Reimagining SUNY Ulster: Shaping Our Future Together

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SUNY Ulster plays a vital role in strengthening our community and local economy by opening the door to quality, affordable post-secondary education and by preparing the skilled workforce that helps our region thrive. The Reimagining SUNY Ulster initiative is an opportunity to build on that strong foundation—ensuring the College continues to grow, adapt, and serve as a vibrant, valued community asset for generations to come.

County Executive Metzger has convened the Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee in partnership with the College to take a thoughtful look at the College’s future and how its facilities can best support long-term success. The Committee has been charged with developing recommendations that align the College’s capital plans with its operational goals, ensure responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars, and explore new opportunities to better serve students and the wider community.

As part of this effort, we're looking for your ideas on how both the Stone Ridge campus and the Kingston Center can evolve to better support the College, its students, and the broader community.

Background: Each year, SUNY Ulster updates its capital plan — a roadmap for maintaining and improving its buildings, grounds, facilities, infrastructure, and equipment. This plan guides the projects submitted annually for funding to Ulster County and New York State, which each provide 50% of approved capital funding. Careful planning ensures that every dollar invested strengthens the College’s ability to serve students and our community.

The Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee focuses on physical campus needs and opportunities to make recommendations for the capital plan. The Committee’s scope does not include curriculum, programming, or staffing.

This Committee is being convened at a moment of opportunity for SUNY Ulster. Over time, our community and student population have evolved. Declining birth rates in Ulster County have reduced the number of traditional college-aged students attending classes on campus, while the College’s highly successful Collegian Program has expanded, bringing more college-level instruction directly into local high schools. At the same time, the College’s Strategic Plan recognizes growing opportunities to serve adult learners — students whose schedules, goals, and campus needs are often very different from those of recent high school graduates.

The 2025 Facilities Master Plan commissioned by the College and prepared by Liscum McCormack VanVoorhis Architects provides valuable data to guide this conversation:

  • On-campus instruction at the Stone Ridge campus has declined by more than 60% since 2009 — a trend that has continued even as overall enrollment increased in fall 2024.

  • The Stone Ridge campus includes approximately 220,000 net assignable square feet (NASF) of space. Based on SUNY’s methodology, only 88,758 NASF is required to meet current student and operational needs. Including redevelopment flexibility, the Master Plan suggests a target closer to 127,000 NASF.

  • SUNY Ulster also operates approximately 19,000 NASF at the Kingston Center.

These findings make clear that the County and the College must work together to thoughtfully align campus facilities with today’s realities and tomorrow’s possibilities. This collaboration is about being responsible stewards of taxpayer resources — and about imagining how our campuses can better serve students, support workforce development, and potentially offer new opportunities that benefit the broader community.

The Committee will review the 2025 Facilities Master Plan, the SUNY Ulster Strategic Plan, and any additional information it deems necessary. Materials considered at Committee meetings will be publicly available on the Participate Ulster page to ensure transparency and shared understanding.

The Committee will hold its first public meeting in early March and continue meeting through June, when it will present recommendations to the County Executive. The Committee may meet longer or reconvene as needed. Final recommendations will be shared with the County Executive, the College administration, and the Board of Trustees for consideration in future capital planning decisions.

Committee Members: The 11-member Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee reflects a strong partnership among the College, County Government, and the Town of Marbletown as the host community.

From the County:

  • Jamie Capuano (Committee Co-Chair) - Chief of Staff, Deputy County Executive

  • Amanda LaValle - Deputy County Executive

  • Sharon Williams - Director, Ulster County Office of Employment and Training

  • CJ Rioux - Ulster County Commissioner of Finance

  • Megan Sperry - Vice Chair, Ulster County Legislature, and Chair, Ulster County Economic Development, Planning, Education, Employment, Arts & Agriculture Committee

From the College:

  • Board of Trustees: Robert Jacobsen (Committee Co-Chair) - Board of Trustees Chair

  • Administration: Mark Longtoe - Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and General Counsel

  • Staff: Barbara Reer - Assistant Dean of Community Programs

  • Faculty: Candice VanDyke - Professor of English and Chief Diversity Officer

  • Foundation Board of Directors: Scott Davis - Secretary

From Town of Marbletown:

  • Richard Parete - Town Supervisor

SUNY Ulster plays a vital role in strengthening our community and local economy by opening the door to quality, affordable post-secondary education and by preparing the skilled workforce that helps our region thrive. The Reimagining SUNY Ulster initiative is an opportunity to build on that strong foundation—ensuring the College continues to grow, adapt, and serve as a vibrant, valued community asset for generations to come.

