Are you interested in teaching online? Perhaps you’re already teaching online but are interested in developing new strategies to help your students succeed. Maybe you would like to incorporate online activities into your face-to-face course. Please join us in January for the Online Course Development Specialization Webinar Series. Attend all six one-hour webinars in the series and earn an Online Course Development Specialization Certificate, or attend only the webinars that interest you. All webinars begin at 2:00 p.m.

1. Introduction to Online Teaching and Learning: Wednesday, January 4
2. Backward Design Step 1: Developing Course Objectives and Priorities: Friday, January 6
3. Backward Design Step 2: Developing Course Assessments: Wednesday, January 11
4. Backward Design Step 3: Developing the Learning Plan: Friday, January 13
5. Designing and Organizing your Course in Blackboard: Wednesday, January 18
6. Interaction: Communication and Collaboration: Friday, January 20

For more information about the Online Course Development Specialization Certificate, please visit the Instructional Design and Training website. Visit the Workshop Registration site for course details and to register.

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 2016–2017 academic year.

The deadline for submitting applications under this funding cycle is extended to Wednesday, November 30, 2016, for spring 2017 program proposals. Applications for funding and complete details of requirements may be found on the Student Affairs website. In an effort to cut costs, and in keeping with our efforts to go green, all proposals must be submitted electronically to marzolkl@buffalostate.edu with one hard copy delivered to Cleveland Hall 519.

Questions about the GAC may be addressed to Daniel Vélez, associate vice president for student success, ext. 3506; or Kathy Marzolf, secretary 2, ext. 4704.

Ken Woods, Fidelity director and retirement planner, will on campus to meet with Buffalo State faculty and staff members on Tuesday, December 6, between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. in Cleveland Hall 416. 

Fidelity Investments understands that you are busy managing multiple financial priorities that can make planning for retirement a challenge. Take advantage of this opportunity to review your retirement portfolio and get the answers to all your pre-retirement questions to ensure that you are saving enough for retirement. Fidelity can help make your plans possible.

Don’t delay; schedule your free one-on-one appointment today. Call (844) FOR-SUNY or register online.

Do you trust the cloud? Do you use Dropbox, Google Drive, Evernote, or other cloud-based software?

RITE Services reminds you that cloud software can be a wonderful tool as long as you, the user, are aware of security limitations.

See the November 2016 OUCH! newsletter for some tips on how to securely use the cloud.

Representatives from the Empire Plan, BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York, and Independent Health will be on campus to answer questions about current health insurance plans and anticipated changes in coverage for 2017 on Thursday, December 8, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 210.

Staff members from the Employee Benefits Office will also be present to assist employees in making changes to health insurance coverage.

Attendees may also obtain dental and vision benefit information, have their blood pressure and cholesterol checked, find out their body mass and pulse indexes, learn the benefits of and sample massage therapy, and consult with specialists on smoking cessation and weight loss—all free of charge. Obtain helpful information regarding the Buffalo State Employee Assistance Program and meet EAP coordinators.

Please call Human Resource Management at 878-2421 with questions.

Do you want to get base funding for your research project? Do you want to launch your creative ideas that lead into bigger projects? Buffalo State’s Research and Creativity Council (RCC) will conduct the workshop "Preparing an Incentive Grant Proposal" on Thursday, November 17, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 208. Feel free to bring a brown-bag lunch.

The Research Incentive Awards Program, sponsored by the RCC, funds a variety of research projects with the intention of enhancing future proposal submissions to outside agencies. Carol Darstein, director of Pre-Award and Contract Services, will provide an overview of the program, share examples of successful proposals, and offer tips for proposal preparation. Carol DeNysschen, Research and Creativity Council chair and a past recipient of the program, will be on hand to share her know-how in preparing a competitive application.

A successful research incentive proposal is one that is well-prepared, thoughtfully planned, and concisely packaged. The RCC wants to help make your research incentive proposal a success. This program will provide up to one-tenth of the funds (maximum request $7,000) that would be requested from an external sponsor. The funds should be used in a manner that will result in a higher quality submission, for example, preliminary survey research, graduate assistance on literature reviews, or travel expenses to meet with experts in the field. Salary for the faculty or staff member developing the grant is not supported by this incentive. The next competition is anticipated for January 2017.

RSVP to Gina Game, Research and Creativity Council administrator, by Monday, November 14.

Are you advising a student group on campus? Has the group registered in Bengal Connect? Is all the information current? Every student organization at Buffalo State, whether USG, a fraternity or sorority, or just an independent club, is required to register with Bengal Connect every year. The registration includes names and contact information on current officers, members, and advisers. The registration should be kept up-to-date. If officers should change during the school year, the club must reregister with the new officers' information.

Once an organization's registration is approved, it puts the club on file with the following campus offices:

• Student Life Office
• Events Management Office
• USG and the USG Business Office

Without this form on file, your group could be denied use of space on campus, use of your budget, or other campus privileges.

Search your group on Bengal Connect. Can’t find it? Contact the Student Life Office or drop by Campbell Student Union 400.

Please join us for Story Night, a new collaboration between the Anne Frank Project, the Counseling Center, and the Equity and Campus Diversity Office, on Tuesday, November 15, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. in the Savage Building's Flexible Theatre. Story Night invites students to explore current events through story-building. For more information and registration, please visit our website.

Reddy bikeshare would like to thank Buffalo State and all campus members for a great first season operating in Buffalo. The bikes have been removed from the Buffalo State hub south of Rockwell Hall, but they will be back as soon as weather permits—in March or April 2017. A survey to gain feedback on how Reddy bikes operated this season will be released on reddybikeshare.com later this year. Feel free to contact Reddy bikeshare at (716) 407-7474 or info@reddybikeshare.com with any questions or comments. Thank you and have a great winter. We'll be Reddy for you in the spring!

Charley Bowman, co-chair of the Western New York Peace Center's Environmental Justice Task Force, and Stephen Vermette, associate professor of geography and planning at Buffalo State, will present "The Risks Imposed by Bomb Trains on Humans and Their Environment" on Tuesday, November 15, at 7:00 p.m. in Classroom Building A209.

Large volumes of Bakken crude oil—a more flammable crude, and therefore more dangerous to ship by rail—are transported from North Dakota to U.S. coastal regions by rail tanker cars every day, and these trains are derailing at an alarming rate. In July 2013, one Bakken crude oil train derailed and exploded in Lac-Mégantic, Quebec, killing 47 people. The rail industry has called these rail tankers "bomb trains."

Bomb trains travel daily through Buffalo, New York, eastward to the Port of Albany and south along the Hudson River to refineries in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. This talk will demonstrate the air dispersion of toxic chemicals from a simulated derailment and fire in Buffalo.

This presentation is part of the Western New York Chapter of the American Meteorological Society’s fall 2016 seminar series, hosted by the Buffalo State Geography and Planning Department's meteorology and climatology program. Parking permits and directions for off-campus guests will be available in Lot I-37.