NIH awards Cornell $17.4 million for CHESS sub-facility

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ITHACA — The National Institutes of Health has awarded Cornell University $17.4 million for ongoing biomedical research at its MacCHESS sub-facility of its Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS) — a national research facility, the university announced. MacCHESS is short for Macromolecular X-ray science at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source. Cornell, in an Aug. […]

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MacCHESS is short for Macromolecular X-ray science at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source. Cornell, in an Aug. 15 news release, said MacCHESS “attracts hundreds of biomedical researchers each year.”

As part of its Empire State Development Division of Science, Technology and Innovation (NYSTAR) program to promote jobs in the state, New York State will supplement the award with up to $2.5 million over the next five years.

With this grant, the Bethesda, Maryland–based NIH joins the National Science Foundation (NSF) as a “major contributing partner” for user operations at CHESS. The NSF is funding the Center for High-Energy X-Ray Sciences at CHESS, or CHEXS, which consists of four beamlines and staff to support high-energy X-ray science user operations, X-ray technology research and development, and CHEXS leadership.

The research

Cornell says a single human cell contains thousands of proteins that perform a vast array of functions, from fighting off viruses to transcribing DNA. By understanding the structure of these proteins, researchers can interpret their functions and develop methods for turning them on and off.

To understand these biological processes, researchers have been using the high-energy X-rays at the CHESS. These intense beams of light are critical to solving the structure of these proteins. The NIH funding will “help ensure that this research continues,” the release stated.

By using the X-rays and emerging technology at MacCHESS, researchers are able to observe cellular functions and analyze molecular interactions, yielding important insights into the “most fundamental” biological processes. This research is “critical” to understanding antibiotic-resistant bacteria and the development of cancer-fighting drugs, for example.

“MacCHESS provides cutting-edge instrumentation and techniques to some of the most challenging questions confronting structural biologists,” Rick Cerione, principal investigator for MacCHESS, said in the release. “We are excited about working at the frontiers of structural biology to develop new technology that will provide long-term benefits to the biomedical research community as a whole.”

NIH funding use

The NIH funding supports two experiment stations at MacCHESS: the flexible protein crystallography beamline (FlexX); and the biological small angle X-ray solution scattering and high-pressure biology beamline (BioSAXS/HP-Bio).

Researchers at the FlexX beamline will broadly focus on macromolecular crystallography (MX) and related methods that help determine the structures of proteins, viruses and nucleic acids, offering high-resolution 3D imaging that is needed for applications such as drug design.

The BioSAXS/HP-Bio beamline will support researchers studying biomolecular structures in solution; high-pressure studies in biophysics; the structural biology of organisms living under high pressure and temperature (known as “deep life”); and food science. This beamline also will help researchers working on improved sterilization and processing methods in the food and pharmaceutical industries, Cornell said.

NSF funding to CHESS

Cornell on July 22 announced that its CHESS facility will receive $54 million in NSF funding over the next five years for a research and education sub-facility at Wilson Laboratory, the home of CHESS.

The NSF funding will be provided by its Division of Materials Research, the Directorate of Biological Sciences, and the Directorate of Engineering.

CHESS annually attracts more than 1,200 users, who conduct X-ray analysis and collect data for research in materials, biomedical and other science fields, the university said in a July 22 release.

The newly funded NSF portion of the facility will be known as the Center for High-Energy X-ray Sciences at CHESS (CHEXS @ CHESS). It will include four beamlines and staff to support high-energy X-ray science user operations, X-ray technology research and development, and CHEXS leadership, Cornell said. In addition to research, CHEXS will support education and training, particularly of researchers in biological sciences, engineering, and materials research.

“The renewal of NSF funding for CHESS will ensure America and Cornell University remain at the cutting edge of innovation in high-energy X-ray applications,” U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.) said in the Cornell release. “CHESS is a unique training ground for the scientific workforce we need to keep the U.S. competitive, and is part of the lifeblood of our scientific community, enabling researchers to make advancements in everything from clean energy technologies to stronger, more resilient infrastructure.”

CHESS’s most recent grant renewal from the NSF came in 2014.

