AFP 2016: Engage. Lead. Improve the World is the Anne Frank Project's eighth annual social justice festival, held this year on September 28 and 29 in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall and Upton Hall galleries. AFP 2016 is free and open to students, faculty, staff, and the community.

Highlights:

• Exhibits and workshops by Buffalo State professors and staff
• Performances and discussions from local, national, and international guests
• Stories told by three survivors from separate conflicts
• Collaborations between campus offices and community organizations

Check out the schedule for this year's event, register as an individual or a class, and sign up to volunteer on the AFP 2016 website.

If you have questions, please call 878-5559 or contact Eve Everette, festival curator and assistant director.

Follow AFP: @annefrankprjct - Twitter | annefrankproject - Instagram | AFP on Facebook

Buffalo State alumnus David Dror, '66, will present "From Buffalo to Bihar, India: How Education in the Richest Country Has Prepared Me to Work in One of the Poorest" on Thursday, September 22, at 6:00 p.m. in the Louis P. Ciminelli Recital Hall in Rockwell Hall. Dr. Dror will also receive the Buffalo State Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumnus Award. A reception will follow the lecture.

Dr. Dror has been at the forefront of improving the lives of those living in impoverished countries for more than 30 years. He is an acclaimed international expert in microinsurance, widely recognized for his research on ways to make health insurance suit the needs of the poor. As the founder and managing director of the Micro Insurance Academy (MIA) in New Delhi, India, he has helped provide affordable health insurance to more than 300,000 people in countries in Africa and Asia. MIA serves communities living below the poverty line, tribal groups, and migrant populations in India, Nepal, Asia, and Africa.

He has published several books and more than 60 articles in refereed journals, is a frequent speaker at international conferences, and has received many honors and awards.

Learn more on the Alumni Association website. This event is free and open to the Buffalo State community. RSVP now.

Please join us for the faculty development workshop "Teaching Students How to Read for Understanding," facilitated by Sue McMillen, professor of mathematics, on Thursday, September 8, during Bengal Pause (12:15–1:30 p.m.) in the Professional Development Center, Butler Library 181B.

Participate in strategies designed to help your students reflect on and comprehend what they read. Discuss and reflect on approaches to encourage students to complete readings before coming to class. Bring your suggestions and questions to share with your colleagues. Note: This workshop will not address helping students with the mechanics of reading, but rather will focus on comprehension.

Please register through the online Workshop Registration System.

All students are invited to the Moot Court Information Session on Tuesday, September 13, at 12:15 p.m. in Classroom Building B228. Moot Court simulates appellate argument before the U.S. Supreme Court. Moot Court is thus different from mock trial in that students argue constitutional and statutory questions that are stated in a hypothetical Supreme Court case formulated by the American Collegiate Moot Court Association (ACMA). The team will compete in the American Moot Court Association's official Midwest Regional Tournament at the the College of Wooster in Ohio. This year's tournament will be held November 18 and 19. This regional tournament acts as the qualifying tournament for teams wishing to compete at the ACMA National Tournament in January 2017. The top 20 percent of teams competing at each regional tournament will receive an automatic invitation to the national tournament. To compete in the national tournament, teams must first compete in an AMCA-sanctioned regional tournament. This year's case involves issues around First Amendment political speech and gender discrimination as outlined by the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Co-coaches Peter Yacobucci, associate professor of political science, and William Altreuter, local attorney and partner at Altreuter Berlin, will be present to answer questions and outline what it takes to be a successful team. Participation in Moot Court competitions is a wonderful introduction to legal thinking and a legal career. If you have an interest in the law, please stop by!

For more information, please contact Dr. Yacobucci, campus coordinator of the American Democracy Project, 878-6116.

Please join us for the first Religious Studies Panel of fall 2016, "Religion, Politics, Violence, and Society," on Tuesday, September 6, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 208. In our complex society, politics and religion are often scapegoats for violence and immoral behavior. This discussion panel will engage students, faculty, and experts in a structured discussion of these issues. Panelists will be Michael J. Flaherty, Erie County acting district attorney; Kaitlin Scirri, religious studies minor; and Jordan Weaver, religious studies minor.

Come and visit the Educational Commons Curlab area on the second floor of Butler Library. Library staff members have created a charming area focusing on children’s reading materials, highlighting award-winning books.

Please join the Biology Department for the seminar "Toxicology through the Lens of Ecology and Evolution: Insights from Aquatic Ecosystems," presented by Rick Relyea, professor of biological sciences at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, on Monday, September 12, at 4:30 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center West 2.

All faculty, staff, and students are welcome.

All members of the campus community are invited to participate in a planning and discussion meeting on the revitalization of Buffalo State's Maud Gordon Holmes Arboretum on Wednesday, September 14, at 3:00 p.m. in the Carmine Grande Conference Room, Cleveland Hall 418. Please join us in this important initiative that affects our students, faculty, staff, and visitors to campus. For further information, please contact Susan McCartney, director of the Small Business Development Center, 878-4030.

Butler Library is a valuable resource for faculty, but many faculty members are unaware of the many services and resources available to them. By attending a Library Engagement Workshop, faculty members will learn how they can make a purchase request through the library, what a librarian can offer their students in a library instruction session, tips and tricks for finding library materials, and more. Each session will be taught by a faculty member in Butler Library.

To register or to see the full list of faculty workshops available from Butler Library, see the library's listings in the Workshop Registration System.

Workshops will be held on the following dates and times. All workshops will be held in the Professional Development Center, Butler Library 181B.

• Tuesday, September 6, 2:00 p.m.
• Thursday, September 8, 12:30 p.m.
• Thursday, September 15, 5:00 p.m.
• Monday, September 19, 10:00 a.m.
• Tuesday, October 4, 10:00 a.m.

Butler Library is giving drop-in library tours to introduce Buffalo State students to the services and resources available to them. The tours will cover a range of services, including navigating the library's website, finding books, and using the Writing Center. Students are encouraged to get a jump start on the semester by familiarizing themselves with everything Butler Library has to offer.

The final tours will be held today, Wednesday, September 7, at 3:00 and 3:30 p.m.

To attend, simply show up in the library’s main lobby and look for the sign. Tours are open to all students and are especially recommended for incoming freshmen, transfer students, and graduate students.