Game Over?

As most of you (hopefully) already know, this website is part of an Alternate Reality Game conducted by the classes Social Networks and the Web and Videogame Theory and Analysis at SUNY Oswego. Some people have called this project a hoax. Others have seen it as an irresponsible prank. To everyone involved, however, this has been a very serious endeavor. Not only did we never set out to fool anyone into thinking this was real, but by framing the experience as an ARG, we sought to involve various members of the Oswego community in analyzing a real-life problem, collectively articulating a multitude of realistic and possible responses to it, and examining the ethical question of what form action should take after the game.

In one way, the experiment has now reached a conclusion — at least the part of the experiment that involves imagining an alternate reality and creating related content in the form of articles, videos, etc. (the website will remain open for anyone who wants to continue to post comments). In another way, the most important part of the project is about to begin: the part in which the participants figure out what kind of action should begin as the game concludes.

To begin this process, we hope you join us for a Quest panel (titled Alternate Reality Games as Forms of Research and Activism) on April 22 at 4 PM in room 220 of the Campus Center, SUNY Oswego.

Thanks for playing!

News From the Field: Recap

As we have all seen, this week and a half has been a dire time for Suny Oswego. Since the Initial report, we have witnessed a constant deterioration of the Universities structure, where each day it seemed things could not get worse, things continually did. Each problem, both social and economic, proposed just how deeply layered our community is, and how many things we have in our past taken for granted. Let us look back at some of the problems that arose and the area’s they intruded on.

Day One: Proposal of Oswego’s Closing-Catalyst

Day Two: Student Protest- People Realizing that No One Had Promised the College Environment to Last Forever.

Day Three: Cuts Continue for Campus Closing- Monetary Issues at the University

Day Four: Tensions Run High as Money Runs Low- People Realize What Luxuries and Extras They Have Been Given Here.

Day Five: Oswego Alumni Speak Out- Remembering that This University Doesn’t Only Exist Now, But Has a Long Respectable History.

Day Six: Mass Partying- Students Realize the Importance of Structure and Academia

Day Seven: Lack of University Police- People Appreciate the Order they Once Had.

Day Eight: Sports to Be Cut: School Spirit and Basic Ideas of Comradery Demolished.

Day Nine Part One: Dining Halls Run Short- Appreciate the Once Stable Area and Comforting of Campus Dining As this is Our Home.

Day Nine Part Two: Student Exodus- People Leave when What Made it a Home is Now Gone.

Day Ten: Teacher’s Expendable- The Final Straw. The Main Components of a College Environment are Disregarded

Only after you see how much you can lose, can you begin to appreciate how much you should try and hold onto things. This has been a sad time, but now it is a time for change.

-Brandon Niezgoda

News from The Field: Day Ten

SUNY Oswego Teachers Become “expendable assets”

SUNY Oswego announced today that most of the non-tenured professors and instructors will be let go following the end of the current semester due to the drastic budget cuts.

“Here we are, already working for bones because of all the budget cuts throughout the years yet they have enough money for the gratuitous expense of a multimillion dollar campus center.” Says Professor John Doe “If I feel anything at this point, it is, to not trust the government. Three or four years ago, they figured we were in good enough shape for this beautiful structure. I was fooled along with SUNY Oswego. It’s amazing how quickly the government can make its citizens victims”

This sort of blow wasn’t only taxing on the teachers, but as the students as well.

“The hardest thing for a student it to develop a strong relationship with their professor, both professionally and on a personal level.” Says Robert Waloven “Students have to ask themselves two things, What is the point of coming back to a school where their favorite teachers are treated as expendable assets and second, if they are forced in to treating their faculty this way, what can the students expect from now until the day they close. It’s too unpredictable to pay this sort of money for something that is both completely not only your hands, but the institution as a whole.”

The slow and steady decline of something great is never something that is going to be pretty. The fact that the government assumes they “know” what happens to be expendable will continue to hurt this state along with this country. It’s sort of like “taxation without representation.” This is something that must stop or a true revolution won’t only be possible, but eminent.

Be advised that this is part of an Alternate Reality Game developed as a class project.

