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ABC Creative Group recently hired JORDAN HARMON as a videographer. A graduate of SUNY Oswego with a degree in mass communications, he got his start in broadcast news before transitioning to agency work. Harmon will use his experience in filming, editing, and production to create technical and creative video for ABC clients.
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ABC Creative Group recently hired JORDAN HARMON as a videographer. A graduate of SUNY Oswego with a degree in mass communications, he got his start in broadcast news before transitioning to agency work. Harmon will use his experience in filming, editing, and production to create technical and creative video for ABC clients.
ADMAR has promoted DREW DUNHAM to outside sales representative in its Syracuse office. He has been with ADMAR since 2014 and served in a variety of roles, including wash-bay attendant, yard attendant, pickup-truck delivery driver, rental coordinator, and inside sales and outside sales support. Dunham previously spent time with ADMAR’s parent company, DiMarco Group, as
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ADMAR has promoted DREW DUNHAM to outside sales representative in its Syracuse office. He has been with ADMAR since 2014 and served in a variety of roles, including wash-bay attendant, yard attendant, pickup-truck delivery driver, rental coordinator, and inside sales and outside sales support. Dunham previously spent time with ADMAR’s parent company, DiMarco Group, as commercial leasing representative at the Rochester office. He earned his bachelor’s degree in interpersonal communication from Bowling Green State University in Ohio.
DR. XINJIAN (ARTHUR) LU has joined SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) as dean of the College of Business Management. He has a Ph.D. in management sciences, two master’s degrees (in computing & information science and in systems in engineering), and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He joins SUNY Poly from the College of Business and
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DR. XINJIAN (ARTHUR) LU has joined SUNY Polytechnic Institute (SUNY Poly) as dean of the College of Business Management. He has a Ph.D. in management sciences, two master’s degrees (in computing & information science and in systems in engineering), and a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. He joins SUNY Poly from the College of Business and Economics at California State University, East Bay (CSUEB), where he was serving as interim dean of its College of Business and Economics. At CSUEB since 1999, Lu also served as associate dean, chair, and associate chair of that university’s Department of Management, and professor of numerous undergraduate and graduate courses in operations management and computer information systems. He also has experience as a software engineer at Mortice Kern Systems and Prior Data Science.
CHA Consulting, Inc. has promoted three staff members in Syracuse. CHARLES (CHUCK) WALCK has been promoted to assistant project engineer III in its mechanical and energy group. He has more than five years of experience in the field, performing assessments for energy-related programs. Walck holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Syracuse University.
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CHA Consulting, Inc. has promoted three staff members in Syracuse. CHARLES (CHUCK) WALCK has been promoted to assistant project engineer III in its mechanical and energy group. He has more than five years of experience in the field, performing assessments for energy-related programs. Walck holds master’s and bachelor’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Syracuse University. RYAN VOORHEES has been promoted to project manager II in its industry and energy group. With a background in mechanical engineering, he has performed project management, cost estimating, and piping systems design for nearly a decade. ZACH PLONKA has been promoted to project engineer IV in the firm’s civil engineering department. His work has focused on civil/site and water/wastewater design for commercial, government, and residential land development projects since joining the firm in 2011. KEVIN WACKER has been promoted to engineer II in the electric distribution design group. He has been heavily involved in CHA’s electric distribution feeder hardening projects. Wacker’s work has included gathering field data, performing condition assessments, reviewing standards, and developing recommendations for improving reliability.
Klepper, Hahn & Hyatt has promoted JOSEPH W. WARD to senior associate in its structural engineering practice. He is a licensed professional engineer with 20 years of experience. Ward has been with the East Syracuse firm for the past 12 years. He is also licensed in Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Ward has a bachelor’s degree in
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Klepper, Hahn & Hyatt has promoted JOSEPH W. WARD to senior associate in its structural engineering practice. He is a licensed professional engineer with 20 years of experience. Ward has been with the East Syracuse firm for the past 12 years. He is also licensed in Connecticut and Pennsylvania. Ward has a bachelor’s degree in civil and environmental engineering from Brigham Young University.
Tompkins Financial Advisors has promoted JENNIFER ALFIERI to the position of VP, chief fiduciary officer. She first joined Tompkins Financial Advisors in May 2017, serving as trust counsel. Prior to joining Tompkins, Alfieri was an attorney specializing in estate planning, trust and estate administration, and elder law with Costello, Cooney & Fearon, PLLC. She graduated
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Tompkins Financial Advisors has promoted JENNIFER ALFIERI to the position of VP, chief fiduciary officer. She first joined Tompkins Financial Advisors in May 2017, serving as trust counsel. Prior to joining Tompkins, Alfieri was an attorney specializing in estate planning, trust and estate administration, and elder law with Costello, Cooney & Fearon, PLLC. She graduated from St. Bonaventure University and Syracuse University College of Law and holds an advanced law degree in estate planning from the University of Miami School of Law. LISA ANNE LEONARDO has been promoted to VP, trust operations officer. She previously served as assistant VP and trust operations manager. Leonardo was also the treasurer of Suicide Prevention and Crisis Services. She graduated from Ithaca College with a bachelor’s degree in management.