The NSF is the largest source of funding for CHESS. Until this spring, CHESS had been funded exclusively by this science agency since its commissioning in 1980. That changed in April, when Cornell transitioned to “a new funding model in which multiple partners will steward facilities at CHESS,” per the release.

CHESS recently completed a $15 million upgrade, which was funded by New York State. That project improved the infrastructure of the storage ring and CHESS’s X-ray beamlines.

Computer and electronic product manufacturing jobs decline in Binghamton MSA

Manufacturing & Engineering, Regional News, Subscriber Only

The number of computer and electronic product manufacturing jobs in the Binghamton metropolitan statistical area (MSA) dropped by 200 positions, or 3.4 percent, in July 2019 from the year-ago period, according to statistics released by the New York State Department of Labor this month. The figures showed a net loss of 100 jobs (-0.2 percent) in

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Schumer urges banks to lend to industrial-hemp businesses

Regional News, Subscriber Only

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.) wants banks and other financial institutions to realize that the industrial-hemp industry is now legal and needs services “to better help it seed and grow across upstate New York.” Schumer explained that without access to traditional financial services, the industrial-hemp industry Upstate and in Cortland County is being

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Schumer explained that without access to traditional financial services, the industrial-hemp industry Upstate and in Cortland County is being “unfairly restricted, preventing further economic growth and the creation of good-paying jobs.”

Industrial hemp is from the plant species Cannabis sativa and has been used worldwide to produce a variety of industrial and consumer products., per the website of the Agricultural Marketing Resource Center (AgMRC). Ames, Iowa–based AgMRC provides “unbiased, science-based marketing information for U.S. farmers and ranchers,” its website says.

The 2018 Farm Bill legalized the production and sale of industrial hemp, removing it from the Controlled Substances Act, Schumer’s office said.

Standing at Main Street Farms in Cortlandville with growers, producers, and industry experts, Schumer discussed an effort to “iron out a thorny issue for the burgeoning industrial-hemp industry” in the region, his office said in an Aug. 12 news release.

Allan Gandelman, owner of Main Street Farms, joined Schumer for the senator’s remarks.

To address this issue, Schumer requested that the Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) issue “expedient” guidance to financial institutions confirming the legality of providing services to the industrial-hemp industry.

Even though the 2018 Farm Bill — including Schumer’s Hemp Farming Act of 2018 — legalized the production and sale of industrial hemp, financial institutions have “continued to question” whether they can extend their services and products to industrial-hemp oriented businesses.

“The industrial hemp industry is seeding and growing all over upstate New York, with new businesses like Main Street Farms popping up left and right, which is why I fought so hard to strip the burdensome and outdated federal regulations from it by passing the Hemp Farming Act of 2018. However, if these businesses aren’t able to get financing from a bank or find a credit-card processor that doesn’t charge them an arm and a leg, none of that matters all that much,” Schumer said. “If the financial institutions aren’t given updated guidance by the major federal financial regulators clarifying the legality of industrial hemp, the industry in Central New York and producers like Main Street Farms will continue being tightly bound, prevented from growing and creating the good-paying jobs they’d otherwise be able to. That’s why I’m urging the FDIC, Federal Reserve, and OCC to issue updated guidance to the financial institutions looking to provide services to industrial hemp-oriented businesses as soon as possible, to help growers, producers and industry harvest the massive potential of this versatile crop.”

Since the 2018 Farm Bill removed the federal regulatory “shackles” from industrial-hemp production, manufacturing, and selling, Schumer noted that New York’s industrial-hemp industry has started to grow “significantly, with new farms and businesses emerging and existing ones expanding operations,” his office said.

It has resulted in “considerably more good-paying jobs and revenue” to upstate New York, making industrial hemp a “critical new part” of the state’s agricultural future.

For example, Canopy Growth recently held a groundbreaking event for its new industrial hemp industrial park in Broome County, which will bring 400 new jobs to the region, “with the potential for many more” industrial hemp-oriented businesses to locate to the region.

