Alumna Maddie Toczek, B.S. '18, will speak to students about majoring in health and wellness at Buffalo State and her postbaccalaureate career path on Thursday, March 14, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Houston Gym 212. Upon graduation from Buffalo State, Ms. Toczek passed the certification exam to become a certified health education specialist (CHES). She is currently in her second semester of graduate school at the University at Buffalo, pursuing a master's degree in public health. Her talk will address balancing school and athletics, her internship experience, preparing for the CHES exam, and applying to and surviving graduate school.

From the President's Council on Equity and Campus Diversity
Nominations are encouraged for the Dr. Muriel A. Howard Presidential Award for the Promotion of Equity and Campus Diversity. The award recognizes faculty and staff members who promote respect for diversity and individual differences through classroom discussions, curricular experiences, out-of-classroom activities, projects, conversations, or special mentorships that go beyond what is usually expected as a part of their regular job expectations or teaching assignments.

We welcome nominations from students, faculty, and staff so that we might acknowledge members of our community who live the values of respect for diversity and advocacy for social justice at an awards reception on Tuesday, April 9.

Award criteria and nomination forms can be found on the Equity and Campus Diversity website. The application deadline is close of business Friday, March 22.

Please contact the Equity and Campus Diversity Office, Cleveland Hall 415, 878-6210, with questions.

Please join the Higher Education Administration Department (HEA) and the division of Student Affairs as we welcome Kris Renn, professor of higher, adult, and lifelong education and the associate dean of undergraduate studies for student success research at Michigan State University, Thursday and Friday, April 11 and 12. Dr. Renn currently serves as president of the Association for the Study of Higher Education, is a co-principal investigator for the National Study of LGBTQ Student Success, and coauthored the widely used textbook Student Development in College, third edition. She will offer the following speaking engagements during her visit:

Bridging the Gap: Improving Collaboration between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs
Thursday, April 11 | 12:15–1:30 p.m.
Bulger Communication Center 214
(Lunch provided)

For decades, student affairs and academic affairs areas have operated with different philosophical and theoretical foundations and beliefs. The resulting silos are firmly entrenched, even though there is a consensus that higher education is not meeting its potential for creating environments that promote student learning, development, and success. Dr. Renn will propose an ecological approach to organizing higher education and working across institutional subcultures to improve student outcomes and discuss barriers to and facilitators of collaboration.
Register for this event.

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Enhancing LGBTQ Cultural Competence to Address the Unique Needs of LGBTQ Students
Thursday, April 11 | 3:30–4:30 p.m.
Bacon Hall 117

Abundant evidence attests to the homophobia, harassment, and discrimination that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students face in K–12 schools and college, yet growing evidence demonstrates that many LGBTQ students thrive academically, personally, and socially. This evidence suggests that it is possible to shift campus climate to address the needs of LGBTQ students. Dr. Renn will discuss what research says about becoming more culturally competent and creating campus environments that support LGBTQ student success and enable students to thrive.
Register for this event.

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CPSA-NYS Coffee and Conversation with Dr. Renn
Friday, April 12 | 9:00–10:30 a.m.
Costello Hall (LoRusso Alumni and Visitor Center)

Dr. Renn will repeat Thursday's conversation, “Bridging the Gap: Improving Collaboration between Student Affairs and Academic Affairs.” This event is co-sponsored by the College Personnel Association of New York State (CSPA-NYS).
Register for this event.

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These events have been funded in part by the Faculty-Student Association Founders Fund.

For more information, please contact Amy Wilson, associate professor and interim chair of HEA, 878-4083.

The campus community is invited to attend the 62nd annual Honors Convocation on Thursday, April 18, at 3:00 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall. The ceremony will recognize students for their outstanding academic achievement. One of the oldest traditions at Buffalo State, Honors Convocation is held each spring to celebrate students who have achieved academic excellence. All invited students have earned a cumulative grade point average of 3.50 or higher and have accumulated a minimum of 60 earned credit hours at Buffalo State (30 Buffalo State earned credit hours for transfer students). As a token of the college’s recognition, each honored student is presented with a Buffalo State Honors Convocation pin and certificate, and a reception with light refreshments will immediately follow the ceremony.

The event is sponsored by the Academic Affairs Office. The 3:00 p.m. start time is new this year to better accommodate student work and family schedules. Also new this year is the addition of top student department awards at the ceremony. Students receiving the top award in their academic departments will be invited to participate in Honors Convocation and will receive notification from their department or dean’s office.

Honors students will receive a letter of invitation from Academic Affairs that includes instructions and a link to invite one faculty or staff member to attend as their honored guest and to sit with them. Please be aware that the student invitations this year will be electronic and no longer in paper format. Faculty and staff who receive an electronic invitation from students will be able to respond and RSVP electronically to their students.

There will be no general academic procession of faculty and staff, though any faculty or staff members who attend either as a student’s honored guest or on their own to support the honored students are welcome to wear academic garb.

