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U.S. Army Col. Philip Smith (ret.), ’85, whose military career spanned more than 20 years, was the keynote speaker for the Veterans Day observance held on campus in the Williams Center. The event provided a forum through which university and surrounding community members gathered to remember, honor, and show their gratitude to the men and women who have served the U.S. through the Armed Forces.
During the observance, the second annual SUNY Fredonia Veterans Scholarship award was presented to student Daniel E. Morton, a former U.S. Marine who received a Purple Heart for injuries sustained from an IED (Improvised Explosive Device) while serving in Iraq. He hails from Ashville, N.Y., and is a senior Social Studies Adolescence Education major.
After graduating from Fredonia with a bachelor’s degree in History, Col. Smith worked for seven years in both junior and mid-level executive positions in Fort Lee, Va., as well as Mannheim, Germany. He then served three years as an assistant professor and recruitment officer at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and later was appointed Operations Training and Staff Officer at Fort Monroe, Va., where he was recognized for developing innovative concepts that were implemented Army-wide. He also served as Lead Planner for the 21st Theater Support Command in Kaiserslautern, Germany in 1998-99, Executive Officer for the Kaiserslautern Industrial Center from 1999-2000, and Inspector General of the 21st Theater Support Command. In 2003, Col. Smith was named chair and professor of Military Science at Syracuse University, where he commanded its ROTC and turned around a program that ranked in the bottom 38 percent in the U.S. to a top 15 percent status. He is currently director of Organizational Development at Crouse Hospital in Syracuse and holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from Troy University.
Mary Hangley, a junior Music Education/Voice major from Long Beach, N.Y., performed the “The Star-Spangled Banner” and the Dunkirk High School Junior ROTC cadets presented and retired the colors. A ceremonial table was reserved at the event to formally recognize prisoners of war and service members missing in
action (POW/MIA).
At SUNY Fredonia, 26 student veterans are currently enrolled who together have provided 129 years of cumulative military service. In addition, SUNY Fredonia, together with the Faculty Student Association, employs 69 veterans who have given 985 years of service to the university.