Main Street Farms

Schumer pointed to Main Street Farms as the “perfect example” of an industrial-hemp business “brimming with potential that’s being tightly bound by the lack of regulatory clarity.” Main Street Farms has a 100-acre industrial-hemp farm in the town of Cortlandville, and just recently announced plans to open up a processing facility in the city of Cortland.

Main Street Farms says the two operations expect to employ a combined 80 people, Schumer’s office said. However, Schumer noted that Main Street Farms went to five different banks to get financing after the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill and was turned down by all five, due to its association with industrial hemp.

The company eventually found a local credit union willing to offer its services, but the inconsistent access to financial services made launching the business “challenging.” Main Street Farms also had to pull numerous products off its website, as those products prevented credit-card processors from working with the company.

A couple of credit-card processors will work with Main Street Farms and similar industrial hemp-oriented businesses, but they charge “well above” average rates, Schumer’s office said. Additionally, the lack of access to financial products not only affects the hemp businesses, but its employees as well. Schumer said his office has heard stories from employees of hemp businesses being unable to access private loans due to the nature of their jobs.

Schumer explained that “in order to alleviate these concerns,” updated guidance would better help financial institutions assess risk and make available a wider range of financial products to industrial hemp cultivators and manufacturers.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

Ithaca College to use another federal grant to help curb STEM teacher shortage

Health Care, Regional News, Subscriber Only

ITHACA, N.Y. — Ithaca College (IC) is using a federal grant of $1.1 million to help increase the number of “highly qualified” STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) educators. The funding was allocated through the National Science Foundation’s Robert Noyce Scholarship Program, Ithaca College said in an Aug. 2 news release. Building on the success of

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ITHACA, N.Y. — Ithaca College (IC) is using a federal grant of $1.1 million to help increase the number of “highly qualified” STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) educators.

The funding was allocated through the National Science Foundation’s Robert Noyce Scholarship Program, Ithaca College said in an Aug. 2 news release.

Building on the success of the first grant, this funding will expand recruitment efforts, improve student-centered instruction, foster a culture of continuous professional growth, and study teacher retention and success, the school said.

Ithaca College was awarded its first Noyce grant in August 2011, Dan Verderosa, content specialist at the college, tells CNYBJ in an email message.

IC cites a recent paper from the Washington, D.C.–based Economic Policy Institute, which said, “experienced, fully certified teachers are the most critical resource denied to many students, especially in high-needs school districts,” per the release. Ithaca College’s Michael (Bodhi) Rogers and his colleagues recognize the issue and, with the support of its second Robert Noyce Scholarship Program grant, is “looking to counter it.”

Rogers, a professor of physics, coordinates the college’s science-teaching program and is principle investigator of the two Noyce grant awards.

“The declining number of teachers in the STEM field comes at a cost to the kids in K-12,” Cristina Gomez, an associate professor in IC’s mathematics and education departments, said in the release. “So, one of our goals is to develop teachers who have a STEM background and understand ways to teach children in these areas.”

Ithaca College will provide stipends for 49 STEM bachelor’s degree holders to complete a 13-month master’s level program. It includes working in local educational agencies that serve at least one high-needs school. Those involved will complete the requirements for teacher licensing in biology, chemistry, earth science, mathematics, physics or childhood education. They will also have the opportunity to participate in enhanced professional-development activities such as teaching conferences; workshops for teaching in high-needs schools; and a summer teaching workshop.

“We were very successful in recruiting and graduating teachers and supporting high-needs schools with the first grant,” Peter Martin, an associate professor in Ithaca College’s department of education, said. “However, we didn’t have the means to officially study the effect of the program. This grant will allow us to see what is successful and contribute more to the field.”

Research study

The project will include a multi-year research study that will examine the impact of a pre-service culture of continuous learning, growth and professional development, confidence in handling challenges, participation in leadership activities, and teacher retention. The study will look to inform other teacher preparation programs nationwide and provide strategies for improving the retention of new teachers.

“The first grant was very successful. Thirty-four of our first Noyce grant scholars are teachers today,” said Rogers. “These teachers are impacting a new group of students every year, which has a multiplying effect not only on students, but their families and other teachers. This is enormous, rewarding and why teaching is a profession to be proud of.”