-Robert Waloven

Sudden Budget Cuts Cause Problems with Class Registration

Oswego State Junior Winthrop Jones Speaks Out

I tried to register for fall classes this Easter weekend. Surprisingly MyOswego wouldn’t let me sign up for any classes. With the increase of tuition and current budget cuts I have so many holds on my account I can’t afford to pay them all off.

Unfortunately my parents, whose salaries have also been affected, renders them unable to help me pay off any of my dues. Their budget has been tailored to the previous tuition prices.

These budget cuts have unquestionably put a great deal of stress on student registrations for 2010. Clicking and early advisement appointments really don’t help students anymore. And with all the hustle and bustle on MyOswego the server keeps crashing. I might not get in any classes next year.

Truthfully I think that although parents and families will be able to deal with tuition hikes. But it is chilling to think about the state/country’s willingness to cut educational and how it will negatively impact students’ desires to gain knowledge. How will students want to learn and grow when they cannot take any courses of interest?

Be advised that this is part of an Alternate Reality Game developed as a class project.

-Winthrop Jones

Oswego International Students Speak Out!

International Students from SUNY Oswego share their thoughts on IF Oswego were to close.

SUNY Oswego- International Students Speak Out!

Video: Impact on Local Businesses

This video is part of the ARG, but the interview is real.

News From the Field: Day Nine, Evening Edition

SUNY Oswego Experiences Mass Student Exodus

Hundreds of students left SUNY Oswego today just days after the announcement of the future foreclosure of the school due to under funding.

Last week the institution announced the closing of its doors permanently as of 2011. Within hours of the announcement, students began to protest, begging state governments and SUNY officials to find ways to keep the school open. However, their cries of help seem to have fallen on deaf ears. Two days later, SUNY Oswego announced a series of drastic cuts to programs and operating expenses. This included various educational programs, energy costs, and staffing. This morning it seems students had had enough when the administration announced the closure of all sports programs at the school. Just weeks before finals, students began to package up their things and move out of their dorms and away from their institution.

When asked about the decision to leave SUNY Oswego before classes had ended one student responded with “what do finals matter, I have already filed for a transfer to SUNY Albany. There is nothing here for me now.” Other students stated, “I will not stay in a place where they have taken everything but the light bulbs from us.” The majority of students have decided to take a transfer to another SUNY institution at a reduced price for next semester, adding to the feeling of why should we stay.

Currently, the only people left at the campus are seniors, who will be graduating in May regardless of cuts and closings, and the majority of juniors who say they might as well stick around since they have been here this long. When asked about what should have been done to prevent this situation, many of the students said they did not expect it and had no clue as to why it happened. Perhaps if students had been more involved they would have been able to save their campus.

Would you have seen this coming? How knowledgeable do you think you are when it comes to the financing of Higher Education in New York? Would you leave SUNY Oswego before finals if you knew it would be closing? What could have been done to prevent this?

-Garry W. Herbert Jr.

This is an Alternate Reality Game. This is NOT REAL. Please do not mistake this for any actual occurrences. For more information go to the About this ARG Tab.

News from the Field Day Nine: Afternoon Edition

Oswego Dining Halls Run Short

Lines full of hundreds of students formed in front of the dining halls today. Day after day students rely on the dining halls to fill their stomachs. Today though, the dining halls got devastating news. The budget cuts effecting SUNY Oswego had reached each cafeteria. The cuts called for a shortage of food and beverages.

The dining halls ran short and were forced to close an hour early today after rationing as much food as they could. News made its way across campus and students were in an uproar.

“How can they do this” said Zach Manfree, a sophomore from Seneca Hall. “We pay to keep these dining halls running, how can they just stop serving us?”

Lakeside, Pathfinder, Little Page, Cooper and Mackin were all told by administrators to close an hour early and give smaller portions to each person.

