Lehman Has the Only Virtual Reality Academy in CUNY and the Bronx
By Deanna Garcia
Lehman College remains the only CUNY to house the Virtual Reality Academy and has been offering training programs since 2017 at its offsite Bronx location called CUNY on the Concourse (COTC).
“The idea is that our students, who have tremendous amounts of ideas, have an opportunity through this lab to be creative and to implement those ideas,” said Ronald Bergmann, Vice President and CIO of the Division of Information Technology at Lehman. Bergmann came up with the idea of an Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) lab at Lehman’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS).
“It’s a resource for the community to be able to ensure that Bronx residents and CUNY students have an opportunity to learn to use some leading edge technologies,” Bergmann explained. “We want our students and residents to take advantage of opportunities to learn how to leverage these technologies in their work and in their career.”
The Virtual Reality Academy allows students to get an understanding of how virtual real- ity works (Photo Credit: Lehman College).
The center has fostered a wide range of student projects. Former VR students, Michael Brenner and Aaron Holness, used their legal education backgrounds to combine law with virtual reality. Their project grants lawyers with abilities to recreate crime scenes for case preparation purposes, including the elaboration of case theories before presented to a judge.
The VR Academy also helps students expand their businesses. Vincent Navarro, a VR graduate and trainer at VR Lab, is applying AR/VR for his software development business, with the goal of expanding to other countries, creating scientific and educational programs to train students with restrictions. Navarro began this venture in collaboration with Lehman’s chemistry department to include VR in their studies.
The virtual reality training academy at CUNY on the Concourse (Photo Credit: Deanna Garcia)
In 2016, to establish the program, Lehman partnered with the California-based EON Reality, which specializes in 3D interactive technologies and simulations to train, educate, manufacture and entertain those who are interested in the AR/VR world. In 2019, the academy switched its partnership from EON Reality to Unity, “basically the number one software for VR content creating,” explained Samira Bahrami, COTC director. “The VR program is educating the content creators to shape the future of education, training and entertaining.”
COTC, where the academy is housed, is located at 2501 Grand Concourse, and is part of Lehman’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies (SCPS). “COTC provides space and educational support to SCPS departments, Lehman’s academic departments, as well as the industry partners,” Bahrami said. The space consists of 12 classrooms, which includes a VR lab, computer labs, healthcare labs, a computerized testing center and the Bronx Tech Incubator.
CUNY on the Concourse serves 1,500 people each semester and 4,500 people during a year (Photo Credit: Deanna Garcia).
So far, two cohorts have completed the 10-month intensive program which included four months of training and six months of a project-based learning. After finishing the program, students earned AR/VR Developer level 2 certificates.
However, no credits are given to transfer into other Lehman programs. “We’re working on getting credits from Lehman’s academic departments for the whole AR/VR Academy, which would be helpful for computer science majors,” Bahrami said.
After completion, employment opportunities vary between the fields of architecture, product visualization, game creation, multimedia design and broadcast media. Students can also utilize what they learned to engage in new products.
“We are delighted with the way that the AR/VR Training Academy is adapting to the changing needs of the industry and evolving business development,” said Jane MacKillop, dean of SCPS. “Lehman College is truly an engine of economic development in the new Bronx!”
Lehman offers the program at a competitive price, considering that VR classes in NYC are not cheap. The School of New York Times is offering an online certificate in the subject for $645. At COTC, students can take a class and receive a certificate for a four-month training program for $450.
“While training exists for many parts of AR and VR in the city, there are few programs that cover the multidisciplinary nature of the industry,” said Bahrami. “The VR Academy is very affordable compared to other training in the city.”
Some students are unaware that Lehman offers such programs, though all those who were informed reacted with enthusiasm.
“This can definitely be a pathway to new experiences,” said Reynaldo Estrella, a 19-year-old biology sophomore at Lehman, when he heard about the VR lab.”
“I believe that a VR lab not only provides experiences, but also represents a potential change within society,” said Lehman student, Susan Lin, an 18-year-old nursing sophomore. “VR can explore and discover new things so that people can experiment with different solutions.”
Lehman accounting junior, Alex Adams, 21, said, “I haven’t personally used VR for my studies, but I see the kind of impact it could have for other students’ professions. I think it’s great that students can get professionally trained and experience what their career holds for them.”
The virtual reality training academy at CUNY on the Concourse (Photo Credit: Deanna Garcia)
The Virtual Reality Academy will be back for their 10-month training in spring 2020 and will use Unity’s software. During the semester, students will focus on 2D and 3D asset creation modeling, scripting and program techniques, project management, rigging and animation. Workshops and open houses are currently available for students who are interested in technology.
As Demand Grows, Lehman’s Supply of Parking Spaces Gets Scarcer
By Deanna Garcia
An overlook of the Lehman parking lot from the Science Building. Photo by Deanna Garcia.
Over the last five years, Lehman’s enrollment has increased from 12,398 to the current total of 14,787 students, according to its Department of Institutional Advancement, and yet the college’s parking lot remains the same inadequate size.
Divided into north and south sections, the lot has 866 total spots, including 17 handicap and 14 reserved. Andrea Pinnock, director of Auxiliary Services, reported that 1,708 parking permits were distributed to students this semester. “Both the student and regular faculty/staff parking lots are oversold since there are no assigned spaces and parking is available on a first-come, first-served basis,” Pinnock said. “This methodology has been used for many years and allows the college to offer parking to more students.”
According to Dawn Burgos, director of Campus Activities, there are currently 200 students on the waitlist for the next available parking permit. To obtain a spot for the whole semester, students must have either paid their tuition in full or have a payment plan. Burgos explained that students have to pay the full rate of $75 for daytime parking or $55 for evening parking, which can be done upfront or online.
“The day permit covers a full day every week, while the evening permit only covers 5:15 p.m.,” Burgos added. “We’re trying to accommodate more people by adding a day and evening feature. If people come in late, we’re able to provide more spaces for those students.” She explained that after 5:15 p.m., when most staff and faculty members leave, students are allowed to park in the faculty parking lot.
Some Lehmanites, however, feel that there should be more spots available for everyone.
“There are times, like after 10 o’clock or after certain hours, when it’s harder to find a spot,” said Jen Begeal, new media manager at BronxNet. “Sometimes I just have to wait for somebody to leave.”
Latrica Burton, a junior producer at BronxNet, is relieved to know that there is parking near her job. Before she started parking in the south lot, Burton used to park her car on the street, which was difficult at times. “It used to be tedious to run out during a show to put more money in the meter,” she said. “After I got a ticket, I made it my mission to get a parking pass.”
“It’s such a lifesaver,” said Wayne Townsend, a Lehman senior and journalism major. “There’s always a spot.” He also observed of Campus Activities, “The permit people are the most efficient at Lehman.”
On the other hand, senior Jasmine Ayala feels that there is a lack of information on how to obtain a permit. “This sometimes causes people to go back and forth without clear information of what has to be done.”
Townsend and Ayala both agreed that the parking lot is worth the cost compared to using the meters around campus. “After a while, the meter prices add up,” said Townsend.
Some students, however, prefer to find spots around campus, as opposed to in Lehman’s parking lot. “It’s easier to find spots if you know what days and times you can park in certain areas,” said senior Shanese Mullins, a 28-year-old journalism major. “I don’t think that I should have to pay for parking when I already pay for tuition.”