Chris Martin was a recipient of the first Noyce grant. He teaches at Lehman Alternative Community School in Ithaca. Martin previously worked as a manager for a web-design company in northeastern Pennsylvania. He was looking for a career change and came to IC to complete his master of arts in teaching, which he accomplished in 2014.

“I cannot understate how helpful the Noyce program has been in my development as an educator,” Martin said in the release. “It was designed specifically for people like me. It lured me away from industry and into teaching by offering first-rate professional development. From attending conferences to classroom resources, to access to a network of inspiring and talented teachers, the Noyce program was a significant contributor to my acceptance into the New York State Master Teacher Program this past year.”

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

Semifinalists in 76West clean-energy competition hope to capture $1M grand prize

Regional News, Subscriber Only

VESTAL, N.Y. — The 18 semifinalists competing this year in the 76West clean-energy competition are waiting to find out if they’ve secured additional funding in their product-development efforts. The semifinalists are competing for six awards, including a $1 million grand prize, which will be announced in the fall, NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research and

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VESTAL, N.Y. — The 18 semifinalists competing this year in the 76West clean-energy competition are waiting to find out if they’ve secured additional funding in their product-development efforts.

The semifinalists are competing for six awards, including a $1 million grand prize, which will be announced in the fall, NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research and Development Authority) said in an Aug. 7 news release.

The semifinalists made their pitches to a panel of judges during a two-day event held on Aug. 7 and 8 at Binghamton University in Vestal.

The 76West competition focuses on cleantech economic development and seeks to expand “innovative” entrepreneurship in the Southern Tier.

About 76West

This is the fourth round of 76West, a $20 million competition and support program administered by NYSERDA that launched in 2016.

Each year applicants compete for a $1 million grand prize, a $500,000 award and four $250,000 awards. In total, 76West is providing $10 million in awards and $10 million for business support, marketing and administration through the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and the Clean Energy Fund.

The 76West winners from the first three rounds — Rochester-based EkoStinger, Ireland-headquartered Hub Controls and Dallas-based Skyven Technologies — have integrated and expanded their business operations into the Southern Tier.

In total, previous grand prize and other 76West winners have raised $28 million in private capital, made multimillion-dollar investments in property and equipment in the region, and spent more than $1.7 million on key suppliers, NYSERDA said.

As recipients of a 76West award, companies must either move to the Southern Tier or establish a direct connection with the Southern Tier economy, such as a supply chain partnership, job development with Southern Tier companies, or other strategic relationships with Southern Tier entities that helps spur economic development and creates jobs.

If the companies are already in the Southern Tier, they must commit to substantially growing their business and employment in the region.

Semifinalists

The semifinalists in the 76West competition are the following firms (base of operation in parentheses):

• Syndem (Binghamton)
• Heat Inverse (Ithaca)
• Cortland Research (Homer)
• SunDensity (Vestal)
• Paradigm of New York (Rochester)
• Clean Fiber (Buffalo)
• OXTO Energy (Queens)
• Allied Microbiota (Brooklyn)
• Carbon Upcycling Technologies (Calgary, Canada)
• SWTCH Energy (Toronto, Canada)
• Radical Plastics (Marblehead, Massachusetts)
• Optimus Technologies (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)
• Prosumer Grid (Atlanta, Georgia)
• Biolive (Istanbul, Turkey)
• Blue Frontier (Parkland, Florida)
• Cambridge Crops (Somerville, Massachusetts)
• FlashCharge Batteries (Aventura, Florida)
• PolyJoule (Cambridge, Massachusetts)

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

Stronger Laws to Protect Police are Needed

Opinion, Subscriber Only

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Each day, police officers put their lives on the line to protect our communities. From routine traffic stops to being the first to respond to an accident — their bravery protects us each day but their safety is not guaranteed. Accordingly, we should do all we can to protect officers from harm and harassment as they work to protect the public. Unfortunately, due to anti-police rhetoric advanced on social-media platforms, disrespect of the police seems to be on the rise.