The bookstore will take orders for regalia rentals until Tuesday, March 12, for Honors Convocation. If you wish to use rented regalia for both Honors Convocation and Commencement, you will be able to keep it until May 20. Otherwise, rented regalia for Honors Convocation is due Monday, April 22. Information with pricing is posted on the Academic Affairs website under Faculty/Staff Regalia. A limited number and variety of gowns are available for loan through the Academic Affairs Office, and a regalia loan request form is also provided on the website. Please provide your own hood and cap, either rented or owned, if possible.

Please contact Carolyn Martino, assistant to the provost, with any Honors Convocation questions. Thank you for supporting our honors students and attending the ceremony.

The campus community is invited to attend the 62nd annual Honors Convocation on Thursday, April 18, at 3:00 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall. Today is the final day to order regalia rentals for faculty and professional staff members who wish to attend and wear regalia.

There will be no general academic procession of faculty and staff, though anyone who attends either as a student’s honored guest or on their own to support the honored students are welcome to wear academic garb. If you wish to use rented regalia for both Honors Convocation and Commencement, you will be able to keep it until May 20. Otherwise, rented regalia for Honors Convocation must be returned to the bookstore by Monday, April 22. Information with pricing is posted on the Academic Affairs website under Faculty/Staff Regalia. A limited number and variety of gowns are available for loan through the Academic Affairs Office, and a regalia loan request form is also provided on the website. Please provide your own hood and cap, either rented or owned, if possible.

The event is sponsored by the Academic Affairs Office. Contact Carolyn Martino, assistant to the provost, with any Honors Convocation questions. Please note this year's new start time, and thank you for supporting our honors students by attending the ceremony.

Come and explore techniques that will help you create quality video content for your courses using equipment available right here on campus during the workshop "Setting the Stage for Quality Audio and Video," presented by Ken Giangreco, manager of video production, and John Myers, video journalist and production assistant, in the Marketing and Communications Office.

Choose from one of two sessions:

Monday, March 11: 1:00–2:00 p.m.

Friday, March 15, 10:00–11:00 a.m.

Techniques will include identifying light sources, camera positioning, basic editing, and capturing quality audio. These methods will be demonstrated using the iPad recording kits available for loan through Butler Library.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

From the Chair of the College Senate
The next College Senate meeting of the spring 2019 semester will be held tomorrow, March 8, at 3:00 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center 215. The meeting agenda is posted on the College Senate website.

Remaining spring 2019 Senate meetings will be held on April 12 and May 10. Meetings are held on Fridays at 3:00 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center 215 unless otherwise noted.

The College Senate Office is located in Cleveland Hall 211. Joseph Marren, professor of communication, serves as chair of the College Senate for the 2018–2019 academic year. Please stop by the office, call 878-5139, or e-mail Vincent Masci, assistant to the College Senate, with questions or for general information.

From the Chair of the College Senate Bylaws and Elections Committee
Two at-large College Senate positions, one University Faculty Senate position, and one University Faculty Senate alternate position will become vacant on August 30, 2019. All full-time faculty and professional staff members are eligible to run for these seats provided they meet other eligibility requirements (see below).

At-large senators represent the entirety of the college. University Faculty senators are senators within both the Buffalo State College Senate and the SUNY University Faculty Senate. The alternate attends SUNY University Faculty Senate meetings only in the absence of the university faculty senator.

A call for nominations and information about candidates’ statements will be posted on the College Senate website. The call for nominations begins at 12:01 a.m. Monday, April 15, and continues through 5:00 p.m. Friday, April 19. Elections for these positions will run from 12:01 a.m. Monday, April 22, to 11:59 p.m. Friday, April 26. The link will be live on April 15.

Senate elections conducted by the schools of Arts and Humanities, Education, Natural and Social Sciences, and the Professions as well as the Professional Staff Caucus (PSC) should be concluded before the election cycle for the at-large seats.

Eligibility: Current College Senate members who are completing two consecutive terms in their respective positions are not eligible for reelection. For additional information on eligibility requirements, please consult the College Senate bylaws.

Campaigning: The College Senate Elections and Bylaws Committee strongly discourages using college e-mail services for campaigning. Please limit campaigning to the candidate statement posted on the College Senate website.

Please note: Individuals running for a senator position in another election may not also run for at-large senator or university faculty senator positions while the other election is being conducted. If the other election concludes during the period when nominations for at-large or university faculty senator are still being accepted, eligible individuals may self-nominate for either position.

If you are interested in being a candidate, please contact Vince Masci, assistant to the College Senate, 878-5139. We look forward to your participation in the vital process of campus governance.

From the Chair of the College Senate
Reports to the College Senate are posted on the College Senate website. The most recent reports are from the February 8, 2019, Senate meeting.

Podcasts serve as the official audio record of each College Senate meeting. If you missed a Senate meeting and want to catch up, podcasts are posted to the Senate's podcasts web page. Senate meeting summaries are posted to the website after they are presented to the Senate.

This is a topic worth reviewing. Please read the SANS Ouch! newsletter article about disposing of mobile devices. Then please review Buffalo State’s Data Risk Classification Policy (PDF, 145 KB) and companion document Guidelines for Storing and Transmitting College Data (PDF, 382 KB).