From the Associate Vice President for Human Resource Management
The Fourth of July falls on a Saturday this year. New York State time and attendance rules provide that state employees for whom Saturday is a regularly scheduled day off receive a compensatory day to be used before July 4, 2016.   

We anticipate that many professional and classified employees will request a day off on Friday, July 3. If all employees in an office or department make such a request, department heads may, with the permission of the provost, vice president, or CIO, elect to close the office on July 3.

Any office or department that obtains permission and plans to close on Friday, July 3, should post notices in advance and change voicemail recordings so that students and other employees are aware that the department will be closed. 

Please note that any employee who elects to take the day off on Friday, July 3, must charge vacation accruals or personal leave. Although employees will receive a compensatory day for the Independence Day holiday, that compensatory day cannot be used until after it is earned on July 4. In addition, no employee who wants to work can be required to take the day off on July 3.

Every effort should be made to ensure the safety of employees who wish to work and will be alone in the department or area. If it appears that an employee you supervise will be working alone in an isolated location, please contact Susan Earshen, associate vice president for human resource management, at 878-3042 to discuss appropriate arrangements.

With the closing of the 2014–2015 fiscal year, please keep all accounts up to date. All 2014–2015 Procurement Card cycles up to and including the June billing cycle, 0615, must be fully reconciled and certified by July 24, 2015.

All purchases must have a transaction date of June 30, 2015, or earlier as it appears on the cardholder statement in order to be charged against the current 2014–2015 fiscal year. If the transaction date is July 1, 2015, or later, the transaction will automatically be charged to the new 2015–2016 fiscal year. You may continue to use your P-Card throughout this transition period with no interruptions.

Please contact Bonnie McKay, procurement and travel card administrator, 878-4117, with questions.

The north-south walkway between Chase Hall and the Campbell Student Union will close Monday, June 15, and remain inaccessible for about three weeks. This sidewalk closure will accommodate ongoing steam tunnel maintenance work.

Pedestrians seeking to enter or exit Perry Quad from the south are asked to walk around Chase Hall to the west or around the Campbell Student Union to the east during this undertaking. Your patience and understanding are appreciated. Questions about this project can be e-mailed to vpfm@buffalostate.edu. Please refer to the Facilities Planning website for the latest information about current or upcoming construction.

From the Chair of the Music Department
The Music Department enthusiastically announces the appointment of Joseph Peters as the second music director of the Buffalo State Philharmonia orchestra. Peters replaces Paul Ferington, founding director, who led the orchestra for the past six years.

An oboist and conductor, Peters was recently named principal oboe of the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra following a season as acting principal. Originally from Minnesota, he was an oboe fellow with the New World Symphony for three years, during which time he performed extensively in Miami Beach, Florida, and conducted multiple performances at the New World Symphony.

The Philharmonia orchestra is composed of Buffalo State music majors, non-music majors, faculty members, professional area musicians, local music educators, and community enthusiasts who are committed to performing the symphonic repertoire at a high level. All members of the campus community are welcome to audition.

Beginning fiscal year 2015–2016 (statement ending August 6, 2015), original Procurement Card documentation will be returned to cardholders after a confirming internal audit is completed by the procurement card administrator. Cardholders must retain all original documentation and statements for a minimum period of six years plus the current year.

It is important to note that SUNY, or the Office of the State Comptroller, may elect to audit Procurement Card accounts at any time. Scheduling of these audits does not require advance notice; therefore, it is extremely important that all cardholders and departments retain documentation of all transactions made using their assigned Procurement Cards. The Accounts Payable and Travel Services Office will also conduct periodic documentation checks with cardholders.

This process will eliminate the need for duplication in the retention of records in multiple locations. If you have any questions or need assistance pertaining to the future retention of records, please contact Bonnie McKay, procurement and travel card administrator, 878-4117.

The New York State Department of Transportation is undertaking a project to replace the bridge on Elmwood Avenue over NY Route 198 and Scajaquada Creek. Starting June 1, lane closures will be in place on the Elmwood Avenue bridge over Route 198. The two westernmost lanes will be closed for construction through winter. One lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction on the eastern side of the bridge.

In addition, the off-ramp from Route 198 onto Elmwood Avenue heading northbound will be closed during both summers and possibly over the winter. Heading south on Elmwood, drivers will find the on-ramp heading east on the 198 will also be closed during both summers and possibly over the winter. Detours will be posted. This project is scheduled to be completed in fall 2016. Traffic will be heavy in this area during peak times, so please consider these upcoming impacts when planning your commute.

For more information, please visit the NYSDOT website.

The SUNY Secure Login now serves as a single sign-on for SUNY-supported applications that use our campus network username and password. Applications currently included in this group are the SUNY Employee Portal (including Business Intelligence, Time and Attendance, View Paycheck, and HR Self-Service), SUNY Confluence, Blackboard Learn, and Degree Works.

What this means for you:

• When you log in to one of these applications, you are automatically logged into all of them.
• You must close your web browser completely (all tabs) to ensure that you have completely logged out of these applications.
• You will not need to reenter your username or password when switching between these applications in a browser session—until you close your browser.

Please contact the Computing Help Desk or 878-4357 (878-HELP) with questions.

From the Chair of the College Senate Bylaws and Elections Committee
The results of the College Senate Caucus runoff elections for the new College Senate chair and the Bylaws and Elections Committee chair are as follows:

College Senate Chair
Amy McMillan

Bylaws and Elections Committee Chair
Kevin Williams

Committee chairs elected at the caucus are as follows:

College Senate Vice Chair
Howard Reid

Academic Plan Committee Chair
Jason Grinnell

Budget and Staff Allocations Committee Chair
Frederick Floss

Curriculum Committee Chair
Marc Bayer

Faculty and Staff Welfare Committee Chair
Amitra Wall

Instruction and Research Committee Chair
Scott Goodman

Standards for Students Committee Chair
Heather Maldonado

Student Welfare Committee Co-Chair
Amy Rosen-Brand

The New York State Department of Transportation is undertaking a project to replace the bridge on Elmwood Avenue over NY Route 198 and Scajaquada Creek. Starting June 1, lane closures will be in place on the Elmwood Avenue bridge over Route 198. The two westernmost lanes will be closed for construction through winter. One lane of traffic will be maintained in each direction on the eastern side of the bridge.

In addition, the off-ramp from Route 198 onto Elmwood Avenue heading northbound will be closed during both summers and possibly over the winter. Heading south on Elmwood, drivers will find the on-ramp heading east on the 198 will also be closed during both summers and possibly over the winter. Detours will be posted.* This project is scheduled to be completed in fall 2016. Please consider these upcoming impacts when planning your commute.

For more information, please visit the NYSDOT website.

*Please note this correction to the original announcement, which stated that the off-ramps from Route 198 onto Elmwood Avenue would be closed for the duration of the project.

Computing and Technology Services will perform network-wide maintenance between 2:00 and 7:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 21. This will affect virtually all the services and systems we support. During this time, you will not be able to connect to the campus network or access any of our campus servers, and on-campus connections to the campus wired or wireless networks will be unavailable.

Exceptions: University Police will have access to the police network, and the residence halls will continue to have ResNet Internet service during this shutdown.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Please contact the Computing Help Desk, 878-4357, with questions.