Rome Medical Practice, an affiliate of Rome Memorial Hospital, has hired LISA TAURISANO as its new administrative clinical manager. She has more than 20 years of clinical nursing experience and eight years of management experience in a health-care setting. Taurisano began her career in health care as a licensed practical nurse. She went on to
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Rome Medical Practice, an affiliate of Rome Memorial Hospital, has hired LISA TAURISANO as its new administrative clinical manager. She has more than 20 years of clinical nursing experience and eight years of management experience in a health-care setting. Taurisano began her career in health care as a licensed practical nurse. She went on to receive her associate degree in nursing from Mohawk Valley Community College, her bachelor’s degree in nursing from SUNYIT/Utica College, and her master’s degree in health-care administration from Southern New Hampshire University.
MICHAEL J. HRAB has joined Hancock Estabrook, LLP’s commercial real-estate practice. His focus is on representing clients in commercial sales and purchases, lease transactions, commercial loans, and lender transactions. Hrab was previously counsel for a national title company, handling complex title matters and varied real-estate transactions. He has also served as assistant corporate counsel to
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MICHAEL J. HRAB has joined Hancock Estabrook, LLP’s commercial real-estate practice. His focus is on representing clients in commercial sales and purchases, lease transactions, commercial loans, and lender transactions. Hrab was previously counsel for a national title company, handling complex title matters and varied real-estate transactions. He has also served as assistant corporate counsel to the City of Syracuse, assisting in housing-code enforcement cases in City Court and Supreme Court. Hrab received his bachelor’s degree from Le Moyne College and his law degree from Western New England University School of Law
Buckeye Corrugated Inc. (BCI) has promoted JASON CROUCH to division general manager of the BCI Empire Division. He joined BCI in October 2013 as sales manager for the Empire Division. Crouch holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from SUNY-ESF at Syracuse. According to his LinkedIn profile, he previously worked as a sales representative for
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Buckeye Corrugated Inc. (BCI) has promoted JASON CROUCH to division general manager of the BCI Empire Division. He joined BCI in October 2013 as sales manager for the Empire Division. Crouch holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental science from SUNY-ESF at Syracuse. According to his LinkedIn profile, he previously worked as a sales representative for Rock-Tenn Company for more than five years.
What Are Political Parties Good For? Plenty, Actually
If you take a dim view of our political parties, you’re in sterling company. So did George Washington. In his famous Farewell Address, our first president warned us against “the baneful effects of the spirit of [political] party.” A political party, he wrote, “agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity
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If you take a dim view of our political parties, you’re in sterling company. So did George Washington.
In his famous Farewell Address, our first president warned us against “the baneful effects of the spirit of [political] party.” A political party, he wrote, “agitates the community with ill-founded jealousies and false alarms, kindles the animosity of one part against another, foments occasionally riot and insurrection. It opens the door to foreign influence and corruption…” It’s safe to say he was not a fan.
So it’s with some trepidation that I want to speak up in favor of political parties. For well over 165 years, they have played a key role in our representative government. They are the best stage I know for broad economic, political, and social change. It’s hard for me to imagine a democracy without them.
This is in part because we live in a very different country from the one George Washington led. The United States today is not just geographically bigger, but immeasurably larger in both population and diversity.
And that’s where our two great parties, for the most part, have excelled: they accommodate different interests, opinions, and views. Our system does not have enough consensus-building mechanisms; the parties are crucial to this. Strong political parties that can unite groups with different interests have been a source of powerful change in our history.
Of course, more than building consensus within a party is needed. Even though the American people prefer bipartisanship, the parties too often prefer to lambast each other. But legislation passed on a party-line vote rarely stands the test of time. To work properly, our system needs a broader consensus — and party-line votes do not provide it. The really effective legislation in our history — Social Security and Medicare, for instance — was passed with solid, bipartisan support.
Our parties also play a lubricating role in the mechanisms of democracy. They get out the vote and educate voters. They teach many thousands of ordinary Americans what the nuts and bolts of democratic participation look like. They choose, train, and promote candidates who are (for the most part) worthy of holding public office. They play an important role in funding elections, financing the system, and giving candidates a platform. In short, they’re a personnel system for government office.
To be sure, Americans divide rather sharply on their support of political parties — not just on which one they support, but on whether to support them at all. Many avoid identification with a party. Others become ardent loyalists. Still others follow them regularly, but not slavishly. At the moment, more people define themselves as independent than as a member of one or the other party, but the two major parties together still command a majority of the electorate.
I am a member of a party, and have certainly been disappointed in its performance on occasion. Yet I’ve never felt that my disappointment was grounds for abandoning the party. Nor, on the other hand, have I ever felt that my loyalty was grounds for despising the other party. I cringe when I hear a member of either party express hatred or accuse the other party of disloyalty. Both parties are patriotic, both want the best for their country — even if they have different ideas about what “best” means. That’s part of the democratic dialogue, after all.
That’s why I also get uncomfortable with unswerving loyalty to any political party. I think political parties have to earn our loyalty by their performance. And in particular, by their ability to move the nation forward legislatively.
George Washington was right, of course, in pointing out some of the risks of people joining together to form organized parties. But he didn’t fully recognize their role as consensus-builders — their concern with transcending differences and political factionalism and arriving at stances designed to appeal to political majorities both in elections and in legislatures. The most successful party officials I know have made consensus-building a priority, both within their own parties and across partisan lines. In a country as diverse and divided as ours, that’s not a baneful effect at all.
Lee Hamilton is a senior advisor for the Indiana University (IU) Center on Representative Government, distinguished scholar at the IU School of Global and International Studies, and professor of practice at the IU 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.
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