From the Chair of the College Senate
The next College Senate meeting will be held Friday, February 12, at 3:00 p.m. in Butler Library 210.

As of Thursday, January 7, cardholders and administrators (department managers, program administrators, and A/P certifiers) have been able to see the web Procurement Card (P-Card) options available in the Financial and Management System dropdown production environment. Cardholders may enter the module from the FMS dropdown and then use the "Your Settings" link to modify user preferences, such as notification settings, default SUNY account, and default user home page.

Note: Transactions that posted to Citibank on January 7, 2016 (the first day of the January billing cycle), were received by SUNY on January 11 and should be available in the web P-Card module by January 12.

The December 7, 2015–January 6, 2016, statement and all previous billing statements must be reconciled and certified in AEPC as soon as possible.

The Buffalo State campus community will use the new SUNY P-Card web application system beginning February 7, 2016. This system is mandatory for all cardholders, as our current legacy system of certification will be phased out. All cardholders must be up to date on all past certifications in the legacy system no later than Friday, January 22. We must transition to the new system as a campus, not one cardholder at a time.

The new SUNY Financials P-Card web application is used to manage the regular operations of SUNY’s Procurement Card program. The online system allows cardholders to view their statements, reconcile and certify their monthly transactions, and change their own transaction and default accounts based on their individual accounting securities. This new web-based application will be much more user friendly and will greatly benefit our campus cardholders.

All cardholders should become familiar with the new P-Card web application before February 7. Cardholders are able to access the P-Card web application from http://suny.edu.

Training on the new system is not mandatory; however, we will offer training sessions during Bengal Pause (12:30–1:30 p.m.) on the following dates:

• Tuesday, February 16
• Thursday, February 18
• Thursday, February 25

RSVP to Bonnie McKay, procurement and travel card administrator, 878-4117.

Stay up to date with current news on the Account Payable website.

The NYS Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) periodically releases ethics reminders to assist state employees in understanding the laws and rules under their jurisdiction. We have received a JCOPE reminder that pertains to the use of official college letterhead.

The Public Officers Law prohibits state employees from using state resources, including official letterhead, to personally benefit themselves or others, or for private business or other non-governmental purposes.

A state employee may be fined up to $10,000 for violating these prohibitions.

Please see the ethics reminder in its entirety on the Human Resource Management website. Future reminders received from JCOPE will also be posted on this website.

Please contact Susan Earshen, associate vice president for human resource management, 878-3042, with questions regarding the Public Officers Law or JCOPE.

From the Chair of the College Senate
The next College Senate meeting will be held Friday, February 12, at 3:00 p.m. in Butler Library 210. The College Senate wishes everyone a happy, healthy, and safe new year in 2016.

A new version of the Current Employee Change Form (CECF) is now available on the Human Resource Management website. Please use this version for future transactions and discard all earlier versions of the form.

The form has been updated to include a field for information about the source of support for any recommended salary increase. Such support may be identified from one or more sources, and the new field will allow that information to be specified at the time of the recommendation. Please contact the Budget Office, 878-4312, if you have questions about identifying sources of support for salary increases. Other questions regarding the CECF should continue to be directed to Lydia Kawaler, manager of personnel operations in Human Resource Management, 878-4822.

The next Winter Farmers Market at Buffalo State is Saturday, December 17. With more than 15 local vendors and live music, this weekly community event has become a highlight of our winter weekends. The Winter Market is open to the public each Saturday through mid-April from 9:00 a.m. to noon in Buckham Hall A Wing. The market will be closed for the holidays on December 24 and 31. Help support our local growers and food producers and have fun at the same time. This collaborative project is brought to you by the Small Business Development Center, the Research and Economic Development Office, and the Elmwood Village Association. Don't miss it!

The dietitian education program Class of 2018 would like to thank the campus community for its support of the chili sale on October 25 and the health fair on November 15. With Buffalo State's support, we were able to make a donation of $925.26 to the Food Bank of Western New York. Thank you for your impact on our program and also on the Western New York community.

This fall, we kicked off a walking and fitness program on campus, and we want to thank all the students, faculty, and staff who made our campaign a success. It was great fun to explore our beautiful campus and see the lovely autumn foliage in Delaware Park while getting some exercise, too. Thank you to the staff of Weigel Health Center and the Health Promotions Office for their continued support.

Today, December 12, is the last walk of the season. We will meet at the entrance to the Sports Arena next to Buckham Hall at 11:00 a.m. Let the walking program help you recharge—come walk with us!

The program will pick up again next semester, beginning Monday, January 23. Walk times will change due to popular demand: we will meet at noon on Mondays and Fridays from January on. We’re busy planning some great events to accompany our walks, so look for more details in mid-January.

Check us out on Facebook for updates. Please contact Sarah Martin, walking program coordinator, with questions. Best wishes for happy and healthy holidays to all!

Winterim 2017, January 9–13, is a great opportunity to connect with colleagues and learn from one another. We have amazing sessions this year that focus on health, safety, creativity, organization, productivity, and much more. Check out the Winterim website for this year's sessions and register on the Workshop Registration page.

Please join the School of Natural and Social Sciences for a cookie-tasting reception in honor of Steve Schwartz's 43 years of service to Buffalo State College on Friday, December 16, from 1:30 to 3:00 p.m. in the Classroom Building's fourth-floor conference room. Come and wish him well.