SUNY Broome Makes College More Accessible With Mobile Unit – All Otsego

SUNY Broome Makes College More Accessible with Mobile Unit

By MONICA CALZOLARI
ONEONTA

The idea behind the converted RV, dubbed “SUNY Broome on the Go,” is to provide residents of rural communities with easier access to higher education.

On July 3, Owen Conklin, the director of admissions for SUNY Broome Community College, parked the college’s mobile enrollment vehicle outside the Huntington Library. The vehicle was also prominently displayed during Oneonta’s 4th of July celebration in Neahwa Park.

Conklin is a native of Oneonta who became director of admissions at SUNY Broome in April 2023. He commutes daily to Binghamton in his own vehicle, which is more fuel-efficient than the RV reserved for special events.

Conklin considers both the July 3 and July 4 outreaches successful. He said he spoke to about 10 people in the Huntington Library parking lot and many more on July 4.
“We talked to a wide variety of people,” Conklin said. “We met a lot of alumni. We made a lot of different connections.”

Conklin is in the process of establishing a partnership with the four-county library system, serving Otsego, Chenango, Delaware and Broome counties.

He said, “When we go to libraries, they advertise what date we’ll be there.”

The vehicle is a fully functioning office on wheels, with mobile Wi-Fi service from Verizon. The vehicle carries 10 laptops.

“I can help students apply to SUNY Broome or complete their Free Application for Federal Student Aid,” Conklin explains.

He said, “Our service includes helping people who haven’t started their financial aid applications yet. We help students no matter where they go to college. We like to practice good stewardship.”
For Conklin, it’s all about helping students from rural areas gain access to higher education.

“SUNY Broome is the closest community college to Oneonta,” he said. “We’re looking for students of all ages and backgrounds, not just high school students.”

SUNY has 32 community colleges in New York State.

SUNY Broome Community College has undergone several name changes since its founding in 1946. It is a public university in Broome County and part of the State University of New York SUNY system. It is also known as BCC or SUNY Broome.

SUNY Broome purchased the mobile enrollment vehicle with grant money awarded by the New York State Department of Education. People in the community college’s admissions and enrollment departments came up with the idea, filled out the grant application and ordered the RV before Conklin started in April 2023.

Conklin helped implement all the moving parts, both figuratively and literally, and bring the project to completion. The vehicle has been in service since October 2023.

The university’s internal marketing and communications department designed the vehicle graphics and named the vehicle “SUNY Broome on the Go.” They even won the Judge’s Citation Award for their work from SUNY CUAD, which stands for Council for University Advancement.

Conklin is not aware of any other SUNY schools that have a vehicle like this RV, although there are 64 SUNY campuses in New York State.

“Other SUNYs are starting to take notice,” he said.