Join the Buffalo State Census 2020 Complete Count Committee to celebrate Civic Engagement Week. This week of events will provide students, faculty, and staff members with the tools to become civic-minded community members. In addition to in-person events, follow the conversation on Instagram using #buffstatecounts.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 25

• Disability Rights New York
  11:00 a.m.–1:30 p.m.
  Campbell Student Union Lobby
  Register to vote and learn how you can be an advocate for individuals with disabilities
• ?Workshop: How Does the Census Impact Me?
  12:15–1:30 p.m.
  Rockwell Hall 306
  Are you ready to be a census influencer? Maybe you weren't paying attention in high school social studies class and missed the explanation about the role of the census survey. Don't panic—this won't be a boring lesson you'll soon forget! You'll learn how being counted in the 2020 census will affect you, your family, and the community for the next 10 years. We'll review how the census affects your everyday life as a college student, from financial aid to the street you took to class today. Then use your voice to create a message about the census that will be shared across campus and the Buffalo community to encourage others to be counted in 2020. 
  Register for the workshop on the CCE website.

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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 26

• Erie County Board of Elections
  11:00 a.m.–1:30 p.m.
  Campbell Student Union lobby
  Register to vote for the 2020 primaries, special election, and general election. 

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 27

• Higher Education Action Day
  5:30 a.m.–8:00 p.m.
  Albany
  Head to Albany to advocate affordable and accessible higher education in New York. Register with Pedro.
• ConnectLife Blood Drive
  10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
  Buckham Hall A114
  Donate blood to help local residents in need. Donating blood is a simple thing to do that takes less than an hour. Just think: potentially saving the lives of up to three people takes less time than it takes to watch a television show. As Western New York’s only community blood center and federally designated organ, eye, and tissue procurement agency, ConnectLife saves and enhances lives through the support and compassion of donors who graciously choose to give the gift of life. Schedule your appointment at ConnectLifeGiveBlood.org and enter sponsor code 001944 or call (716) 529-4270. Don't forget to bring a photo ID to make your donation.  
• The Organizer's Tool Kit
  12:15–1:30 p.m.
  Rockwell Hall 306 
  Before you can be an activist, you have to get organized! Ever wonder how large campus events are organized? Do you want to learn? Step into the world of project management with assistant directors Aurora Schunk (Civic and Community Engagement Office) and Eve Everette (Anne Frank Project) to learn how your organizational skills are a form of community activism and advocacy. We’ll even workshop your idea! Learn the steps to turn your ideas into a detailed event or advocacy campaign for social change. 
  Register for the workshop on the CCE website.

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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28

• FSA Tax-Prep Sessions
  10:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
  Bacon Hall 123 
  File your taxes for free.
  Register for a session on the CCE website.

Come and join the conversation during the workshop “Lightening the Paper Load: Responding to Student Writing Effectively and Efficiently” on Friday, March 6, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m in Butler Library 314. Presented by Maggie Herb, assistant professor of English and director of the Writing Center. 

It’s nearly midnight; you have 15 more papers to read, and your red pen is running out of ink. Don’t despair! Come to this workshop to learn strategies to manage your paper load more efficiently—while at the same time giving your students focused, meaningful feedback that they can understand and apply. 

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

From the Chair of the College Senate
The next meeting of the College Senate for spring 2020 will be held Friday, March 13, at 3:00 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center 217. The available reports and podcast of the February 14 Senate meeting are now posted on the Senate website. The agenda for the March 13 meeting will be posted on March 6.

All information pertaining to the College Senate is available on the website, including the complete Senate roster and spring meeting schedule as well as all meeting podcasts, reports, and minutes. Please contact Vincent Masci, assistant to the College Senate, 878-5139, with questions.

Get your tickets today for the Newman Center's fourth annual meat raffle on Saturday, March 7, at the Knights of Columbus, 1530 Kenmore Avenue, Buffalo, NY 14216. Doors open at 6:00 p.m.; first spin is at 7:00 p.m. All proceeds benefit our services to Buffalo State students (service projects, retreats, leadership training, and ministry resources). For tickets and more information, please call the Newman Center at 882-1080.

The dean of the Graduate School, Kevin Miller, will host the spring 2020 Graduate School meeting on Friday, February 28, at 3:00 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center 217. Dr. Miller will provide important programmatic, policy, and operational updates to the graduate faculty. All are encouraged to attend.

The first meeting of Buffalo State College's newly formed student chapter of the Industrial Engineering and Operations Management Society (IEOM) will be held Tuesday, March 3, from 4:00 to 4:30 p.m. in Technology Building 258. All majors are welcome! Diversity is the key to our success. Please join us.

Chapter highlights:

• Networking
• Professional development
• Plant tours
• International poster competitions
• Workshops, conferences, and seminars
• Listening and learning
• Job opportunities / career planning

Nolan Peterson, foreign correspondent for the Daily Signal, will present the lecture “The War in Ukraine and Why Ukraine Matters to America” today, February 20, at noon in Bulger Communication Center 217.

Peterson has reported extensively from the front lines in eastern Ukraine. In summer 2015, he was the first American journalist to embed with Ukraine's regular army as it faced Russian invaders and their proxies. A former U.S. Air Force special operations pilot and a veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, he is the author of the book Why Soldiers Miss War as well as two fiction collections. He lives in Kyiv, Ukraine, with his wife, Lilya. Peterson has lived in Ukraine full time since the war began in summer 2014.

