To prepare for the possibility of some version of remote instruction in fall 2020, the Teaching and Learning Center is offering the Basically HIP Certificate program. High-impact learning practices involve a significant investment of student effort over time with multiple interactions between faculty and students about substantive matters as well as opportunities for frequent feedback and structured reflection. This program can help instructors take a fresh look at their courses to discover ways to up their HIP quotient (including in remote environments). Anyone interested in the program can watch this short video and complete this form.

For further information and resources, please visit the Preparing for Fall 2020 website. If you have program suggestions, please contact the Teaching and Learning Center.

To prepare for the possibility of some version of remote instruction in fall 2020, Instructional Design and Training is offering the Online Course Development Series – Self-Paced Certificate Program. This program offers best practices in online teaching and learning and prepares instructors to design, develop, teach, and enhance online or hybrid courses. You can self-enroll in the “Online Course Development Series – Self-Paced” through Blackboard at any time.

For further information and resources, please visit the Preparing for Fall 2020 section of the Teaching and Learning Center website. If you have program suggestions, please contact the TLC.

Buffalo State College will launch its redesigned website tomorrow, June 16, at 5:00 p.m., in order to minimize workday disruption. Short introductions to the website will be held via Blackboard Collaborate throughout the month of June. Please register for a session to receive a guided tour of the new site.

User feedback continues to be welcome. Please feel free to take this brief survey or send e-mail to Melissa Meehan, director of web services.

The new site focuses on prospective students while continuing to provide key resources for current students, faculty, staff, and alumni. The site also prominently features the college’s new creative theme: Believe. Inspire. Achieve. Redesigned Drupal template choices for departments and offices will be available later this year. Please contact Melissa Meehan with any questions. 

The COVID-19 shutdown has put Buffalo State IT a little behind in its scheduled updates to Windows devices (computers that run on the MS Windows operating system). 

Windows updates have been available for installation since June 9. Users who are able and wish to do so may install updates on their own. Watch for the pop-up message “Required updates are available,” or go to the Self-Service Software Center on your PC.

Updates will take about 15 or 20 minutes. Please note: Remote Desktop access to your device (the PC on your campus desk) will not be available while updates are being applied. If you use Remote Desktop to access your campus device, you may be briefly disconnected while the updates are being installed. If this occurs, please wait 20 minutes and try to log in again.

Updates will automatically install by June 18 on devices that have not yet been updated. Installing updates now through the Self-Service Software Center will prevent interruptions down the road.

If you have any access issues following the updates, please open a ticket or contact the IT Help Desk. Please check the IT News page regularly for information about IT on campus.

This year's annual Taste of Diversity festival has gone virtual. The Community Academic Center’s Family Fun Zone is being coordinated by our Global Youth Leaders, a program that focuses on the development of leadership skills in multilingual high school students. On Saturday, June 13, and Saturday, June 20, at 3:00 p.m., the Global Youth Leaders will read storybooks and present family-friendly activities. Join us by visiting the Taste of Diversity Facebook Page and click the "Live Tab" to access the event and to view the full virtual Taste of Diversity schedule.

The Civic and Community Engagement Office is providing information about ways faculty, staff, and students can be active citizens and support our community during the coronavirus pandemic.

Looking for fun family events this weekend that are in keeping with social distancing? Join the virtual Saturday Academy this Saturday, June 13, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Engaging activities like book reading, STEAM activities, a father’s workshop, and more are all free!

Access the event on the Buffalo Public Schools Facebook page.

The SUNY Remote Teaching Institute will run from June 22 to 26 and is designed to help faculty members prepare for a fall 2020 semester that may present unique challenges to course design and delivery. This free institute is brought to you by the SUNY Center for Professional Development in collaboration with campuses across the state.

Several workshops will be offered under each of the following headings:

Getting Started with Remote Instruction (June 22)
Syllabus and Learning Goals (June 23)
Effective Course Design (June 24)
Alternative Assessment and Academic Integrity (June 25)
Course Delivery Alternatives (June 26)
Blackboard Learn Basics (daily sessions)

Registration is available for individual webinars or the entire series. 

SPSS users will soon see a license expiration warning when launching SPSS. The notice will say, “Your license will expire in ‘N’ days.”

Information Technology, in coordination with SUNY ITEC, is installing new licenses on the server before the expiration of your license, which should allow you to continue to work without interruption.

SPSS licenses are renewed annually. If you have any access issues, please open a ticket or contact the IT Help Desk. Please check the IT News page regularly for information about IT on campus.

The University Police Department and Information Technology are embarking on a project to upgrade intrusion and panic alarms in select environments across campus, based on a survey of campus alarms conducted in 2019.

The start and end dates for the first three buildings are scheduled as follows and are subject to change:

Butler Library
June 15–17

Moot Hall
June 22–24

Cleveland Hall
July 1–3

Additional dates will be announced as they are scheduled. Please direct any questions to Matt DeFries, manager of access control and electronic security for IT. 

SUNY is providing guidance for community-based applied learning experiences during the COVID-19 crisis, including community-engaged learning and service learning. As a result, the Civic and Community Engagement Office strongly recommends REMOTE projects and experiences be developed for fall 2020 courses that incorporate community-engaged learning, service learning, civic engagement, or other experiences that normally take students into the community. There are many opportunities for remote projects and experiences that can be mutually beneficial while considering the health and safety of our students and vulnerable community members, including resource development, remote delivery, and research-based activities. We encourage you to transition these experiences to remote activities rather than cancel your community partnerships.

If you do choose to continue placing students in the community, the following must be adhered to only for in-person, on-site experiences (not for remote experiences). Faculty members must ensure that the following conditions are met before students begin on-site experiences in the community:  

• Community-engaged learning or service-learning experiences must be with a nonprofit organization or school that has been a partner to Buffalo State community-engaged learning or service learning in previous semesters.
• Partner organizations where students will be on-site must be contacted by faculty members before students’ arrival to discuss how they are following Department of Health protocols. This information must be documented and on file with the CCE prior to students being on-site. 
• A “Plan B” option must be identified and outlined in the syllabus for any student unable or unwilling to participate in the on-site experience. The CCE must have a copy of the syllabus prior to students being on-site in the community, with “Plan B” clearly articulated. 
• Prior to students being on-site, faculty members will provide and collect from each student an acknowledgment form, indicating that the student recognizes the risks involved, has an understanding of the limitations of First Amendment rights regarding mask-wearing in the community, and knows the protocol for notifying the community partner and faculty member of illnesses that arise.
• The community partner organization must return the community partner learning agreement to the CCE prior to students’ being on-site.

The CCE is here to assist with these transitions. Please contact us for remote partnership ideas and resources, as well as information about the requirements for on-site community-based experiences.