William Atkins '69, '71 chairs a committee aimed at raising funds for athletic programs and scholarships.

Binghamton University's new Events Center will house not only Bearcats vying for Division I championships but also a wide spectrum of other activities.

The Events Center's athletics facility will seat 6,000 for basketball games, versus 2,275 seats in the Bearcats' current home in the West Gym. The new facility will also include training and locker rooms; team meeting and conference space; administrative and coaching offices; a 200-meter indoor track; a mezzanine for gatherings; concessions and ticket services; a special visitors' suite; space for summer sports camps; and versatile space and lighting configurations to accommodate a variety of academic and extracurricular activities.

The Events Center's Convocation Center, an 8,000-seat facility, will serve as the location for academic, educational and community activities and University special events -- such as Commencement -- in addition to numerous athletic competitions.

The $33.1 million facility, under construction next to the West Gym, is scheduled to open in the spring of 2004.

As with academic and other campus buildings, state funds cover the cost of construction for the Events Center, but not its furnishings or equipment -- not even the scoreboard. The University, therefore, is looking for private support from alumni and friends to help its student athletes succeed and to enable the University to move into a new realm of national prominence.

"I'm glad to see the athletic program becoming a significant part of University life," said William Atkin '69, '71, a former senior corporate insurance executive who co-chairs a committee seeking to raise funds for athletic program support and student-athlete scholarships at Binghamton. "I think it adds so much to the campus experience. It will certainly enhance the name recognition of the University."

Atkin is a member of the Binghamton University Athletic Committee and the Harpur College Advisory Council. He received a Harpur College Alumni Award in 1997 and the Broome Chamber Civic Leadership Award in 1997-98. In addition to leadership service with many civic and regional non-profit organizations, Atkin has supported Binghamton athletics and the Binghamton Fund annual giving program for many years. Recently, Atkin made a major gift that will support athletic programming at BU, as well as the Harpur College Faculty Development Fund.

Atkin recalled his own days on the Harpur College basketball team, when the Colonials played a 14-game season against teams from Hamilton College, Drew University and the Maritime Academy.

Last year, the inaugural Division I men's basketball season included 28 games and televised competition, with teams from Syracuse, North Carolina and Georgetown on the roster. A near-upset against the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill stunned many NCAA fans. This season's highlights include games against Villanova and Syracuse.

"As the program develops, it will enhance and supplement the University's academic reputation," Atkin said.

Binghamton University's student athletes already boast impressive GPAs -- the Bearcats women's basketball team placed seventh nationally on the coaches' Association Top 25 team honor roll. The new Events Center will help them achieve greater things outside the classroom as well.

The Events Center should have a major impact on both the community and the University and become a focal point for further bringing us together," Atkin said.

-- Susann Thiel

Binghamton wins America East Academic Cup 3.05 GPA tops conference Binghamton University captured the 2001-02 America East Conference Academic Cup, a coup for Bearcat athletes in the University's first year of Division I and first year of membership in the America East Conference. BU athletes maintained an average GPA of 3.05 to edge runner-up Vermont (3.04). The Academic Cup, established by the America East Board of Directors in 1995, is presented to the institution whose student athletes post the highest grade-point averages during that academic year. The grade-point averages of all student athletes who compete in the league's 21 championship sports are averaged to determine the winner. "Binghamton's student athletes, coaches and administrators should take great pride in their commitment to academics," Commissioner Chris Monasch said. "The Academic Cup is a tribute to the leadership of Joel Thirer and the hard work and dedication of all those associated with the Bearcats athletic programs." Binghamton fielded teams in 20 of the 21 sports sponsored by the conference during the 2001-02 academic year and saw 14 of those teams post grade-point averages of 3.0 or better. Seven BU teams led the conference in GPA: women's basketball (3.4), women's cross country (3.34), men's indoor track and field (3.08), baseball (3.06), men's outdoor track and field (3.06), women's lacrosse (3.01) and men's lacrosse (2.98). The nearly 3,000 student athletes at the nine America East institutions compiled a grade-point average of 2.94 during the 2001-02 academic year. The University of New Hampshire, which won the Academic Cup in 1998-99 and 1999-2000, posted a grade-point average of 2.96 to finish third. Hartford (2.94), Northeastern (2.92), Stony Brook (2.92), Albany (2.87), Maine (2.87) and Boston University (2.86) followed. -- John Hartrick