Plattsburgh and the North Country
SUNY Plattsburgh is situated in one of the most beautiful regions in the Empire State. Greater Plattsburgh is a community of 32,000 people located in the northeast corner of the state, on the western shore of Lake Champlain, near the Adirondack Mountains and about 20 miles from the U.S.‑Canada border.
You will find the City of Plattsburgh readily accessible from any point in New York state. Interstate 87, the scenic Adirondack Northway, exits about one mile from campus. Air service to and from the Plattsburgh International Airport (PBG) is available several times a day. Nearby Burlington International Airport (BTV) and the Montréal Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (YUL), which are only an hour away, provide scheduled flights through major airlines on a daily basis. Greyhound Bus Lines also serves the community. At planned breaks in the academic calendar, the Student Association charters buses for students to travel to other points in the state from a central location on campus.
Plattsburgh is within an hour’s drive from Whiteface Mountain, one of the premier ski centers in the eastern United States, and Lake Placid, America’s Olympic Village. Burlington, VT is less than an hour away by car, and cosmopolitan Montréal, Canada, is also a one-hour drive from campus. You can travel by car or express bus to the New York City and Long Island areas in about six hours. Albany is two and one-half hours from Plattsburgh, and Syracuse is about five hours away.
Students appreciate the City of Plattsburgh for its clean, tree-lined streets, its easygoing style and pace of living, and its friendly, hospitable people. Our community’s downtown area is only a few blocks from campus. The university shuttle van service provides transportation several times daily to shopping and entertainment centers in both the city and its outlying districts.
The North Country of New York, of which Plattsburgh is the hub, is rich in history. Benedict Arnold conducted a very successful campaign in 1776 at nearby Valcour Island on Lake Champlain that stalled the British invasion of New York. The War of 1812 ended just off Plattsburgh’s shores on Lake Champlain in what was the last naval battle between the United States and Great Britain. Our library holds a treasury of manuscript material for not only local history but also the history of New York state and Canada. The North Country offers myriad opportunities for outdoor recreation: skiing, snowshoeing, mountain climbing, camping, fishing, boating, tennis, and golf. Our own indoor and outdoor facilities for sports and recreation are first-rate and, if you are a professional hockey fan, Montréal is home to the NHL’s Canadiens.
You will discover that the North Country is not much colder than other regions of the state. You will quickly realize that you can adapt easily to an environment in which the average temperature in January (the coldest month) is 18 degrees Fahrenheit and to one in which snowfall annually, while heavy in the nearby Adirondacks, is light by comparison to Albany, Buffalo, Syracuse, Binghamton, and other communities throughout New York state. The compact nature of our campus also contributes to students’ comfort during the winter season. Just about every destination is no more than a few minutes’ walk from any point.
Campus Overview
SUNY Plattsburgh is a special academic community that maintains high academic standards and expectations in a caring, supportive environment. We offer diversity and quality in educational programs at a reasonable cost; a first-rate faculty that will challenge you and help you achieve your intellectual potential and career objectives; a modern campus with excellent facilities in a comfortable setting; and a friendly atmosphere for learning and for growing intellectually, socially, and emotionally.
Our university offers a choice of more than 60 baccalaureate degrees, complemented by a wide variety of minors, and is known for the caliber of its academic programs. Our major programs are divided among academic schools, including arts and sciences; business and economics; and education, health and human services. In addition, we offer graduate programs in education, data analytics, social work, natural resources and ecology, mental health counseling, school psychology, and speech-language pathology, fitness and wellness leadership, and more.
We have an outstanding faculty and staff. Most teaching faculty hold a doctoral degree and view themselves as teacher/scholars and teacher/artists. A number are recognized nationally and internationally on the merits of their scholarship, the importance of their published works, and the honors they have received. Many involve students in their own research. This has led to a growing number of projects in which students are listed jointly with faculty on publications, as participants in exhibitions and performances, or as lecturers/presenters at professional conferences.