Christine Howell, the kitchen director at Cooper Dining Hall, was infuriated by the news. “I’ve worked here for twenty-one years and we’ve never run short like this. It’s not fair to us or the customers that rely on us each and everyday. This also isn’t fair to us workers,” noted Christine. “Shutting down an hour earlywill have a clear effect on our incomes. Lets remember hear, that Suny Oswego isn’t only becoming less desirable to the students, but faculty alike.” How many workers really like it when their job is thrown off balance if this were to happen more and more? Will workers want to stay when they are bringing home hundreds of dollars less than when they used to?

A note form the school was released later explaining the situation, including limits on particularly expensive food that in their loss may not be able to give students a full balanced meal. It also stated that until they come up with a solution, the cafeterias will indeed remain this way.

How will this affect you and your daily habits?

Be advised that this is part of an Alternate Reality Game developed as a class project.

-Chad Patterson

Some (Real) Facts about Oswego’s Budget

The following information is factual (not part of the ARG), and was taken from this report.

• There is an increase in the number of students coming to Oswego from downstate and a decrease in the number of students coming from central New York. The amount of 18-year-old high school graduates in Central New York is projected to decline 12.9% through 2013, while Long Island and Mid-Hudson are projected to show a positive increase in the amount of 18-year-old high school graduates by 20% and 27.8% respectively, over the same time period.
• SUNY has faced $210 million in cuts since Spring 2008. As far as Oswego, in the 2007-2008 fiscal year there was $57.8 million in state funds based on the Budget Allocation Process.  This money is supplied in tax dollar support and tuition dollars that the college collects.  As of right now, approximately$34 million of the $57.8 million comes from student tuition, and the other $23 million is actually from state funds.
• In 2007-2008 Oswego faced additional cuts including a 2.9% state tax cut of $652,100, an energy reduction of  $522,700, a revenue interest reduction of $195,000 and an additional reduction of $188,700.  This brought the 2008-2009 new financial plan base down to $56,986,800.  On top of this, another state cut was imposed, resulting in a loss of $1.7 million to Oswego.  This left the college with a base budget of $55.2 million dollars.
• Each division was initially asked to cut costs by 4.3% and then cuts by division were adjusted to diminish Academic Affairs’ share of the cut by 10%.
• Of the $310 dollar increase in tuition, only 10% would actually stay on campus for the campus budget.  The other 90% would be transferred to Albany to the general fund, which may include road maintenance, construction and other various state projects.  If 100% of the tuition increase collected is kept on campus, it would generate $1.9 million dollars for the campus.  With only 10% allowed to stay on campus, that is only $190,000 in additional tuition revenue.  However, the college is stepping up efforts to voice opposition to this proposal, currently in front of the legislature.
• Additional cuts are likely to occur in 2009-2010. There might be possible additional tuition revenues at 20%, which would total $826,000.

News from the Field: Day Eight

Sports To Be Cut, No Funding to Afford Tape

In what seems to be an endless barrage of slashed services, the newest cut has proposed that the sports teams will not be able to continue for the next season.  This not only is a huge blow to the students, who work their social outings around many sporting events, but also to the players themselves who depend on sports scholarships to get through school.

Jessica Kane, a member of the track team was very distraught.  “I put in a lot of time and effort into these sports to get myself through college and I don’t know what I am going to do next year”.  She had played for other sports such as indoor track, and cross- country.

Other players felt that the cut was a slap in the face.

“This is completely outrageous!”  John Ravinski of the hockey team stated.  “We have been one of the key elements of this schools pride, and it is ridiculous that we can’t play next year.”  The Oswego Hockey Team won the Division 3 NCAA Championship in 2007 for the first time ever.

Some people are starting to propose alternatives to the complete cuts to the sports teams.

Toby Roberts, a member of the baseball team feels that they should balance out the cuts so that people can still have a place to go.  “We should really learn to just conserve money instead of completely cutting programs out”, he said.  “Maybe if they just cut a little here, and cut a lot in places where we don’t need that service, then we can still keep the program going.”

There is also fear that new players won’t come to the school due to these cuts.  Robin James, a member of the administration said, “It is really hard to get new athletes for the next school year.  With the thought that they could not have a season, it makes the process even more strenuous.”

Be advised that this is part of an Alternate Reality Game developed as a class project.

-Michael Johnson