The Syracuse University Division of Student Affairs has appointed new directors to
oversee the newly formed Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services and the
Office of First-Year and Transfer Programs. These offices will be part of the Inclusion,
Community and Citizenship portfolio within the division.
The Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services will be led by Darya Rotblat.
Rotblat is currently the interim director of the Office of Orientation and Off-Campus
Programs (OOCP). Before being named interim director, she served as associate
director.
Under Rotblat's leadership, the Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services will
focus on the needs of commuters and students who reside off campus. She will lead
efforts to educate students about their rights and responsibilities as community
members. She and her staff will respond to issues and critical issues, offer problem-
solving and referral services off campus, and operate programs such as the Off-
Campus Welcoming Team, Taste of Westcott, Project for Community Engagement
and Ten Tons of Love. To stay close to off-campus students, this office will remain at
754 Ostrom Ave.
"Darya is well-known in our community for her outstanding work on Syracuse
Welcome, her commitment to supporting student leadership development and
traditions activities, and her outstanding connections with neighborhood
organizations and rental property managers," says Rebecca Reed Kantrowitz,
associate vice president of student affairs and head of the Inclusion, Community and
Citizenship portfolio. "We are grateful for her outstanding interim leadership, and
our students and neighbors will benefit from her focus and expertise on off-campus
issues."
Rotblat joined SU in 2005 as assistant director for off-campus student services. She
was promoted to associate director in 2008, and she is currently providing interim
guidance to Syracuse Welcome 2009 orientation programming. She is president of
Women of the University Community, a volunteer advocate for the University
R.A.P.E. Center and the leading force behind the success of the Ten Tons of Love
year-end donation drive, which generated more than 33 tons of donated items for
needy people in Central New York this year.
Before SU, Rotblat was residence life coordinator at Penn College of Technology and
experience director of the first-year area in the Office of Residence Life at Franklin
Pierce University. She holds a bachelor's degree in public policy from Hobart and
William Smith Colleges and a master's degree in health education from Penn State.
Joining Rotblat in the Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services will be two other
staff members.
The Office of First-Year and Transfer Programs will provide orientation and first-year
programs to new undergraduate students and will be led by Gregory J. Victory. In
his new role, Victory will build on the success of the award-winning Syracuse
Welcome and collaborate with units across campus to develop a meaningful
experience for first-year students. He and his team will also work to expand resources
and a sense of community for transfers. He will join the office, located at 111 Waverly
Ave., Suite 006, on June 8.
"Greg brings with him great energy, a wealth of knowledge of first-year students and
a sincere passion and understanding of social justice," says Kantrowitz. "I believe his
contributions to our students, the Division of Student Affairs and the SU community
will be tremendous."
Victory returns to SU having most recently worked for Colgate University as the
director of the Center for Leadership and Student Involvement. Prior to Colgate,
Victory was part of SU's Center for Career Services for five years, first as assistant
director and then as associate director. He holds a bachelor's degree in history and
secondary education from Le Moyne College and a master's degree in higher
education administration from Syracuse University. Victory is also an adjunct faculty
member in the communication and rhetorical studies department in the College of
Visual and Performing Arts.
For more information on the Office of Off-Campus and Commuter Services, call
(315) 443-5489. For more information on the Office of First-Year and Transfer
Services, call (315) 443-1012.