We promote active learning through internships, cooperative education placements and field studies that are available in virtually every area of study. While a few graduate students direct some undergraduate laboratory sections under faculty supervision, all courses are taught by faculty. Our highly qualified support professionals are available to work with you on academic and personal matters and on educational and career decisions.
You will be amazed by the extraordinary number and variety of activities that take place on campus. From concerts and theater productions to exhibitions and lectures featuring well-known experts in a wide assortment of fields, from clubs and organizations to intercollegiate and intramural sports, you will discover that SUNY Plattsburgh offers something that appeals to every interest.
Our campus complex consists of 39 buildings spread across 300 acres, and it provides an impressive setting for both academic and extracurricular pursuits. Our students, faculty and staff alike take pride in their campus and its facilities. Our campus is bordered on three sides by a pleasant residential neighborhood; its eastern-most boundary is the Saranac River and the River Walk, a three-mile nature, biking and jogging path that begins just south of campus off Angell Drive and ends at Lake Champlain.
Students
SUNY Plattsburgh enrolls approximately 3856 undergraduate students, 561 graduate students and 158 international students representing 40 countries. Students hail from 32 states and from 63 counties in New York State. The average class size is 21 students with a 15:1 student - to - faculty ratio. Women outnumber men 61 percent to 39 percent.
The greatest number of Plattsburgh students come from three major New York regions - the North Country, the Greater Capital District, and the Greater Metropolitan area (Long Island, Westchester, and Rockland counties). We welcome 3.6 percent of our student population from other states such as Vermont, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, and an additional 3.5 percent make up our international student population, journeying to Plattsburgh from such countries as India, Canada, Nepal, Japan, and Ethiopia.
SUNY Plattsburgh at Queensbury
SUNY Plattsburgh’s Campus serves full- and part-time students from Warren, Washington, and Saratoga counties seeking bachelor’s degrees or certificates of advanced study.
Bachelor degree completion programs offered at the Queensbury campus include computer security, criminal justice, human development & family relations, and psychology. Bachelor’s degree completion programs are intended for students who have completed an associate’s degree, or the equivalent of approximately 60 credit hours or junior class status.
Face-to-face courses held on the Queensbury Campus are taught by local SUNY Plattsburgh faculty. Students also have access to a breadth of online courses offered by SUNY Plattsburgh faculty. Students in these programs can complete their education in Queensbury without having to take any courses on the main campus in Plattsburgh.
SUNY Plattsburgh extends a number of services and resources to Queensbury Campus students including career counseling, behavioral health services, student financial services, and accessibility resources. In cooperation with SUNY Adirondack, SUNY Plattsburgh also offers students a variety of in-person services at the Queensbury Campus, including library facilities, computer and internet access, ID cards, tutoring, student activities, as well as hoursing and food services. Prospective students may obtain information on programs, admission and registration procedures at the SUNY Plattsburgh Queensbury Campus Office located at 640 Bay Road, on SUNY Adirondack’s Campus. Queensbury Campus staff offer assistance in handling all areas of academics, from purchasing textbooks and securing student identification cards to registering for classes, exploring career resources, and beyond. For more information about SUNY Plattsburgh’s Queensbury Campus or for an appointment, call or text 518-792-5425 or visit the website. You can also connect with us on the Queensbury Campus Facebook page.
Lake Champlain Research Institute
The primary objective of the Lake Champlain Research Institute (LCRI) is to support and promote student research and education in the Lake Champlain Region. Current activities include environmental science and aquatic ecology research as well as many other areas of the natural and social sciences. LCRI projects are often funded by external research grants from USEPA, National Science Foundation, NOAA and other sources,
The institute’s mission is to involve students in practical hands-on research or an internship experience, and help prepare them for a successful career. Our students often conduct- in-depth independent research outside the classroom with faculty/staff. LCRI projects allow students learn new skills on state-of-the-art equipment. LCRI operates on-campus laboratory research facilities including a water quality analysis laboratory. We provide access to Lake Champlain via a 32-foot research vessel, the “R/V Gruendling” and two smaller vessels. These vessels are equipped for limnology sampling and provide support for a variety of projects.
