News

A summer Levitt Center project involving 11 students, three professors, and several other members of the Hamilton community began in what was perhaps an unexpected way.

Continuing a project that began last summer, four Hamilton students are working with Visiting Assistant Professor of Sociology Mahala Stewart to study how families have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Shania Kuo ’23, Caroline Freundel ’24, Kaela Dunne ’22, and Steven Campos ’22 are interviewing local parents, mostly mothers, to gain a better understanding of how their lives and households have changed over the course of the past year. The research is being supported by the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center.

Three Hamilton students — Anokhi Manchanda ’22, Cole Kuczek ’23, and Henry Schwob ’22 — are working on summer research projects concerning police and court reforms and a potential human rights commission in the Utica area.

What can the cosmetics industry tell us about environmental equity? Sean Storr ’22 is looking to answer this question with his summer Levitt research project, “Environmental Equity and the Cosmetics Industry: An Intersectional Perspective.”

“We have been building bridges,” says Professor of Government Frank Anechiarico, who has been leading the College/Community Partnership for Racial Justice since its inception last summer.

Henry Curcio ‘21 spent weeks boring himself to death. On purpose.

Last fall, the College-Community Partnership for Racial Justice assembled a series of eight webinars focused on racial equity and police reform, sponsored by the Levitt Center Law and Justice Lab. Since then, the Partnership has collected and organized data from multiple surveys aimed at gauging public opinion on these issues. The results of these surveys were discussed in a virtual town hall on Feb. 11.

Due to the extended break between the fall and spring semesters, Hamilton’s Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center offered students the opportunity to spend the time conducting research. Some 39 students and 13 faculty-led groups – with an additional 40 students doing research as part of team  –  collaborated on a variety of projects that ranged from the philosophical endeavor of community-based teaching to militarized policing and political stability.  

Oneida County Sheriff Robert Maciol, Utica Chief of Police Mark Williams, and Rome Chief of Police Kevin Beach spoke in a webinar about law enforcement reform on Nov. 11. The event, which was moderated by former Syracuse Chief of Police Frank Fowler and Utica College Director of Campus Safety Musco Millner, was the final installment of an eight-part series on racial justice sponsored by the Levitt Center Law and Justice Lab.

Utica City Court Judge Ralph Eannace, marriage and family therapist Kevin Lewis, and Hamilton Director of Community Standards Catherine Berryman discussed the question “How are We Handling Domestic Violence and Mental Health Interventions?” in a webinar moderated by Hamilton Professor Frank Anechiarico on Nov. 4.