We have assigned all 600 SANS Information Security Awareness Training licenses to Buffalo State staff, Dean's offices, and department secretaries. It is impressive that 443 of those individuals have completed the training. Many of you have provided useful and extremely positive feedback about the training, and this is very much appreciated in RITE. If you are one of the 20 people who have started but have not completed training, please complete the training as soon as possible. If you are one of the 137 people who has not started training, please do so this week. Completion reports will be sent to vice presidents on June 30.

We have assigned all 600 SANS Information Security Awareness Training licenses to Buffalo State staff, deans' offices, and department secretaries. It is impressive that 443 of those individuals have completed the training. Many of you have provided useful and extremely positive feedback about the training, and this is very much appreciated in RITE. If you are one of the 20 people who have started but have not completed training, please complete the training as soon as possible. If you are one of the 137 people who has not started training, please do so this week. Completion reports will be sent to vice presidents on June 30.

Buffalo State will host the seventh annual Challenge Awards Luncheon today, June 26, at noon in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. Upwards of 200 students and guests are expected for this awards program, which celebrates the academic achievements of students at McKinley High School and Middle Early College High School. The Challenge Program is an early outreach initiative, designed to promote a college-going culture among participating students of the Buffalo Public Schools, beginning in their freshman year. Students who meet the “challenge” of graduating with an 85 or higher average, coupled with minimum SAT scores of 1080 or ACT Composite scores of 19, are admitted to Buffalo State College with a $1,500 scholarship award, renewable for up to four consecutive years of enrollment. To date, four graduating cohorts and over 300 high school students have been served.

Special awards will be presented to Aurora Schunk, assistant director of the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center; Sarbani Banerjee, professor of computer information systems; and Hal Payne, special assistant to the president for community development. Buffalo State alumna Marsha Jackson, ’85, will serve as the luncheon’s keynote speaker.

This event is supported by the Admissions, Enrollment Management, RITE, CEURE, Alumni Affairs, and Dean of Students offices. For more information, please call 878-5024.

Photo gallery of the 2016 Challenge Awards Luncheon.

Buffalo State will host the seventh annual Challenge Awards Luncheon on Monday, June 26, at noon in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. Upwards of 200 students and guests are expected for this awards program, which celebrates the academic achievements of students at McKinley High School and Middle Early College High School. The Challenge Program is an early outreach initiative, designed to promote a college-going culture among participating students of the Buffalo Public Schools, beginning in their freshman year. Students who meet the “challenge” of graduating with an 85 or higher average, coupled with minimum SAT scores of 1080 or ACT Composite scores of 19, are admitted to Buffalo State College with a $1,500 scholarship award, renewable for up to four consecutive years of enrollment. To date, four graduating cohorts and over 300 high school students have been served.

Special awards will be presented to Aurora Schunk, assistant director of the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center; Sarbani Banerjee, professor of computer information systems; and Hal Payne, special assistant to the president for community development. Buffalo State alumna Marsha Jackson, ’85, will serve as the luncheon’s keynote speaker.

This event is supported by the Admissions, Enrollment Management, RITE, CEURE, Alumni Affairs, and Dean of Students offices. For more information, please call 878-5024.

Photo gallery of the 2016 Challenge Awards Luncheon.

The Anne Frank Project invites members of the campus community to submit proposals for AFP 2017: Sharing Stories/Connecting Communities, the ninth annual social justice festival, which will be held October 3 and 4. AFP’s annual festival is an experiential exchange of ideas with a focus on processing theory into practice. We seek performances, workshops, and exhibits that actively engage participants in kinesthetic learning opportunities that

• explore the AFP 2017 theme; 
• teach tools and vocabulary for community building, conflict resolution, and identity exploration;
• embrace the life and writing of Anne Frank; 
• explore a diverse array of disciplines, cultures, and viewpoints. 

Proposals are due July 1. All applicants will be contacted by mid-July. Please submit proposals using the AFP 2017 proposal form.

About Our Theme
Our increasingly divisive world is actually the product of a small number of powerful communities rather than the multiple diverse groups of people whose stories are often silenced by oppression, or simply unknown. AFP 2017 encourages presenters and participants to surface these marginalized communities, navigate their difficulties, address conflicts, disassemble assumptions, and practice sharing stories to connect communities and improve the world.

For more information about the proposal process and the Anne Frank Project, please visit the AFP Social Justice Festival website.

Questions? Ideas? Please contact Eve Everette, assistant director of AFP.

Faculty and staff parking permit stickers for the 2017–2018 academic year are now available to purchase online. Employees may log on to the system with their campus usernames and passwords. Permits can be sent via U.S. mail to the employee’s address of record or picked up in the Parking Services Office, Chase Hall 126. A valid photo ID must be shown when picking up a parking permit.

Staff members who do not have a campus username and password may apply in person for their parking permit in the Parking Services Office. Permits are not available at Student Accounts.

University Police will begin ticketing for No Permit violations beginning Tuesday, September 5. If you have elected to have your permit mailed to you and have not received it by this date, please stop at University Police or Parking Services to obtain a temporary permit for the day.

We look forward to providing this opportunity to go green and help create a smooth transition for the upcoming semester.

If you are interested in serving on one or more of the eight College Senate standing committees for 2017–2018, please complete and submit the Committee Interest Form to the College Senate Office, Cleveland Hall 211. The form will be posted on the College Senate website by July 1. The deadline for submissions is Friday, August 18.

The College Senate Office will forward all information to the committee chairs for review and consideration. Committee memberships are determined solely at the discretion of committee chairs. Not all committees may need members. Please contact Vincent Masci, assistant to the College Senate, 878-5139, with general questions.

Academic Plan Committee
Chair: Kimberly Kline, Chair and Professor, Higher Education Administration

Budget and Staff Allocations Committee
Chair: Frederick Floss, Chair and Professor, Economics and Finance

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

Curriculum Committee
Chair: Ann Emo, Chair and Associate Professor, Theater

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

As you’ve heard, one of the biggest reasons WannaCry ransomware was so successful is that many people do not patch their devices. What is a patch? A patch is a piece of software designed to update a computer against known bugs or vulnerabilities. Patches apply not only to computers but also to phones, DVRs, or anything that requires software and electricity to run. If you’re prompted to update software, please do it right away. While you’re waiting for your PC to go through upgrades, don’t be perturbed; be happy. Someone in RITE cares about you.

The School of Education’s IPDS Germany program travel is in progress. After spending a weekend in Berlin, the group of eight teacher education students will now begin working with teachers in the Stuttgart area. The participants will live with host teachers, conduct educational research, participate in field experiences in German schools, and engage in a wide variety of cultural and historical activities.

The group will travel abroad until July 2. Please follow the travel blogs of this year’s IPDS Germany travelers—and leave a comment to show your support.

The IPDS Germany program is in its third year of travel to Germany. The program is founded on a strong relationship and exchange between Buffalo State and the Staatliches Seminar für Didaktik und Lehrerbildung (State Institute for Initial Teacher Training) in Nürtingen.

New Student and Family Programs is looking for volunteers to assist at various points throughout our First-Year and Transfer Orientations. We look forward to your help in transitioning our new Bengals to Buffalo State!

Please fill out the Orientation Volunteer Form to let us know your availability.