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4/1/11

St. Lawrence University To Launch Semester Program In New York City

CANTON - St. Lawrence University students will soon have an added option for off-campus study in a place very different from its Canton campus: New York City. Beginning in the spring 2012 semester, students will have the opportunity to participate in a finance or arts internship in New York, along with rigorous academic study with St. Lawrence faculty.

St. Lawrence President William L. Fox said, "St. Lawrence's excellent reputation for innovation and its historic understanding that student opportunities should extend worldwide have brought us extraordinary programs on six continents. The New York City Semester enriches our menu for students who seek an urban experience and one particularly connected to career interests in finance or the arts. Alumni support in this initiative, especially with funding and with new internships, secures the program's foundation. I am very confident that we have a recipe for success."

It is expected that about 15 students per semester will participate in the program. They will select an academic concentration in either finance or the arts, spending three days a week in a non-paid internship position related to their concentration. Internship sponsors already committed include Angelo, Gordon and Co., GE Commercial Real Estate, Permal Asset Management and Morgan Stanley in finance, and Primary Stages, Engel Entertainment and Epic Theatre Ensemble in the arts.

All students will also take an academic course, "Encountering New York City," taught by Associate Professor of Economics Peter FitzRandolph, who will also be the inaugural director of the program.

Plans call for the program to take place in the spring 2012 semester initially, then in the fall semesters for 2012 and 2013. After that, it is planned to run in both the fall and spring semesters. The program is being funded through gifts to the University. To date, a total of $3 million has been raised and an additional $1 million is being sought.

For students, the cost of tuition, room, and board is the same as being at the University; financial aid applies as it would for a semester on campus. The only anticipated additional expense for students participating in the program is urban transportation costs.

Students will be housed in double-occupancy rooms at the 92nd Street Y, where they will participate in a wide variety of programming, including lectures, performances and readings. The program includes a meal stipend and kitchen facilities are available.

The New York City Semester adds to three existing off-campus study programs in the United States - the Adirondack Semester; a semester in Washington, D.C. at American University; and a semester at historically black Fisk University in Nashville, TN - and programs of study in 17 countries.

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