An example of this disrespect occurred this summer in New York City when police officers were doused with water from a bucket while they were attending to a 911 call. The incident was recorded and shared on social media to intentionally shame and embarrass police officers. Sadly, this is not the only time this has happened in recent weeks. A separate incident in New York City shows a pedestrian walking up to police officers and dousing them with water from a water bottle in one hand and holding a cell phone to record their reactions to it with his other hand. Similar crimes have taken place in Atlanta and Philadelphia that were widely shared in the media since the New York incidents.

In response to these and similar incidents, legislation was recently introduced in New York State to increase penalties for these crimes. One bill would make it a felony to menace a police officer and another bill, with a similar goal, would establish a separate offense in the penal law for obstructing a police officer in the line of duty. Currently, perpetrators who commit these and similar offenses can only be charged with either obstructing a government administrator, disorderly conduct, or harassment — crimes which are either violations or misdemeanors but not felonies. I support these newly introduced bills that would make these type of actions felonies and would help protect our police officers.

Unfortunately, at least initially, it appears that the Assembly majority opposes enhancing penalties to protect officers. After the legislation was introduced in August, the Assembly Speaker told the press that he is against these types of additional penalties without giving much of an explanation as to why.

William (Will) A. Barclay is the Republican representative of the 120th New York Assembly District, which encompasses most of Oswego County, including the cities of Oswego and Fulton, as well as the town of Lysander in Onondaga County and town of Ellisburg in Jefferson County. Contact him at barclaw@assembly.state.ny.us or (315) 598-5185.

Democracy Won’t Die If We Don’t Let It

Opinion, Subscriber Only

Democracy’s premise is that ordinary citizens can make solid decisions on complex issues. But this basic principle and the structure of laws and practices built over the centuries to safeguard it are being questioned as rarely before. It’s not just that political leaders in various western democracies seem to have little regard for the norms and

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It’s not just that political leaders in various western democracies seem to have little regard for the norms and procedures they inherited. It’s that public discourse is filled these days with warnings about democracy’s collapse. As the writer James Traub put it not long ago, “You’d have to go back more than a century, to the 15 years before World War I, to find another moment when so many leading thinkers…questioned democracy’s future.”

Certainly, we have reason to worry. Participating productively in our democracy has always been a serious challenge. But because of the intensely polarized environment and the enormous amount of information, both true and false, that surrounds us, making discriminating judgments has become harder. It’s not just that we face the challenge as citizens of trying to choose the best path forward in these circumstances. We now also have to discern what information is true and what’s false as we do so.

Moreover, as citizens we have to be more alert than ever to demagogues and authoritarians, to those who degrade and diminish democracy, and to those who want to exclude our fellow citizens from participating. These traits can be subtle. Plenty of officials argue, “Trust us, we know best” on national security, public finance, and other issues. Too often, the veil of special expertise is used to hide abuses of power or efforts to restrict the freedom of others.

Yet if we ask, with Lincoln, whether this nation “so conceived and so dedicated can long endure,” we don’t see a democracy in its death throes. Yes, it is under stress. It needs fixing. It cannot be taken for granted. It struggles with corruption, complacency, ineffectiveness, and slowness. But its strengths lie where they always have: in a population that embraces democratic values.

As voters we have to look for candidates and leaders who are committed to making the political institutions of democracy stronger: a Congress that works, a judiciary that is independent of political pressure, an executive branch that is transparent and accountable, a noisy and robust free press, the rule of law, a sturdy civil society. And we need to practice democracy as individuals: getting involved, making ourselves heard, voting, improving our corner of the world. It’s no exaggeration to say the future of our country depends on citizens stepping forward.

But we also have to go beyond our actions by committing ourselves to democracy’s fundamental values. As others have noted, democracy is not just a political system and a set of rules. It’s also a culture — it’s the way we live: respect for the rule of law, fairness to all, tolerance of differences, equal political rights, and equal opportunity. These are the fundamental values that undergird our country. It is a culture that encourages each of us to become the best we can, and to build a better neighborhood, community, state, nation, or world.