The institute cooperates with academic departments and other institutions to provide field/laboratory research and educational experiences for undergraduate and graduate students across the sciences and other disciplines. LCRI also hosts staff from the Lake Champlain Sea Grant program, providing regional community outreach programs and watershed educational opportunities for K-12 students and educators.
William H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute
The William H. Miner Agricultural Research Institute in Chazy hosts the Applied Environmental Science Program, which is an intensive laboratory-field and-research experience for upper-division students who learn analytical techniques and gain experience in solving environmental problems.
Many students live and study at the institute during the fall semester and, with the resident faculty, may undertake research projects directed toward actual environmental problems and ecological issues in the Adirondack and Lake Champlain Basin regions. The institute contains classrooms, laboratories, a library, and residential and dining facilities for students and staff.
Plattsburgh Alumni Association
The Plattsburgh Alumni Association is a nonprofit organization, managed by a Board of Directors who serve as ambassadors of the university, lead in volunteerism and advance the university’s mission and vision.
Representing the more than 72,000 alumni of SUNY Plattsburgh, the Plattsburgh Alumni Association’s mission is to secure and strengthen the relationships between alumni and the university; actively support the student experience; facilitate the transition of current students to the alumni ranks; and work in partnership with the university to encourage alumni participation in its programs, activities and development efforts.
The Alumni Association works with and supports students and alumni in many ways. The outreach and relationship-building efforts of the Alumni Association nurture the charitable giving of our alumni, on behalf of students who attend SUNY Plattsburgh. This support, through the Plattsburgh College Foundation, provides additional resources for student scholarships and grants, academic enrichment, and enhancement to student life programs.
For more information or to become involved in the Plattsburgh Alumni Association, call 800-964-1889 or visit our website at alumni.plattsburgh.edu.
The Plattsburgh College Foundation
The Plattsburgh College Foundation, a nonprofit corporation, was established in 1963 to receive and manage all private gifts to SUNY Plattsburgh. Managed by the Board of Directors, the foundation partners with SUNY Plattsburgh alumni, friends, faculty and other benefactors to provide scholarship and academic support for current and future students.
Gifts to the university allow the Plattsburgh College Foundation to:
- Provide approximately $1.8 million to fund more than 1,000 need- and merit-based scholarship awards annually
- Fund emergency grants for students in need; applied-learning grants for career development opportunities; and diversity, equity and inclusion programming
- Purchase technological resources that enable SUNY Plattsburgh to stay current and competitive
- Improve and expand academic programs
- Enhance the quality of student life through the support of the arts, athletics and other campus activities and initiatives.
Twin Valleys Outdoor Education Center
The Twin Valleys Outdoor Education Center is a 660-acre wilderness tract of Adirondack woodlands, meadows, and streams near Westport, N.Y., 38 miles from campus. Rustic facilities include a main lodge equipped with a kitchen, bathrooms, and dormitories, as well as 12 cabins surrounding a two-acre pond.
A mature, white pine forest, wetlands, and ledge overlooks can be explored via the 10 miles of color-coded, maintained trails. Students and faculty use Twin Valleys throughout the year for recreational activities and outdoor-education programs.
Valcour Inn and Boathouse
The Valcour Inn and Boathouse is an elegant, 9-acre estate on the western shore of Lake Champlain approximately nine miles south of Plattsburgh on State Route 9. Built in 1905, the center is owned and operated by College Auxiliary Services.
Valcour has a beautiful, historic Inn with nine bedrooms and event spaces, a Boathouse on Lake Champlain for larger events, and a quaint, two-bedroom Cottage. The property hosts conferences, meetings, weddings, reunions and many other events throughout the year. Anyone can stay at Valcour or host events, but we are proud to offer exclusive discounts to students and alumni. Events for official university business are provided to SUNY Plattsburgh faculty, staff and students at no cost.
For further information please visit the Valcour Inn and Boathouse website.
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