Please join us for a screening of Quest, the next film in our Beyond Boundaries: Dare to Be Diverse screening and discussion series, on Thursday, February 28, at 7:00 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center’s Tower Auditorium. A panel discussion featuring Ron Stewart, department chair and professor of sociology at Buffalo State, and Christopher St. Vil, ’00, assistant professor of social work at the University at Buffalo, will follow the film.

Filmed with vérité intimacy over nearly a decade, Quest is the moving portrait of a family from North Philadelphia. Beginning during the Obama presidency, Christopher "Quest" Rainey and his wife, Christine'a "Ma Quest," raise a family while nurturing a community of hip-hop artists in their basement home music studio. Epic in scope, Quest is a vivid illumination of race and class in America and a testament to love, healing, and hope. Directed by Jonathan Olshefski, Quest was the Official Selection at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival.

This Beyond Boundaries screening was curated by Michael Heflin, director of equity and campus diversity; Ruth Goldman, assistant professor of communication; and Meg Knowles, associate professor of communication, and is sponsored the Equity and Campus Diversity Office, the Communication Department, the Burchfield Penney Art Center, and POV.

Beyond Boundaries screenings are free and open to the public.

Watch the trailer.
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Please join us for the 2019 Women's History Month keynote, "When the Cotton Is High: Social Justice and Textiles," by Chawne Kimber, professor of mathematics at Lafayette College in Pennsylvania and an award-winning textile artist, on Tuesday, March 12, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Technology Building 344. Dr. Kimber's talk will address her artistic practice and its connection to United States history as well as to current social issues. A reception will be held in the Rockwell Hall Metcalf Room from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.

For centuries, women have used their utilitarian and decorative textile work to express their politics and opinions on issues of the day. This talk will examine some historical examples and some of Dr. Kimber's own work. Her quilts use the lens of identity and difference to confront social conflicts like campus rape culture, Black Lives Matter, and censorship.

Dr. Kimber has exhibited quilts and embroidery in galleries and festivals throughout the country. As a mathematician, she finds connections between her discipline and her work as a textile artist. Her quilts are made in the patchwork style used by her ancestors who were enslaved. Modern Quilting magazine calls Dr. Kimber “a growing force in modern quilting” because of the way she is pushing the art form in innovative and challenging directions. She uses the quilt as a medium to respond to current race-related social justice issues.

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This event is sponsored by the Women and Gender Studies Interdisciplinary Unit and the Fashion and Textile Technology Department with the generous support of the Faculty-Student Association.

The Nutrition Club's annual soup sale will be held Friday, March 15. For only $7, a delicious bowl of either chicken noodle or vegan barley minestrone soup, an apple, a roll, and a bottle of water will be delivered directly to your office. You can even get both types of soup and a sweet treat, too!

This annual event supports the Nutrition Club at Buffalo State. With your generous support, we are able to provide opportunities, on campus and off, for dietetics students to learn more about potential career paths as well as support campus service projects.

Please place your order online. We thank you for your support and hope you enjoy a bowl of homemade soup.

Weigel Health Promotions and the Health, Nutrition, and Dietetics Department will offer the workshop "Eating Disorder Awareness: What Are the Facts?" on Thursday, February 28, from noon to 1:00 p.m. in Science and Mathematics Complex 170 in observance of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (February 25–March 3). Please call Weigel Health Promotions at 878-6725 with questions.

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The Dr. Nuala McGann Drescher Affirmative Action/Diversity Leave Program enhances employment opportunities for UUP-represented employees who are preparing for permanent or continuing appointments, with preference given to minorities, women, employees with disabilities, or employees with military status. The types of support available include payment of employee's regular salary by the campus; salary for a replacement; and other related expenses for research or study with a justification.

Full-time, term employees in a position eligible for permanent or continuing appointment who have had at least one term-renewal or prior service credit may apply for this leave. Details about eligibility requirements and the application procedure can be found on the Governor's Office of Employee Relations website along with program guidelines and the application.

