Syracuse University, the Navy and a New York State Regents Scholarship were my ticket from “the projects.” Back in the early ‘60s, before they built all those prisons, New York State had money, and the lower your family income, the greater the competitive academic scholarship award. Getting top dollar this way covered 75% of SU’s tuition back then, which was below two thousand dollars at the time. Please don’t be jealous, I’m seventy-six and a half.

When I was a student at SU, single undergraduates had to reside in student housing on campus, and a few houses were co-ops. This type of housing meant a student could pay half-price on room and board by doing all their own cooking and cleaning. This brotherhood was a support group for me. Without that community I never could have stuck it out for four years.

This brotherhood showed me that the people you surround yourself with have a huge impact on your own success. If you find yourself struggling academically or otherwise while at SU, don’t hesitate to ask those around you for help. You can save your parents heartache by doing more than biting the bullet or giving up.

Half of your education at Syracuse will be the people you meet. One big reason many students pick this school is for the networking opportunities. However, they don’t realize the network you build here is much more powerful than just providing professional opportunities. Your fellow students are more than future employees or employers — they are your friends and your roommates, and they inevitably shape who you become. College is a pivotal time in your life, make sure you build the right community during your limited time on campus.

During my senior year, I was elected Men’s Co-op number 1 vice-president. Tom White, the president, was a hard-studying student and a part of the Class of 1967. He applied for graduate school to Harvard, Yale and Columbia, and he was accepted to all three. He finished as head of his Harvard class and became the CEO of Crane and Co.,the paper company we print our money on. Don’t take your classmates like Tom for granted. You don’t know where they’ll be in 20 years.

SU’s mid ‘60s mellow, interracial social scene made anti-racism a permanent part of my personality. I was one of the student organizers of a campus Civil Rights demonstration in 1967 against arch-segregationist Governor George Wallace of Alabama. The demonstration was covered by NBC, ABC and CBS. In the Navy the next year, I spent part of my annual military leave volunteering for James Farmer, the leader of the Freedom Riders.

My time at SU spent meeting people unlike me helped me create an empathy for other races, genders and ethnicities that I might not have if I didn’t get that experience. I encourage current students to get to know your fellow classmates that come from other backgrounds and join campus organizations that push social boundaries.

Later, I was the City Human Rights Commission chair in Watertown, New York, from 1980 to 1984 during the nearby Fort Drum expansion. This year, new tactics I suggested for the Black Lives Matter movement were praised by Lonnie Bunch III, the Smithsonian Institute’s first African American director and Shirley Jackson, a professor featured on CNN’s “United Shades of America.” I would be happy to share these with anyone in the SU community that’s interested.

As an undergrad at SU, I struggled due to undiagnosed and untreated attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and a hereditary predisposition to alcoholism. I recommend all students be careful of the social pressures college may bring. The pressure to drink and party may seem fun at the moment, but keep your own health and safety in mind. Luckily, today we know and offer a lot more solutions for these saboteurs.

Dick MacPherson, one of SU’s most beloved coaches, said of alcohol, “Drink the first, sip the second, refuse the third. Had my father been able to do that, my life might have been different.”

Please don’t repeat my undergrad mistakes. You can cut classes now a lot easier than in high school, but you’ll pay a price later in grades. Also, come equipped for the Syracuse winters, even if you have to buy warm clothes at the Salvation Army.

My next piece of advice is only two words — time management. If you curate your time now, it will benefit you for years to come. Lastly, relax about your major. If you’re straight out of high school, there’s a good chance your ideal job hasn’t been created yet.

These four years will go by fast, but don’t forget to remember where you came from. I graduated more than 50 years ago and I still use the lessons learned in my undergrad. In the summer of 2019, Combat Stress Magazine published my six page article on reducing veteran suicide. This included a video that SU’s Vice Chancellor and founder of the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) Mike Haynie suggested I make. This project led to a public radio interview, a paid guest speaker lecture at SU and appointment to The New York State Democratic Party Veterans Committee.

Staying involved with the SU community has been one of my best decisions. SU is a place unlike anywhere else in the world — a place where you meet your lifelong friends who shape you and a place where you can find yourself. What I learned doing all of this should not die with me.

Roland Van Deusen ’67, G’75
Clayton, NY
[email protected]

Published on September 6, 2021 at 8:38 pm