SUNY Excellence: Six New Paltz faculty and staff receive Chancellor’s Awards for 2025

Six SUNY New Paltz faculty and staff have been recognized for outstanding scholarship, teaching and service to the campus community as 2025 Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence honorees.

The Chancellor’s Awards are conferred annually to celebrate superior professional achievement across six categories: Faculty Service, Librarianship, Professional Service, Scholarship & Creative Activities, Teaching, and Classified Service.

Awardees receive a medallion and certificate commemorating the achievement, as well as a permanent stipend.

Please join us in congratulating this year’s SUNY Chancellor’s Awardees:

As the University’s Director of Instructional Technology and designated Electronic & Information Technology Accessibility Officer, Kathryn Bohan has contributed meaningfully to the institution’s ability to provide high quality educational experiences that are accessible to all students.

Her deep knowledge of instructional technologies and remote learning practices were on full display during the COVID-19 pandemic, when she demonstrated leadership and extraordinary dedication in supporting students and faculty through the sudden and high-stakes shift to fully online learning.

Bohan made similarly valuable contributions to the academic experience as a project lead for the SUNY-wide migration from Blackboard to Brightspace, helping to ensure that the latter could serve as a core medium of instruction across all disciplines.

She has helped manage these crucial projects while also providing expertise as Accessibility Officer, helping the University stay in compliance with important and ever-evolving guidelines and mandates related to digital information and inclusive learning.

In each of these areas, Bohan has secured a reputation as an ethical and supportive colleague and an excellent collaborator whose contributions can be felt by students, faculty and staff across the institution.

James Brach, currently serving in Facilities Management as Plant Utilities Engineer 1, has demonstrated exceptional dedication and service to SUNY New Paltz throughout his 30-year career.

Working under challenging and high-stakes conditions in the Central Heating Plant, Brach remains steadfast in his role with a marked dedication to keeping essential operations running smoothly for students, faculty and staff alike.

He has a reputation among colleagues for working shifts during holidays, storms and weekends with unwavering reliability, professionalism and care. He is always ready to assist with special services and rebalances priorities well when sudden issues require urgent resolution. His positive attitude, resilience, and collaborative spirit make him a vital part of the SUNY New Paltz community and a truly deserving recipient for this award.

Since joining SUNY New Paltz in 1999, Preeti Dhar’s work has been defined by dedication to her students as a teacher, a scholar and a valued mentor.

Her teaching portfolio includes courses like Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry that are both foundational in these programs and statistically among the more challenging sections for School of Science & Engineering students.

She strikes an exceptional balance between upholding the highest academic standards while supporting her students and inspiring them to excel. Her ability to demystify complex topics has earned her a reputation as one of the institution’s more sought-after instructors.

Dhar’s approach as an educator emphasizes active learning and engagement, combining traditional instruction with collaborative problem solving in a way that empowers students to take ownership of their learning.

This is consistently reflected in student evaluations, which tout her clarity in instruction and her passion for her material. Notably, Dhar is a recipient of the Outstanding Professor award from the AC² Program, recognizing her years of work helping historically underrepresented and income-eligible students attain rewarding careers in STEM fields.

As Planetarium Director and Instructor in the Department of Physics & Astronomy, Raj Pandya has gone above and beyond to share his passion for his discipline with undergraduate students and many more campus visitors. Since joining the University in 2011, he has invigorated programming at the John R. Kirk Planetarium and the Smolen Observatory with regular Astronomy Night shows and viewings that consistently attract and delight guests from around the Hudson Valley.

Students and colleagues praise Pandya’s ability to differentiate presentations and lessons to learners from varying backgrounds, engaging non-astronomy majors in introductory courses and challenging and inspiring those who pursue advanced study in the field. Dozens of students have benefitted from his practice of training apprentices in all aspect of planetarium exhibition, from the technical workings of machinery to the craft of audience engagement, and providing opportunities for them to hone their skills by leading live astronomy shows here on campus each semester.

The care with which he approaches this work is evident in the comment of a community-oriented Planetarium program: “Professor Pandya understands that every contact, no matter how seemingly insignificant, is an opportunity to change minds and win hearts. For that we are beyond fortunate.”

Over a career at New Paltz spanning more than 20 years, Dana Rinschler has held positions of increasing responsibility leading to her current role as Director of Undergraduate Admission. Her impact has been felt across all areas of the University’s undergraduate recruitment efforts, from managing the high volume of new student applications we receive each year, to making and communicating admission decisions, to coordinating crucial events like Accepted Students Open Houses that help hundreds of families each year see SUNY New Paltz as a fit for their future Hawks.

In overseeing this work, Rinschler leads by example, delivering a high level of performance and demonstrating an ongoing propensity to go above and beyond. Her strengths include insightful intelligence, an ability to articulate clearly, and strong critical thinking skills; she is highly self-motivated.

Her colleagues describe her as extremely organized, patient, hardworking, dedicated and detail oriented, a team player who empowers the entire Admission Office. Colleagues have noted that her outstanding work recruiting and admitting applicants has consistently brought in best-in-class students who help form the kind of community we most need to keep our institution strong, now and in the years to come.

Since joining SUNY New Paltz in 2019, Executive Director of Development Jonathan Vaughn has assumed increasing responsibility and demonstrated significant accomplishments in helping to expand the University’s base of philanthropic support, while also sustaining a singular commitment to campus service.

Vaughn has helped lead a robust team of skilled professionals in Development & Alumni Relations and spearheaded a number of major, complex new initiatives. Principal among these was the successful completion of Soaring Higher, the first-ever comprehensive Campaign for SUNY New Paltz, which exceeded its original $23 million fundraising goal in 2021.

Beyond the work in this core area of expertise, Vaughn has lent his time and energy to Faculty Governance in a variety of both appointed and elected roles. He was the first professional staff member to serve as secretary to the Faculty Senate, was appointed to the reconstituted Public Art Committee in 2023, and serves on the Friends of the Library Steering Committee and as chair of the Tree Committee, among other commitments.

He has balanced this work while also contributing to the academic life of the institution: He earned his Ph.D. in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute in 2023, and regularly teaches upper-level seminars rooted in his expertise in Jungian and Archetypal studies.