The J-Term and Spring course shells have been created in Blackboard for instructors' use. 

Are you trying to copy content to your new section or make your course available and you just can't remember how? All you need to get ready for the new semester in Blackboard is available on the RITE Self-Service Portal.

Please visit these links for answers to these frequently asked questions:

• Merge Course Rosters
• Copying a Course in Blackboard
• Make Your Course Available in Blackboard (use the NEW Qwickly simplified process)
• Instructor Access to Blackboard Course

If you need further assistance, please contact Open SUNY Support or open a ticket on the RITE Self-Service Portal.

Attend a Blackboard Professional Development Workshop  (PDF, 66 KB) or earn a Blackboard Specialization Certificate.  

The Grant Allocation Committee (GAC) requests proposals from individuals, departments, and student clubs and organizations for funding of programs, speakers, and events to take place during the spring 2018 semester. The deadline to submit applications under this funding cycle has been extended to Friday, December 1.

Applications for funding and complete details of requirements may be found on the Student Affairs website. Proposals must be submitted electronically to marzolkl@buffalostate.edu with one hard copy delivered to Cleveland Hall 513.

Questions about the GAC may be addressed to Kathy Marzolf, secretary 2, 878-4704.

As the semester draws to an end, nearly 12,000 rental titles will be returned to the Barnes & Noble at Buffalo State Bookstore. Please let the bookstore know if you will reuse your assigned textbook(s) again next semester so these titles can be kept in store to save our students money on used rentals. Reach out to your bookstore team or visit our Faculty Enlight site to learn more about course material affordability, our rental and price-match programs, and OER options.

The Civic and Community Engagement Office will host a Faculty and Staff Institute on Effective Community Engaged Learning on Wednesday January 24, 2018. Workshop leaders will be Joy Guarino, associate professor of dance and faculty coordinator for service learning, and Laura Hill Rao, director of civic and community engagement.

Choose one, two, or all three sessions. All workshops will be held in Caudell Hall 110.

Introduction to Service Learning for Faculty and Staff
9:00–11:00 a.m.
This interactive session is particularly targeted to faculty and staff new to service-learning pedagogy and the practice of incorporating a community-based project into a course. Topics will include an overview of the theory and practice of service learning and support with converting a course to include a community-based project.

Fostering High-Quality Community-Based Learning Partnerships
12:30–2:30 p.m.
Creating high-quality partnerships that are sustainable and meaningful adds immensely to student learning, creates effective community outcomes, and makes collaboration less challenging for everyone. This discussion will focus on strategies and supports for fostering partnerships for your courses. Participants will hear from faculty members who have been highly successful in building community-based learning partnerships. This session is appropriate for experienced community-engagement faculty and staff members, as well as anyone new to the pedagogy. Either way, this discussion will be beneficial in deepening your service-learning, civic engagement, and other community collaborations.

Connecting the Dots with Reflection: Community-Based Experiences, Civic Engagement, and Academic Learning
3:00–5:00 p.m. 
Helping students to reflect and connect their community-based learning to the academic content of your course is critical to ensuring student learning. This session will provide strategies and activities to assist you in connecting the community experiences with the learning objectives of your course, as well as easily allow students to consider the civic purposes of their community engagement experiences. Experienced faculty members will share examples. Come with questions. This session is appropriate for experienced community-engagement faculty and staff members as well as anyone new to the pedagogy.

Register today. Please e-mail cce@buffalostate.edu or call 878-3919.

From the Dean of the Graduate School
An information and planning meeting to form a Conflict Analysis and Resolution Interdisciplinary Unit will be held today, November 20, at 2:00 p.m. in Butler Library 208.

The purpose of the unit will be to develop curriculum for a master’s degree and certificate in conflict analysis and resolution. A master's degree program in conflict analysis and resolution is not currently offered in Western New York or by any other SUNY campus, and because of its interdisciplinary nature and the wide range of disciplines from which participating faculty will be drawn, it is believed it will best be done through an interdisciplinary unit.

The Western New York Chapter of the American Meteorology Society (AMS) will sponsor the talk “SKYWARN: Spotter Training for Winter Weather,” as part of its fall speaker series, on Tuesday, November 21, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. in Classroom Building A209. The program is new, as this is the first year that SKYWARN focuses on winter weather. The workshop will be presented by a staff member of the National Weather Service (NWS) Buffalo office. SKYWARN is a nationwide program of spotters trained to report  locally severe weather developments to the National Weather Service. Anyone can become a SKYWARN weather spotter for the NWS. You only need to attend a spotter training session.

