place in Syracuse, NY, from June 5-8 with a virtual conference taking place on Monday, June 3. Syracuse University and its food studies program, alongside the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (ESF), will co-host the conference, which will span both campuses. Over 420 academics, practitioners, activists, chefs, farmers, publishers, and graduate students will attend the conference, with many traveling from across the U.S. and internationally to present their research and findings. This year’s conference theme is “Right to Food—Food as Commons,” with session topics focusing on the need for global cooperation in addressing issues of food equity and justice, sustainable agriculture, and food as a human right. This year’s conference will feature two keynote speakers. The first is Michael Fakhri, the U.N. Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food and a professor at the University of Oregon School of Law. Fakhri, who will speak on Thursday, June 6, is a faculty member of UO Law’s Environmental and Natural Resource Law Center, where he co-leads the Food Resiliency Project. His research focuses on the right to food and agroecology. His presentation will explore ways that the right to food is being used as part of social movements and political campaigns working to transform food systems all over the world, and increasingly in the US. On Friday, June 7, Leah Penniman will discuss why community self-determination and solidarity are foundational to the land and food sovereignty movement. Penniman, a Black Kreyòl farmer, author (Farming While Black, Black Earth Wisdom), and food justice activist, established Soul Fire Farm in Grafton, NY, in 2010. As Co-Executive Director and Farm Director, she works to carry out Soul Fire’s mission to end racism in the food system through food sovereignty programs. Her work has received national media coverage and is featured in the recent documentary on regenerative farming titled Common Ground. Also being featured at the conference is renowned Chef Joseph Yoon, a leader in the growing field of entomophagy, the practice of eating edible insects. During a three-hour workshop, Yoon will educate attendees on the potential of Insect Agriculture to address food security, climate change, nutrition, and sustainability challenges. He will also prepare a tasting menu where attendees will explore the exciting, innovative, and delicious world of edible insects. The opening day of the conference (June 5) will offer a variety of field trip opportunities that showcase local farms, processing facilities, and ecological corridors in the Finger Lakes region. Additional information can be found on the conference website.

Events Neighborhoods Syracuse - East Syracuse - North Syracuse - South Syracuse - West

Syracuse Fire Department to Hold Annual Awards/Promotion Ceremony

by Urban CNY News
May 9, 2024

Syracuse, NY- On Monday, May 13, 2024, The Syracuse Fire Department will hold its annual Awards and Promotion Ceremony at the National Veterans Resource Center at Syracuse University. Firefighters will be honored for their exceptional acts of heroism and bravery at Emergency Scenes during the calendar year 2023. The Department will also recognize officers who were promoted during the calendar year 2023. The ceremony will begin at 6:00 p.m. In addition to Firefighters, family, and friends, Mayor Ben Walsh, Chief of Fire Michael Monds, Syracuse Fire Department Command Staff, and Elected Officials will attend. Event: Syracuse Fire Department Awards/Promotion CeremonyDate: Monday, May 13, 2024Time: 6:00 p.m. Place: National Veterans Resource Center at Syracuse University 101 Waverly Avenue Syracuse, NY 13244

Arrest of David Arnold for Multiple Charges of Sexual Misconduct with a Child

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Congressman Jim Clyburn (SC-06) Endorses John Mannion for Congress in NY-22

Van B. Robinson Common Council Chambers Weekly Schedule September 2 -6, 2024

Syracuse Press Club announces 2023 Professional Recognition Award Winners ‘urbancny.com is awarded 1st Place Best News Website’

Governor Hochul Announces $15 Million For Expansion of Pancreatic Cancer Center of Excellence

Syracuse University and SUNY ESF Team Up to Convene Food Justice And Sustainable Agriculture Thought Leaders Together, They Will Host This Year’s 2024 AFHVS-ASFS Conference

Syracuse Fire Department to Hold Annual Awards/Promotion Ceremony

Black Voices