Applications for leaves for the fall semester 2019 must be submitted to the Joint Labor Management Committee (see guidelines) by Monday, April 15. Such applications must be accompanied by various documents, including letters of endorsement from the campus (your respective provost, vice president, CIO, or CDO) and the dean (for academic employees). Such endorsement must indicate the campus's financial contribution of a minimum of 40 percent of the cost of salary for a replacement for the duration of the leave and a minimum of 40 percent of the total project or activity expenses.

To allow time for securing the required documentation, Buffalo State applicants should follow these procedures:

1. Employee contacts the dean's or associate vice president's office for leave approval and commitments to pay 40 percent of salary replacement costs and OTPS.
2. Employee completes Drescher Leave Application, including budget summary.
3. Employee obtains letter of financial support from the dean or associate vice president and forwards to his or her respective provost, vice president, CIO, or CDO with the application. The application should be sent to the employee's respective provost, vice president, CIO, or CDO no later than Friday, March 22, to allow time for review of application and preparation of support materials.
4. Provost, vice president, CIO, or CDO prepares letter of support to the Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC).
5. Employee submits completed application to the JLMC by the April 15, 2019, deadline.

Michael Spogli, TIAA’s financial consultant, will be on campus to meet with Buffalo State faculty and staff members on Thursday, March 14, and Friday, March 15, between 9:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. in Cleveland Hall 416. Appointments are required.

Take this opportunity to review your personal financial situation and make sure you are saving enough for retirement. Ensure that your investments are properly allocated and that you are on track to meet your retirement goals. Schedule an appointment today. It's easy. Simply visit the TIAA website or call (800) 732-8353 Monday through Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m.

The Pride Pins Collection is the next exhibition in this semester’s series featuring the Madeline Davis LGBTQ Archive, sponsored by Butler Library's Archives and Special Collections and the LGBTQ+ Resource Center. Drop by today during the opening reception from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Fireside Lounge to design your own pin and enjoy some special treats. The Pride Pins exhibition is on view through March 25.

The Pride Pins Collection has been donated by many various community members and organizations and has been amassed over a lifetime of activism and political efforts. As with most early LGBTQ+ ephemera collections, some pins document events and activities that were not covered by traditional and conservative new outlets. The pins offer a significant and often underdocumented historical record of gay rights activism, community organizations, national and local rallies, HIV/AIDS activism, and support organizations.

Visit the collection in the display cases on the third floor of the Campbell Student Union, on view through March 25, or access the digital archive through the Digital Commons. Stop by anytime the Student Union is open.

Upcoming Exhibitions

• March 25–April 22: Pride/Political Posters/Gay Rights T-shirt Collection
• April 22–May 10: Gender Expressions: Charles Gustina Prints, Tangarra, Radical Faeries Photographs

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LGBTQ+ Resource Center
Visit the LGBTQ+ Resource Center on campus in Campbell Student Union 105G, call 878-4633, or e-mail the Student Leadership and Engagement Office. We are open Monday–Friday 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.

If you would like to get involved in LGBTQ+ affairs on campus, please consider joining the Bengal Allies! We are open to all faculty, staff, and students who would like to build an inclusive environment on campus. Please contact Char Vetter, associate director of the Weigel Wellness Center, or Sean P. Terry, student activities assistant for evening and weekend life, for more information. 

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About the Madeline Davis LGBTQ Archive of Western New York
In 2001, noted gay rights activist Madeline Davis founded the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) Archives of Western New York as a way to collect, safeguard, and provide access to materials that document the LGBTQ+ communities of Western New York and Southern Ontario.

In 2009, the archives were transferred to Buffalo State’s E. H. Butler Library. Housed in the Archives and Special Collections, the archives have expanded to more than 300 linear feet of items and have become the region’s largest LGBTQ+ collection. More than 80 individuals, groups, and diverse organizations are represented in the tens of thousands of documents and items that include photographs, local organizational records, multimedia materials, pamphlets, posters, clippings, awards, signs, banners, plaques, and published materials as well as an array of ephemeral items and other pieces that date back to the 1920s.

