CSTEP to host first Baccalaureate

CSTEP to host first BaccalaureateApril 19, 2004Matthew R. Snydermrsnyder@syr.edu

The inaugural Baccalaureate for Syracuse University’s Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) will take place in Hendricks Chapel on May 7 at 7 p.m.; the Commencement-weekend ceremony is designed to celebrate aspects of moral life and its relation to higher education through song, speeches, and readings from sacred texts.

The Baccalaureate, which honors graduating CSTEP participants before an audience of their friends and families, is sponsored by the Division of Undergraduate Studies, the Division of Student Affairs, Hendricks Chapel and the Office of Multicultural Affairs. The event is free and open to the public.

The keynote address will be delivered by professional speaker Patricia Russell-McCloud. Known for her analytical ability to substantively address issues including achieving excellence and assuming leadership, Russell-McCloud has offered her motivational advice to more than 200,000 people in her 20 years as a lecturer. She has been named by Black Enterprise magazine as one of the finest business motivators in America for her speeches, which include “Excellence without Excuse,” “The Elevator is not Running, You Will Have to Take the Stairs, ” and “Navigators, not Passengers.”

CSTEP is an academic enrichment program for historically underrepresented and disadvantaged groups of students, designed to foster academic success in preparing for professional licensure or careers in the scientific, technical or health-related fields. It is jointly sponsored by SU and the New York State Education Department. CSTEP aims to reinvent scholarship for participating students as they pursue their academic goals, and undergraduate and graduate students may join CSTEP at any time during their University career. For more information about the Baccalaureate event, call 443-2622 or e-mail tcrush@syr.edu.