From the Chair of the College Senate
The College Senate will hold its annual New Senator Orientation for all newly elected senators on Thursday, September 6, during Bengal Pause in the Carmine A. Grande Room, Cleveland Hall 418. This informal session, hosted by the Senate chair and parliamentarian, gives newly elected faculty, professional staff, and students the basic protocol on Senate meeting etiquette. The College Senate follows Robert’s Rules of Order as is mandated by its bylaws. Attendance is not mandatory but is strongly encouraged. Please e-mail Vincent Masci, assistant to the College Senate, or phone the office at 878-5139 with questions.

From the Chair of the College Senate
College Senate meetings will be held in Bulger Communication Center 214 beginning in fall 2018, as Butler Library 210 undergoes extensive renovations. The meeting schedule for the 2018–2019 academic year will be posted on the Senate website.

The College Senate Office thanks everyone who submitted a College Senate Standing Committee Interest Form for the 2018–2019 academic year. Information has been forwarded to the appropriate committee chairs, who make all decisions regarding membership. Not all committees may need members. Please contact the Senate office with questions by e-mail or phone at 878-5319.

College Senate Officers 2018–2019
College Senate Chair: Joseph Marren, Professor, Communication
College Senate Vice Chair: M. Scott Goodman, Chair and Professor, Chemistry
College Senate Parliamentarian: Slade Gellin, Professor, Technology

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College Senate Standing Committee Chairs 2018–2019

Academic Plan Committee
Chair: David Ben-Merre, Associate Professor, English

Budget and Staff Allocations Committee
Chair: Ted Schmidt, Professor, Economics and Finance

Bylaws and Elections Committee
Chair: Amy Rosen-Brand, Associate Director, Student Accessibility Services

Curriculum Committee
Chair: Kimberly Kline, Chair and Professor, Higher Education Administration

Faculty and Staff Welfare Committee
Chair: Maria Brickhouse, Coordinator, EOP Academic Center for Excellence

Instruction and Research Committee
Chair: Arlesa Shephard, Associate Professor, Fashion and Textile Technology

Standards for Students Committee
Chair: Amy Wilson, Assistant Professor, Higher Education Administration

Student Welfare Committee
Vice Chair: Steve Macho, Associate Professor, Career and Technical Education

From the Chair of the College Senate
The first College Senate meeting of the 2018–2019 academic year will be held at 3:00 p.m. Friday, September 14, in Bulger Communication Center 214. For more information, please contact Vincent Masci, assistant to the College Senate, 878-5139.

The Academic Calendar Committee, in conjunction with the President’s Office, has created two sets of calendars for the 2018–2019 academic year: the Academic Calendar and the College Calendar (PDF, 124 KB). The Academic Calendar contains academic and registration-related dates and deadlines, as well as newly added student instructional deadlines. Other dates and deadlines—including faculty personnel actions, master schedule preparation, and grants and awards—have been compiled in the College Calendar. Beginning this academic year, all paper versions of the Academic and College calendars will be eliminated. Calendars for academic years 2019–2020 and beyond, showing tentative future dates, will continue to be posted as PDFs.

Please update your office hours or advising hours for the fall 2018 semester in the Bengal Success Portal.

After you set up office and advising hours, students can self-schedule appointments during the hours you make available in the Bengal Success Portal. A confirmation is sent to your Buffalo State e-mail account, where you can accept or decline the appointment. Students also automatically receive confirmation and reminder e-mails for scheduled appointments, resulting in fewer no-shows.

Learn how to edit your office hours and advising hours. If you haven't yet set up office hours or advising hours, learn how to create office hours in the Bengal Success Portal.

Bengal Success Portal (Starfish) workshops are now scheduled through the fall 2018 semester. Please register through the Workshop Registration System. 

Fall 2018 Workshops

• Bengal Success Portal - Getting Started 
• Flags, Kudos, and Referrals 
• Calendar, Appointments, and Attendance 

Bengal Success Portal user guides and tips can be found on the RITE Portal. Additional training, including training for departments, can be scheduled by opening a ticket in the RITE Portal.

If you have questions, please e-mail bengalsuccess@buffalostate.edu.

The FACT˛ Task Group on Mixed Realities invites faculty and staff members to a one-day symposium on virtual immersive pedagogy on Friday, November 9, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in the Zimpher Boardroom, SUNY System Administration, SUNY Plaza, Albany NY.

The symposium will explore the emerging role of virtual and augmented reality tools in teaching-learning and research spaces. The day's events will feature presentations and discussions about how these emerging tools are being used in academia today. In addition to presentations, there will be an open exposition period for posters and hands-on activities with mixed-reality tools. 

Faculty or staff members who are currently using virtual, augmented, or mixed-reality tools in their teaching or research practice and would like to present are encouraged to submit an abstract proposal using this online application form. Abstracts must be submitted by Monday, August 20. Decisions will be made by September 30.

The Great Lakes Center will hold its annual open house Friday, September 7, from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m. at the GLC Field Station Teaching Pavilion at the foot of Porter Avenue on the Niagara River. We will present the 2017–2018 annual report, updates on the GLES graduate program, and current and future projects. Faculty, staff, and students are welcome. RSVP by Friday, August 31.

New York State requires all agencies to maintain a record of authorized signers for each state account to ensure financial accountability for expenditures. Timely updates of changes in authorized signers not only inform the business offices as to who has responsibility for expending departmental funds, but also allow for more efficient communications. Buffalo State’s Authorized Signatory Form (Record of Authorized Signatures) is available online from the Procurement Services website and should be updated at least once a year, or whenever a change occurs in personnel who are authorized to expend funds from a state account. If you are a primary manager for a state account, please review authorized signers identified for your departmental account(s) and submit your updates, effective July 1, 2018, to the Procurement Services Office.