His presentation is sponsored by the Political Science and the Economics and Finance departments.

Peterson will also speak at the Dnipro Ukrainian Cultural Center, 562 Genesee Street in Buffalo, on Friday, February 21, at 6:00 p.m.

High-impact practices (HIPs) have been shown to significantly improve student retention and academic achievement. The Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U) identify a number of high-impact learning practices (HIPs), including undergraduate research, collaborative assignments, learning communities, service learning, and study abroad. This certificate program explores the pedagogy that underwrites these practices. 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 certificate program will help instructors take a fresh look at one of their courses and discover ways to up the HIP quotient.

This certificate program falls into three parts. First, participants will watch five short videos (approximately 10 minutes each) and complete worksheets before the face-to-face workshop. Second, participants will attend the face-to-face workshop. Finally, participants will submit revised course materials based on the Basically HIP program.

 Anyone interested in the program can watch this short video and complete this form.

Please join us for the ninth annual Southeast Asia Week, featuring exciting lectures, presentations, and discussions from Monday, March 9, to Friday, March 13. All events are free and open to the campus community and the public.

Migrants, Minorities, and Populism in Asia
Thomas Pepinsky, Professor of Government, Cornell University
Monday, March 9
1:00–2:15 p.m.
Bulger Communication Center 217

Populists in East and Southeast Asia generally refrain from invoking anti-migrant and anti-minority sentiments as part of their mobilizational strategies. This differentiates them from “exclusionary” populists in Europe, even though many Southeast Asian countries are diverse societies with long histories of migration and ethnic chauvinism. This talk will use the experiences of East and Southeast Asia to explore the varieties of populism across the world, focusing on how nationalist mobilization and mass incorporation shape popular identity, membership, and populists' strategies in contemporary democracies.

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Contesting Land Reclamation in Bali*
Jennifer L. Gaynor, Research Fellow, Baldy Center for Law & Social Policy, University at Buffalo
Tuesday, March 10
12:15–1:30 p.m.
Bulger Communication Center 216

This talk looks at the protest movement against land reclamation in Bali, Indonesia, which initially began with the resistance of coastal communities whose livelihoods were threatened by a proposed development project. The protest movement spread quickly among Balinese and their supporters, partly because of Indonesians’ extensive use of social media and as a result of international exposure. (Bali is a major tourist destination.) Yet the movement's spread has also relied on water’s importance in Hindu-Balinese society and religion. Referred to as the “religion of water” (agama tirta), water’s sacred character has given the Balinese a unique moral position in ethical and legal arguments with developers and the state, as well as inspired people to stage creative forms of resistance and to join mass mobilizations. 

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Geopolitics and Development of Southeast Asia
Students from GEG 360: Geography of Asia
Wednesday, March 11, and Friday, March 13
1:00–1:50 p.m.
Classroom Building A209

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Society and Development: Discover Cambodia through My Journey*
Anthony Janda, Student, Buffalo State College Political Science Department
Thursday, March 12
12:15–1:30 p.m.
Bulger Communication Center 216

Learn about one of the fastest growing countries in the world, Cambodia. This talks provides insights through a personal experience and journey in examining the history, culture, politics, education system, labor, and society and their evolving relationships in shaping the past, current, and future development of the country.

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Sponsors and Partners
The Buffalo State College Equity and Campus Diversity Office, Geography and Planning Department, and Political Science Department; the University at Buffalo; and Cornell University’s Southeast Asia Program

*Refreshments will be served.

Please join the Chemistry and Physics departments for the seminar "Biomimetic Structures Based on Self-Assembly and Folding," presented by Bing Gong, professor of chemistry at the University at Buffalo, on Thursday, February 20, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Science and Mathematics Complex 176.

Abstract
Creating structural and functional mimetics of biomacromolecules is of both fundamental and practical significance. Information-carrying molecules have been designed based hydrogen-bonded molecular duplexes with sequence-specific programmability and tunable stability. The well-defined structures of these unnatural oligomers, along with their DNA-like programmable specificity and high stability, have resulted in controlled intermolecular interactions and artificial nanostructures. Examples include the nucleation and stabilization of beta-sheets, the design of supramolecular block copolymers, and the templation of organic reactions.  This approach offers a set of programmable association units for directing the assembly and/or reactions of various structural units.

By controlling intramolecular non-covalent interactions, general strategies leading to folded molecular objects have been developed. Rigidifying the backbones of otherwise flexible molecular chains with localized non-covalent interactions has resulted in highly stable helical conformations in both the solid state and solution. This approach has been successfully applied to the creation of helical oligoamides, oligoureas, and oligo (phenylene ethynylenes). Unlike most known foldamers, the folding of these oligomers is encoded in their backbones and is thus independent of their sizes or the nature of their side chains. The helices contain large, tunable internal cavities. The folding of oligomer precursors was found to facilitate highly efficient macrocyclization reactions, based on which several classes of large shape-persistent macrocycles have been discovered. The crescent, helical and cyclic structures contain nanosized voids that are typically associated with the tertiary and quaternary structures of proteins. The availability of these porous molecules has provided nanosized building blocks that present both opportunities and challenges for creating the next-generation biomimetic nanostructures capable of presenting multiple introverted functional groups, forming various pores and channels and finally, developing protein-like structures and functions.