The Registrar's Office has posted a Faculty and Staff Quick Reference Guide for Fall 2015 (PDF) on its Courses web page. Please be sure to print and review the guide before the start of registration. Registration for summer and fall 2015 begins Wednesday, April 8.

Want to run in the 2015 Buffalo State student elections? Visit the United Students Government website to fill out an application. Today is the last day to submit applications.

The following positions are available:
USG President (one position, one-year term)
USG Executive Vice President (one position, one-year term)
USG Treasurer (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Academic Affairs (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Campus Affairs and Government Relations (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Public Relations (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Student Life (one position, one-year term)
USG Senator (40 positions, one-year term)
Faculty Student Association Board Member (two positions, two-year term)
College Senator (10 positions, one-year term)
College Council (one position, one-year term)
Student Assembly Delegate (two positions, one-year term)
Intercollegiate Athletics Board (non-competitor and at-large position available, one-year term)
Auxiliary Services Advisory Committee (one position, one-year term)
Grant Allocation Committee (three undergraduate positions, two-year term)

Descriptions and requirements of the positions are available online. Students will vote in the student elections between Monday, March 30, and Thursday, April 2, in the Campbell Student Union lobby.

Join this interactive presentation to learn more about the Community of Inquiry model for online education on Thursday, February 26, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in the Professional Development Center, Butler Library 181B. The COI framework for online teaching offers faculty the opportunity to create online education courses that are built on a balanced approach to content, online pedagogy, and social parameters. Refreshments will be provided.

Please register online via the CyberQuad Workshop Registration System. Contact Lauren Turner, professional development assistant, with questions.

Want to run in the 2015 Buffalo State student elections? Visit the United Students Government website to fill out an application. The deadline to submit applications is Monday, February 23.

The following positions are available:
USG President (one position, one-year term)
USG Executive Vice President (one position, one-year term)
USG Treasurer (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Academic Affairs (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Campus Affairs and Government Relations (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Public Relations (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Student Life (one position, one-year term)
USG Senator (40 positions, one-year term)
Faculty Student Association Board Member (two positions, two-year term)
College Senator (10 positions, one-year term)
College Council (one position, one-year term)
Student Assembly Delegate (two positions, one-year term)
Intercollegiate Athletics Board (non-competitor and at-large position available, one-year term)
Auxiliary Services Advisory Committee (one position, one-year term)
Grant Allocation Committee (three undergraduate positions, two-year term)

Descriptions and requirements of the positions are available online. Students will vote in the student elections between Monday, March 30, and Thursday, April 2, in the Campbell Student Union lobby.

Want to run in the 2015 Buffalo State student elections? Go to the United Students Government website to fill out an application. The deadline to submit applications is Monday, February 23.

The following positions are available:

USG President (one position, one-year term)
USG Executive Vice President (one position, one-year term)
USG Treasurer (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Academic Affairs (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Campus Affairs and Government Relations (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Public Relations (one position, one-year term)
USG Vice President for Student Life (one position, one-year term)
USG Senator (40 positions, one-year term)
Faculty Student Association Board Member (two positions, two-year term)
College Senator (10 positions, one-year term)
College Council (one position, one-year term)
Student Assembly Delegate (two positions, one-year term)
Intercollegiate Athletics Board (non-competitor and at-large position, one-year term)
Auxiliary Services Advisory Committee (one position, one-year term)
Grant Allocation Committee (three undergraduate positions, two-year term)

Descriptions and requirements of the positions are available online. Students will vote in the student elections between Monday, March 30, and Thursday, April 2, in the Campbell Student Union lobby.

Please join the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center (VSLC) February 9–13 as Buffalo State celebrates Random Acts of Kindness Week, a week to spread kindness, love, and compassion on campus and in the community. 

Simple ways to spread kindness:

• Leave positive notes in unexpected places (car, desk, purse, backpack, library).
• Thank your professors and the campus staff for all their hard work.
• Help someone shovel.
• Buy a hot beverage for someone working outside.

For more ideas, visit the VSLC website.

Take a picture of yourself committing a random act of kindness or describe the action on social media sites with the hashtag #RAKBUFFALOSTATE to show your support and participation in Random Acts of Kindness Week.

“Unexpected kindness is the most powerful, least costly, and most underrated agent of human change.” — Bob Kerrey, former U.S. Senator

The spring 2015 "Conversations in and out of the Disciplines" series begins Friday, February 6, as Amy McMillan, associate professor of biology, presents “The Creature from the River Styx: The Life Story of the Hellbender Salamander in New York”  at 3:00 p.m. in Ketchum Hall 320.

A short, informal wine-and-cheese reception will be held after the talk. Everyone is welcome.

Open educational resources (OER) are part of a growing trend in education. Benefits include cost savings for students and flexibility for instructors; however, locating and evaluating suitable OER for your courses can be a challenge. To support faculty members as they develop a better understanding of OER, Instructional Resources and Butler Library will host  a series of OER workshops for faculty members who are interested in learning about the possibilities of OER.

The next workshop, Locating and Using OER (General Education, Social Sciences, Computer Sciences, Arts and Humanities)," will be held on Tuesday, March 3, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 314.

The series will address questions such as

• Where can I find high-quality subject-specific OER to use in my courses?
• Can OER help improve my teaching and my students’ learning?

Please register online via the CyberQuad Workshop Registration System.

Open educational resources (OER) are part of a growing trend in education. Benefits include cost savings for students and flexibility for instructors; however, locating and evaluating suitable OER for your courses can be a challenge. To support faculty members as they develop a better understanding of OER, Instructional Resources and Butler Library will host OER workshops for faculty members who are interested in learning about the possibilities of OER.

The first workshop, Introduction to OER and Creative Commons: An Overview, will be held on Thursday, February 19, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 314.

This workshop is part of a series and will address these and other questions:

• What are open educational resources (OERs) and how are they used in a classroom?
• Can these tools help improve my teaching and my students’ learning?
• What are the different types of Creative Commons licenses and how do they promote the sharing of educational resources?

Upcoming workshops will discuss locating subject-specific resources in more detail.

Please register online via the CyberQuad Workshop Registration System.

A faculty development workshop, Coverage vs. Exploratory Models of Pedagogy, will be held Thursday, February 12, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 181B. Join this interactive presentation to learn about the differences between coverage and exploratory models of teaching. Participants will engage in dialog about pedagogical practices that lead to increased levels of student engagement and ultimate success. Refreshments will be provided.

Please register through the CyberQuad Workshop Registration System. Contact Lauren Turner, professional development assistant, with questions.