Please come to meet, support, and learn about our new Africana studies faculty members on Wednesday, October 16, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. in the LoRusso Alumni and Visitor Center's Costello Hall. This Africana Studies Interdisciplinary Unit event is the first in what will be a series of events this fall and next spring under the theme "Africana Studies Matters." Representing the disciplines of sociology, philosophy, anthropology, and Africana studies, the new faculty members are engaged instructors with research expertise in critically important and current issues related to hip-hop, reparations, digital media, and more. For an appreciation of their teaching styles, join us from 4:30 to 5:15 p.m. for a "teach-in." For a more casual meet-and-greet with our new faculty members, please join us for a catered reception from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Your presence and support will be greatly appreciated.

In observance of National Coming Out Day, Buffalo State College will host a table in the Campbell Student Union on Thursday, October 10, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Please stop by and pick up a button, ribbon, resources, information, and a treat. More information about National Coming Out Day is available on the Human Rights Campaign website. 

On Wednesday, October 16, we will celebrate International Pronoun Day with a tabling event in the Campbell Student Union from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Join us to pick up your pronoun button and learn more about International Pronoun Day.

Join Weigel Health Promotions for our Reiki and Guided Meditation Workshops, facilitated by Wendy Lane, lecturer in the Social Work Department, to learn, relax, and focus. Workshops will be held at 2:00 p.m. in Weigel Wellness Center 203 on the following Tuesdays:

October 8
October 29
November 12
December 3

Meditation for Stress Relief
Meditation is good for everyone. Even two minutes a day will decrease your stress level. This gathering is for those who have heard about meditation and are interested but are not sure where to start. It’s also good for people who have meditated in the past but would like some support or to learn other ways to meditate. We will practice different meditation skills and talk about ways to integrate it into your life.

Guided Meditation
Meditation is a powerful tool to heal your body, mind, and spirit. A guided meditation uses the power of visualization to help you release your mind from daily stressors. Your guide will talk you through a relaxing experience to help your mind focus on positive thoughts and experiences. Guided meditation is great for beginner and advanced mediators. Attending a guided group meditation will help keep you inspired and keep your meditation practice strong.

Chakra Meditation
It's true. Your thoughts create your reality. During this class, you will be guided into a positive mindset using the seven main chakras. We will use guided imagery to help you re-program your mind, body, and emotions to align with peace, balance, joy, abundance, and beyond.

For more Weigel Health Promotions programs, please follow us on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Youtube. Please contact Paula Madrigal, assistant director of prevention and health promotions, 878-4719, with questions.

Please join us for the professional development workshop "Heel, Disrupt, and Conquer: What Higher Education Can Learn from Entrepreneurial Leadership,” presented by Bhakti Sharma, associate professor of interior design, on Monday, October 21, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Assembly Hall.

Higher education institutions are the moral, intellectual, and cultural economy of the society. Enrollment, retention, budget and resources, branding, culture, and innovation—these challenges and opportunities that higher education is facing are no different from the challenges and opportunities of new business development, client retention, and risk taking that entrepreneurs face. To generate new growth and preserve existing infrastructure, higher education stakeholders are starting to think of ourselves as entrepreneurs and innovators. We should not focus merely on incremental growth but leverage our existing resources to create next-generation solutions. 

The corporatization of higher education has been ongoing for quite some time now. But the c-word does not have to be bad if we adopt the promising practices that apply to our context. By adopting and learning from entrepreneurial values such as risk taking, innovation, prototyping, and diversity in teams, we can become entrepreneurs with values, whether in the classroom or as leaders. 

The Program Higher Education Entrepreneurial Leadership (HEEL) has been designed to develop proactive leadership capabilities that will help participants think with the mindset of a founder and a primary stakeholder, and inspire pockets of innovation across the campus or in their department. Principles of design thinking, innovation excellence, and value leadership will be embedded throughout the workshop, equipping participants with new information about entrepreneurial leadership skills and behaviors necessary for leading transformation in the twenty-first century. As a result of this workshop, participants will be able to

• recognize entrepreneurial and innovation styles, strengths, and development opportunities;
• understand how to lead change by taking risks;
• apply the benefits of design thinking and innovation to develop new solutions to higher education challenges;
• recognize a model for rapid and efficient decision making;
• develop an understanding of how to create a culture to succeed by failing forward and prototyping.

Light snacks will be provided. Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

Many courses are being offered 100 percent online. Students can search directly in Banner using Instructional Method. Banner Preview for both J-Term and spring 2020 semesters begins on Wednesday, October 16. Currently, 60 courses are being offered 100 percent online for J-Term 2020, and 132 courses are being offered 100 percent online for spring 2020.

Registration for both the J-Term and spring 2020 semesters will begin on Wednesday, November 6.

Banner Preview and online master schedules will be available starting Wednesday, October 16.

Flu vaccines will be available for faculty, staff, and students on Thursday, October 10, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in Cleveland Hall 205. No appointment is necessary.

The following health insurance plans will be accepted: Blue Cross Blue Shield of WNY, Independent Health, Blue Choice, MVP, and Medicare Part B. Proof of insurance is required. Employees without a participating insurance plan will be charged $30 for the flu shot.

Participation and acceptance of any insurance is not a guarantee of benefits or payment in full. Co-payments or a deductible may apply. Please call your insurance provider’s member services department with questions regarding coverage.

Empire Plan enrollees may obtain their flu shot from an Empire Plan participating pharmacy without copay or at their doctor’s office (participating provider) for their usual co-pay should they wish to do so.

Please call Employee Benefits at 878-4821 or the member services department of your insurance company with questions regarding your health insurance coverage. The phone number should be on your insurance card.

Come and celebrate the First Friday of each month at 8:00 a.m. in the Newman Center Chapel. We will gather for Mass and start the month with a renewed perspective. Stay for a cup of coffee afterward or take a cup to go. Our next celebration will take place this Friday, October 4.

The Newman Center is located at 1219 Elmwood Avenue, across from the Burchfield Penney Art Center. For more information, please contact us at 882-1080 or newmancenter@buffalostate.edu.

From the Interim Associate Vice President for Institutional Effectiveness and Title III Project Coordinator
Please join me in welcoming the newest members of our Title III team: Agnieszka "Agnes" Zak-Moskal, Title III activity director, who comes to us from Villa Maria College in Buffalo, and Douglas Hoston, a doctoral candidate at the University at Buffalo, and Marvin Smith, from Medaille College in Buffalo, who have both been hired as completion coaches in the Student Leadership and Engagement Office. Their biographies are available on the Title III website.

Please join us for a free screening and discussion of Bisbee ’17, the next film in the Beyond Boundaries: Dare to Be Diverse screening and discussion series, today, October 3, at 7:00 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center’s Tower Auditorium.  

Bisbee '17, directed by Robert Green, follows several members of the close-knit community in Bisbee, Arizona, a former mining town, as they commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Bisbee Deportation, when 1,200 immigrant miners were violently taken from their homes by a deputized force, shipped to the desert on cattle cars, and left to die. This film is part of a monthly film series co-presented by the Equity and Campus Diversity Office, the Communication Department, and the Burchfield Penney Art Center. We hope to see you there!

Watch the trailer.