UTICA — Utica College announced it has been awarded a grant for more than $214,000 from the U.S. Department of Justice to “develop an educational opportunities program in cybersecurity.”

The two-year grant totals $450,000, and will be split between Utica College and a research team from Boston University, according to a March 6 news release from Utica College.

“We’re developing a template to train future law enforcement officers as computer forensic examiners,” Joseph Giordano, professor and director of cybersecurity programs at Utica College, said of the initiative.

The program will provide in-depth computer forensics and cybercrime investigation training. Emphasis will be on “practical labs and hands-on exercises,” as well as helping students locate internships, co-operative work opportunities, and jobs in the computer forensics and digital-evidence fields.

Utica College’s program is also expected to serve as a “facilitator and guide to enhance current capacities of other institutions,” both at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

“Nearly all crimes can be traced digitally. Law-enforcement agencies need personnel with these investigative skills,” Giordano said.

Utica College noted that it has received research grants from the Bureau of Justice Assistance in the past, but this is the first grant specifically for program development.

The college’s undergraduate computer forensics program is designated by the U.S. Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center as one of 15 National Centers for Digital Forensics Academic Excellence.

HAMILTON — Community Memorial Hospital in Hamilton on March 24 opened a testing site for coronavirus (COVID-19).

The hospital did so in coordination with the Madison County Health Department and with support from Colgate University and the Hamilton Police Department, per a Madison County government news release.

Hospital staff tested people for COVID-19 in a drive-thru like setup. The program is by appointment only and open weekdays, with operating hours posted daily. 

Individuals who meet the criteria to be tested for COVID-19 must make an appointment first before being able to go to the testing site. To make an appointment people need to call Community Memorial Hospital at (315) 228-3022. 

The opening of the testing site comes after news on March 22 that a Hamilton resident, an elderly person with underlying health issues, had died of the coronavirus, the first COVID-19 fatality in Central New York.

“The news of the death of a Hamilton resident impacts us all as a community,” Madison County Public Health Director Eric Faisst said in a March 23 statement. “We are saddened by the person’s passing, by the fact that this virus has touched our community in this way, and we are concerned about the spread of the virus. That, in combination with learning of a positive test result from an out-of-state student at Colgate University, has the community as a whole asking a lot of questions. We can stop this together by working together. The decision each of us makes now will impact us all tomorrow and beyond. Stay Home.” 

SYRACUSE — Syracuse University on March 23 announced the selection of Mark J. Lodato as the next dean of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. 

Lodato’s appointment, which was approved by the executive committee of the school’s board of trustees, takes effect July 1. He succeeds the late Lorraine Branham, who died in April 2019, and takes over for Amy Falkner, who has been serving as interim dean.

Lodato will come to Syracuse from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University (ASU), where he is an associate dean.

“We are fortunate to have found such an experienced, innovative and highly sought-after leader to build on past successes and propel the Newhouse School into the next decade to even greater distinction,” Zhanjiang (John) Liu, Syracuse University interim vice chancellor and provost, said in a statement. “From curriculum design to enrollment and fiscal management, to alumni engagement and strategic planning, Mark brings with him an impressive depth of knowledge — in the field and in the classroom — and a track record of significant achievements.”

As dean of the Newhouse School, Lodato will report to Liu, and be part of the academic deans’ cabinet and the Chancellor’s Council. He will oversee the school’s curriculum, managing fiscal resources, and attracting and retaining faculty and students, ensuring that the school remains a leader among communications educators nationwide, and an advocate for the importance of journalism, Syracuse University said.

Lodato said joining the Newhouse School as its next leader is an “extraordinary professional privilege.”

“The Newhouse School is a global leader in communication, with a rich history of excellence stretching back more than 100 years,” Lodato said. “I am humbled to follow in the footsteps of such innovative leaders as Lorraine Branham and David Rubin.” 

During Lodato’s tenure at ASU, enrollment and revenue “increased significantly” at the Cronkite School, and he received ASU President Michael Crow’s Faculty Achievement Award for Excellence in Curricular Innovation. Lodato helped to establish partnerships between the school and such major media outlets as NBC News, CBS News, ABC News, Univision, Fox Sports Arizona, Pac-12 Networks, E.W. Scripps Co., TEGNA, and Meredith Corporation.

Before his academic career, Lodato forged a career in broadcast journalism, working at network-affiliated local TV stations in Phoenix, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and Ft. Myers, Florida, as an investigative reporter, political correspondent, and anchor.