Celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Faculty Student Association, serving the SUNY Fredonia campus since 1951, begins Thursday.
The Faculty Student Association, incorporated in 1951, is a private corporation governed by the Not-for-Profit Corporation Laws of the State of New York. The by-laws of the corporation detail the purpose, meeting requirements, director responsibilities and specification for the corporation assets and funds.
The FSA operates under a contract with the State University of New York (SUNY) in conformance with guidelines established for New York campuses. FSA is self-supporting through the sale of its services. Any income after operating expenses and funding requirements is used to benefit the university by supporting numerous campus programs. The board of directors includes students, faculty, administrative staff, classified staff and alumni.
Money spent with FSA directly impacts student lives on campus. FSA provides over a million dollars annually to support Fredonia and various campus programs such as scholarships, campus improvements, student group program funding, new student orientation, Commencement, Learning Center, Career Development Office, multicultural programming, and other activities to enhance the university experience.
Specials slated for Thursday include:
- University Bookstore — 20 percent off SUNY Fredonia clothing items
- Starbucks — 75 cents for a short hot coffee
- FSA Cafés — featuring a Blue Raspberry Bubble Tea
- Cranston Marché — a special menu from 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.
- Willy C’s — featuring a Blueberry Pie Milkshake, 75th cookie giveaway at 8 p.m.
Interesting dates and features in the history of the Faculty Student Association include:
- May 1951 was the official founding of FSA
- Originally responsible for maintaining services not otherwise provided by the state including dining halls, fending machines, laundromats and housing. Dining services were originally leased out to a private corporation, Cease Commissary, but later shifted in 1954 to a campus-operated service.
- Students were allowed, and in fact, encouraged from the beginning, to provide input to the FSA in areas including dining.
- FSA originally also provided housing to students, faculty, and visitors, including residences in the local community.
- There was a game room, Snack Shack and rathskeller (bar), The Sundowner, in Gregory Hall at different times in the university’s history. Thursday nights often saw the Fredonia Jazz Ensemble playing in "the 'downer." The game rooms moved to the Williams (Campus) Center.
- Properties controlled by the FSA include the College Lodge property in the village of Brocton, also known as the Mackie Memorial Camp.
- Over the years, there have been several configurations of dining areas in the Williams Center, including a restaurant, The Topiary Tree, which operated for several years on the first floor of the building.
- The bookstore and convenience store were housed in the Williams (Campus) Center for many years until University Commons was constructed.
- FSA’s business greatly expanded during the summer months when the Buffalo Bills training camp took up residence beginning in 1981, which continued until the 1999 and the Bills move to Rochester for camp.
