SUNY Oswego to offer menu of activities for Thanksgiving break

A heaping helping of family-friendly activities will greet members of the surrounding community during Thanksgiving break, thanks to an annual invitation college President Deborah F. Stanley extends to SUNY Oswego’s neighbors.

Skating, hiking, swimming, running, shopping and browsing art and books are among the selections during Cruisin’ the Campus at Thanksgiving from Nov. 22 to 27 at the college. Nearly all events and activities are free. Children 17 and under must be accompanied by an adult.

For this Thanksgiving break, the planetarium at Richard S. Shineman Center for Science, Technology and Innovation will offer two showings of “Exploring the Solar System,” at 2 and 3 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 23, and again at 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27. The planetarium also will present “Astronomical Subjects in the Works of Shakespeare, Tolstoy and Mark Twain” at 7 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 27.

Penfield Library, an academic library that includes popular resources in a variety of media, will be open from 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Nov. 23 and 2 to 11 p.m. Nov. 27.

Rice Creek Field Station on Thompson Road, the college’s 400-acre biological field station with recreational trails, encourages individuals and groups to visit for guided walks and building tours from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Nov. 23 and Nov. 25, then join an outdoor scavenger hunt from 1 to 4 p.m. Nov. 27. Rice Creek Ramble, a naturalist-guided walk, will take place at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 26, with guided trail walks and games available 3:30 to 6:30 that day. Call 315-312-6677 beforehand for trail conditions.

A pair of basketball games will fill the hardwood at Laker Hall’s Max Ziel Gymnasium on Nov. 22: the men’s team hosts Clarkson at 5:30 p.m., while the women play the University of Rochester at 7:30 that evening. Tickets cost $6 for adults, $4 for youth, with free admission for SUNY Oswego students with ID.

Open ice skating at Marano Campus Center arena will be in session from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Nov. 22, 25 and 26; and 6 to 7:30 p.m. Nov. 23 and 27. There is a $3 admission fee ($1 for SUNY Oswego faculty, staff and students with college ID) and $3 cost for skate rental.

Lee Hall gymnasium will open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Nov. 23 and noon to 8 p.m. Nov. 27; participants must bring dry sneakers.

Romney Field House will be open for walking and running from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Nov. 23, 25, 26 and 27. Runners and walkers need to bring dry sneakers for use on the four-lane, high-tech track.

For patrons of either art or the seasonal tradition of shopping, Oswego State Downtown—a gallery and branch of the College Store located at the corner of West First and Bridge streets—will open from noon to 5 p.m. Nov. 23, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 25 and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 26.

The current art exhibition at Oswego State Downtown is “Land, Sky, Water: Watercolor, Acrylic and Pastel” by artist Joan Applebaum. The exhibition focuses on the multi-medium Upstate New York landscapes of an artist who has displayed her work throughout the state.

Parking on campus is free during Cruisin’ the Campus at Thanksgiving; no permit is needed, though reserved, handicap and overnight regulations still apply.

For full details of activities, visit oswego.edu/calendar.