County Executive Metzger has convened the Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee in partnership with the College to take a thoughtful look at the College’s future and how its facilities can best support long-term success. The Committee has been charged with developing recommendations that align the College’s capital plans with its operational goals, ensure responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars, and explore new opportunities to better serve students and the wider community.

As part of this effort, we're looking for your ideas on how both the Stone Ridge campus and the Kingston Center can evolve to better support the College, its students, and the broader community.

Background: Each year, SUNY Ulster updates its capital plan — a roadmap for maintaining and improving its buildings, grounds, facilities, infrastructure, and equipment. This plan guides the projects submitted annually for funding to Ulster County and New York State, which each provide 50% of approved capital funding. Careful planning ensures that every dollar invested strengthens the College’s ability to serve students and our community.

The Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee focuses on physical campus needs and opportunities to make recommendations for the capital plan. The Committee’s scope does not include curriculum, programming, or staffing.

This Committee is being convened at a moment of opportunity for SUNY Ulster. Over time, our community and student population have evolved. Declining birth rates in Ulster County have reduced the number of traditional college-aged students attending classes on campus, while the College’s highly successful Collegian Program has expanded, bringing more college-level instruction directly into local high schools. At the same time, the College’s Strategic Plan recognizes growing opportunities to serve adult learners — students whose schedules, goals, and campus needs are often very different from those of recent high school graduates.

The 2025 Facilities Master Plan commissioned by the College and prepared by Liscum McCormack VanVoorhis Architects provides valuable data to guide this conversation:

  • On-campus instruction at the Stone Ridge campus has declined by more than 60% since 2009 — a trend that has continued even as overall enrollment increased in fall 2024.

  • The Stone Ridge campus includes approximately 220,000 net assignable square feet (NASF) of space. Based on SUNY’s methodology, only 88,758 NASF is required to meet current student and operational needs. Including redevelopment flexibility, the Master Plan suggests a target closer to 127,000 NASF.

  • SUNY Ulster also operates approximately 19,000 NASF at the Kingston Center.

These findings make clear that the County and the College must work together to thoughtfully align campus facilities with today’s realities and tomorrow’s possibilities. This collaboration is about being responsible stewards of taxpayer resources — and about imagining how our campuses can better serve students, support workforce development, and potentially offer new opportunities that benefit the broader community.

The Committee will review the 2025 Facilities Master Plan, the SUNY Ulster Strategic Plan, and any additional information it deems necessary. Materials considered at Committee meetings will be publicly available on the Participate Ulster page to ensure transparency and shared understanding.

The Committee will hold its first public meeting in early March and continue meeting through June, when it will present recommendations to the County Executive. The Committee may meet longer or reconvene as needed. Final recommendations will be shared with the County Executive, the College administration, and the Board of Trustees for consideration in future capital planning decisions.

Committee Members: The 11-member Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee reflects a strong partnership among the College, County Government, and the Town of Marbletown as the host community.

From the County:

  • Jamie Capuano (Committee Co-Chair) - Chief of Staff, Deputy County Executive

  • Amanda LaValle - Deputy County Executive

  • Sharon Williams - Director, Ulster County Office of Employment and Training

  • CJ Rioux - Ulster County Commissioner of Finance

  • Megan Sperry - Vice Chair, Ulster County Legislature, and Chair, Ulster County Economic Development, Planning, Education, Employment, Arts & Agriculture Committee

From the College:

  • Board of Trustees: Robert Jacobsen (Committee Co-Chair) - Board of Trustees Chair

  • Administration: Mark Longtoe - Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and General Counsel

  • Staff: Barbara Reer - Assistant Dean of Community Programs

  • Faculty: Candice VanDyke - Professor of English and Chief Diversity Officer

  • Foundation Board of Directors: Scott Davis - Secretary

From Town of Marbletown:

  • Richard Parete - Town Supervisor

Please share your ideas and feedback for SUNY Ulster's buildings, grounds, and facilities.

SUNY Ulster belongs to the community — and its future should be shaped by the people who care about it most.

We invite you to share your ideas and feedback about the College’s buildings, grounds, and facilities. What would you like to see at the Stone Ridge campus? How can the Kingston Center better serve students and the broader community? Are there new uses or partnerships that could help create a more vibrant, productive, and sustainable future for Ulster County?

Your input will be shared directly with the Reimagining SUNY Ulster Committee for consideration. All responses will be provided to the Committee, and those relevant to its capital planning scope will be published on this page.

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Page last updated: 12 Feb 2026, 03:25 PM