Democracy’s gift is that we strengthen it by practicing it — by getting involved, making ourselves heard, and engaging with our communities. This means that we also strengthen democracy by pushing to expand the vote, not depress it, and by taking to heart the simple notion that we have a government of, by, and for the people — not just certain kinds of people.

In the end, we’re all bound together in the same society, attached to these shared values and practices. It’s why I don’t think the authoritarian models of China or Russia or one-man rule hold any attraction for Americans. We’re not going to go down those paths.

Democracy may not solve all problems, and it often frustrates us, but it provides us with the best way humankind has found to search for remedies and solutions that benefit the many. Its future is an educated guess. None of us really knows what will happen. What we do know, however, is that the important question has nothing to do with whether we’re optimistic or pessimistic. It’s what do we have to do to strengthen it?

Lee Hamilton is a senior advisor for the Indiana University (IU) Center on Representative Government, distinguished scholar at IU Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies, and professor of practice at the IU O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs. Hamilton, a Democrat, was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for 34 years, representing a district in south central Indiana.

JOE MCCONNELL

People on the Move, Subscriber Only

Pinckney Hugo Group announced it has promoted JOE MCCONNELL to senior digital developer. He was previously a digital developer and has been with the agency for six years. Before joining Pinckney Hugo Group, McConnell worked for another unnamed website development company. He has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Ithaca College.

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Erie Materials

People on the Move, Subscriber Only

Erie Materials has made several promotions and new hires. At the Syracuse corporate headquarters, STEVE SYRON has been promoted to senior VP for sales and marketing. He started at Erie Materials’ Binghamton branch in 1986 as a warehouse and delivery specialist then worked as a warehouse manager, inside sales and territory manager. In 1992, he

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Erie Materials has made several promotions and new hires. At the Syracuse corporate headquarters, STEVE SYRON has been promoted to senior VP for sales and marketing. He started at Erie Materials’ Binghamton branch in 1986 as a warehouse and delivery specialist then worked as a warehouse manager, inside sales and territory manager. In 1992, he transferred to the Syracuse branch as operations manager and was promoted to general manager of the branch in 1994. Syron was named corporate sales manager in 1995, VP of sales in 2000 and VP of sales and marketing in 2006. KEVIN SHOLETT has been promoted to director of sales management. He started his Erie Materials career in 1997 as a territory manager at the Watertown location. In 1999, Sholett was promoted to general manager of the location. Sholett joined the corporate staff in 2004 as regional sales manager. MARK SYRON has been promoted to corporate inside sales manager. He started with Erie Materials in 2015 as a warehouse specialist/inside sales representative in the Syracuse branch. Syron was promoted to inside sales in 2016 and then to corporate inside sales service/operations representative in 2018. TONY DEHART has been promoted to director of IT. He joined Erie Materials in 2004 as information systems manager after several years as an outside consultant to Erie Materials. SCOTT HIGGINBOTHAM has been promoted to director of operations. He joined Erie Materials in 1988 as an inside sales representative at the Auburn branch. He was promoted to operations manager for Auburn in 1995 then corporate operations manager in 2005. CHRIS ENGLE has been selected as territory manager for the general contracting/architectural department. He joined Erie Materials in 2005 and has also served as operations manager, territory manager, and inside sales representative. REAGAN EMERSON has been hired as an inside sales representative for the firm’s Auburn branch. She had served in the Summer Associates Program with Erie Materials in 2018. JONATHAN HORTON has been named inside sales representative in the Watertown branch. He joined Erie Materials as a driver in early 2019. ANNE WALTER has joined the Auburn branch as branch administrator. She comes to Erie Materials with a degree from SUNY Oswego and experience in both administrative roles and service-oriented positions.

ABBEY HENDRICKSON

People on the Move, Subscriber Only

ABBEY HENDRICKSON recently joined Tioga County Economic Development and Planning as community development specialist. She is the past executive director of the Discovery Center and the Tioga Arts Council. Hendrickson earned her master’s degree at the University at Buffalo and bachelor’s degree at SUNY Brockport.

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