The Buffalo State Madeline Davis LGBTQ Archive is actively soliciting donations of materials and further support. As Madeline Davis herself has said, “Our community has a past, but no history.” The presence and continued growth of the many collections in the archives help to ensure that our shared history will only grow in scope and importance. Any contributions to the collections will help fill in historical gaps, ensuring that we have a past, a history, and a future. Please contact the Archives and Special Collections if you wish to donate to the collection or have questions about the materials.

The LGBTQ+ Resource Center and the Bengal Allies invite all members of the campus community to the next Bengal Ally Mixer on Wednesday, March 6, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Fireside Lounge (third floor, just outside the Dean of Students Office). Mixers will be held every first Wednesday of the month all semester long. Join students and other faculty and staff members in a casual, friendly environment with free refreshments and excellent conversation. These mixers are an opportunity for members of the campus's lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, questioning, and ally community to informally meet and strengthen our association and visibility at Buffalo State.

Can’t make this mixer? The next one will be held during Pride Week on April 3 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. in the Fireside Lounge. 

To get involved with the Bengal Allies and our full semester of programming, please attend our biweekly meetings in the LGBTQ+ Resource Center, Campbell Student Union 105G. Our next three meetings of the semester are at 1:00 p.m. today and Mondays March 18 and April 1.

Please contact us with questions or suggestions:

LGBTQ+ Resource Center: Sean P. Terry, student activities assistant for evening and weekend life

Bengal Allies: Char Vetter, associate director of the Weigel Wellness Center

Mission Statement
The Buffalo State LGBTQ+ Resource Center provides a safe, inclusive, and celebratory environment for LGBTQ students, faculty, and staff. We seek to provide members of our campus community with resources that will support and affirm each individual’s process of self-discovery and identity development and facilitate connections between our campus and the Buffalo community. The LGBTQ+ Resource Center provides access to informative media, training, professional development, and advocacy.

The LGBTQ+ Resource Center and the Bengal Allies invite everyone to our Bengal Ally Mixer series, every first Wednesday of the month all semester long. Our next mixer will be from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. March 6 in the Fireside Lounge on the third floor of the Campbell Student Union (just outside the Dean of Students Office). Join other faculty, students, and staff in a casual, friendly environment with free refreshments and excellent conversation. These mixers are an opportunity for members of the campus lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, questioning, and ally community to informally meet and strengthen our association and visibility at Buffalo State.

Can’t make this mixer? The next one will be during Pride Week, April 3, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. in the Fireside Lounge. 

If you would like to get involved with the Bengal Allies and our full semester of programming, come to our biweekly meetings in the LGBTQ+ Resource Center, Campbell Student Union 105G). Our next three meetings of the semester are March 4 and 18, and April 1 at 1:00 p.m.

Please contact us with questions or suggestions:

LGBTQ+ Resource Center: Sean P. Terry, student activities assistant for evening and weekend life

Bengal Allies: Char Vetter, associate director of the Weigel Wellness Center

Mission Statement
The Buffalo State LGBTQ+ Resource Center provides a safe, inclusive, and celebratory environment for LGBTQ students, faculty, and staff. We seek to provide members of our campus community with resources that will support and affirm each individual’s process of self-discovery and identity development and facilitate connections between our campus and the Buffalo community. The LGBTQ+ Resource Center provides access to informative media, training, professional development, and advocacy.

Nominations for Buffalo State’s Student Leadership and Humanitarian Awards are due tomorrow, March 1. These awards recognize students who help make Buffalo State truly extraordinary—the young people who go above and beyond, who answer the call to service, who lead their peers and our campus with energy, integrity, vision, and creativity.

Candidates for these awards are leaders in our campus community, participate in civic engagement and service, and demonstrate a commitment to something worthwhile and enduring. These are the qualities that help define Buffalo State as a truly civil and caring academic community.

We encourage students to self-nominate, and we invite faculty and staff to nominate deserving students for consideration.

Applications are available on the Student Leadership and Engagement website. 

Questions about the Student Leadership and Humanitarian Awards can be addressed to David W. Cox, assistant dean of student leadership and engagement, Campbell Student Union 400, 878-4631.