Attendees who do not have parking permits are asked to park in Lot I-37, where permits will be given out starting at 6:30 p.m. Both the talk and parking are free.

Please join the Biology Department, the Great Lakes Center, and the Great Lakes ecosystem science program today, November 27, for the seminar "Deadly Pile-Ups on Neuronal Highways: Motor-Cargo Complexes and Transport Defects in Neurodegenerative Disease," presented by Shermali Gunawardena, associate professor of biological sciences at the University at Buffalo, from 4:00 to 5:15 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center West. All students, staff, and faculty are welcome.

Abstract
Within a polarized cell, such as a neuron, many different components (proteins, organelles, even RNA) must be transported long distances from places where they are synthesized (cell bodies) to sites where they are utilized (nerve terminals). While proper transport is essential for cell viability, it is clear that a complex network of spatial and temporal regulatory mechanisms must exist to enable controlled delivery of particular cargo to specific sites. In this context, the Gunawardena lab is focused on identifying different motor-cargo complexes and the control mechanisms that exist in vivo. Additionally, investigations are also focused on understanding how defects in transport contributes to degeneration of neurons seen in two neurodegenerative diseases.

Please join the Biology Department, the Great Lakes Center, and the Great Lakes ecosystem science program for the seminar "Deadly Pile-Ups on Neuronal Highways: Motor-Cargo Complexes and Transport Defects in Neurodegenerative Disease," presented by Shermali Gunawardena, associate professor of biological sciences at the University at Buffalo, on Monday, November 27, from 4:00 to 5:15 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center West. All students, staff, and faculty are welcome.

Abstract
Within a polarized cell, such as a neuron, many different components (proteins, organelles, even RNA) must be transported long distances from places where they are synthesized (cell bodies) to sites where they are utilized (nerve terminals). While proper transport is essential for cell viability, it is clear that a complex network of spatial and temporal regulatory mechanisms must exist to enable controlled delivery of particular cargo to specific sites. In this context, the Gunawardena lab is focused on identifying different motor-cargo complexes and the control mechanisms that exist in vivo. Additionally, investigations are also focused on understanding how defects in transport contributes to degeneration of neurons seen in two neurodegenerative diseases.

The Institute for Community Health Promotion Collaborative Research Initiative (ICHP/CRI) is accepting graduate and undergraduate student applications for its Public School Mentoring/Classroom Assistant Program. Applicants must be enrolled full time at Buffalo State College, have excellent written and oral communication skills, and have previous experience tutoring or working with groups of children in an educational setting. Undergraduate students must be at least second-semester sophomores with a minimum GPA of 2.5. All applicants must be available 12 hours per week during public school day hours to be considered for this position. Interested students should forward their current rsum to Gail Daniels, senior manager, ICHP/CRI.

Please join the Biology Department, the Great Lakes Center, and the Great Lakes ecosystem science program today, November 20, for the seminar "Harnessing Yeast Genetics for Understanding G-protein-Coupled Receptor Function and for HIV Vaccine Development," presented by Mark E. Dumont, professor of biochemistry and biophysics at the University of Rochester, from 4:00 to 5:15 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center West. All students, staff, and faculty are welcome.

Abstract
This seminar will focus on two projects that are ongoing in our laboratory:

1.  Mechanisms of Signal Transduction by G-protein-Couple Receptors (GPCRs). The large superfamily of G-protein-couple receptors is responsible for responses to diverse physical and chemical stimuli, including sensory stimuli, hormones, and neurotransmitters. These receptors also are targets of a large fraction of all clinically useful drugs; however, many aspects of GPCR signaling remain poorly understood. Our laboratory is investigating signaling by the GPCRs mediating responses to mating pheromone by baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a model system for understanding GPCR signaling. Since GPCRs generally exist as oligomers, we combine fluorescence-based approaches for detecting receptor-receptor interactions with quantitative measurements of signaling responses by normal and mutant receptors to understand the roles of receptor-receptor interactions in regulation of responses to pheromone binding.
2. Isolation of Variant Forms of HIV Envelope Protein for Use in HIV Vaccine Development. Approximately 20 percent of HIV-infected individuals slowly develop neutralizing antibody responses that are capable of protecting against HIV infection; however, to date, only modest success has been achieved in developing a vaccine capable of eliciting a useful neutralizing antibody response. Part of the reason for this appears to be poor binding of HIV envelope protein to the antibody precursors that is necessary to trigger development of an immune response. To overcome this problem, we have conducted large-scale random mutagenesis of the envelope protein displayed on the surface of yeast cells and isolated variant forms of the envelope protein with enhanced affinity for relevant antibody precursors.