I am writing to inform the College of Staten Island community of the relief efforts currently underway at both the College and CUNY in support of the recent earthquakes in Japan and Ecuador. As you know, on Friday, Apr. 15, 2016, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck north of the city of Kyushu in southwest Japan. The following day, on Saturday, Apr. 16, 2016, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck off of Ecuador’s central coast.
On Friday, Apr. 22, CUNY Central held a conference call with representatives from all CUNY campuses to discuss relief efforts planned in response to the natural disasters in Japan and Ecuador. Prior to the conference call, CSI’s Center for International Service had identified and made contact with currently enrolled students from or studying abroad in Japan or Ecuador. Fortunately, all students who were contacted reported back that neither they nor their families were directly impacted by the earthquakes.
Students seeking grief and crisis counseling in the aftermath of the natural disasters in Japan and Ecuador may contact the Counseling Center at 718.982.2391 or counseling@csi.cuny.edu to schedule an appointment, or visit to Building 1A, Room 109 on a walk-in basis. The Counseling Center is open Monday through Friday from 9:00am to 5:00pm, with extended hours until 7:00pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays through the spring semester.
Faculty and staff seeking grief and crisis counseling in the aftermath of the natural disasters in Japan and Ecuador may contact CUNYEAP Services at 855.492.3633. The Prayer and Mediation Room located in the Campus Center (Building 1C), Room 109 is available to all members of the CSI community. The Prayer and Meditation Room is open during normal building hours.
Students, faculty, and staff who are interested in supporting the relief and recovery effort may contact the U.S. Aid Center for International Disaster Donations Hotline at 202.821.1999 or visit the Center for International Disaster Information Website. Additionally, a CUNY Website link with additional resources will be available beginning on Monday, May 23.
Those wishing to make donations directly to CUNY may do so by check or money order payable to the CUNY Research Foundation with the memo line indicating “Ecuador/Japan Earthquake Relief Fund RF78511-00-16.” Campus donations may be mailed to Roberta Nord, The City University of New York, 205 East 42nd Street, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10017.
Questions may be directed to my office at 718.982.2335.
