Disagree about both networking and about your school affecting your starting salary.
Getting a job is about one thing: do you have the skills, knowledge, and capabilities an employer needs to meet his current and future clients’ needs? A hot computer programmer will get work with no college whatsoever; a lousy one will not. Period.
Networking, and the name of your school, can help you get an interview. They can get your resume looked at. They won’t get you the job, and if you do get the job offer, they won’t affect your starting salary. You will be paid whatever your employer thinks you are worth, adjusted for demand (if he has trouble finding people to do the work, he may pay you more to start so as not to lose you to competition, and then try to keep you on the job longer; if he has many qualified people applying for each opening, he can pay below market rates to start and be confident someone hungry will take it.)
Internships and work experience in your field will give a better idea of what you can actually DO outside the classroom. That’s where you should focus your efforts.
Go to Stony Brook, and get the best summer work experience in your field that you possibly can, regardless of the pay.