The Buffalo State Accounts Payable and Travel Services Office requires that New York State Citibank Travel Card holders submit their statements and required backup documentation within the time periods specified in cardholder agreements. This will help ensure prompt payment, avoid late fees, and protect the cardholder in audit. It is required that travelers follow established guidelines for use of their NYS Citibank Travel Cards. The cards must be used for allowable expenses related to cardholders themselves. Expenses related to individuals other than the cardholder are considered unallowable.

A NYS Citibank cardholder should never incur unallowable expenses with the intention of repaying New York State. Items such as transportation seat upgrades, hotel room upgrades beyond the allowable per diem rates, or personal expenses must be paid using funds other than the NYS Citibank Travel Card or state-appropriated funding. The travel manual for the Office of the State Comptroller states:

Travel cards are to be used to pay only those expenses relating to travel costs incurred when traveling on official State business. Employees may not use travel cards to make personal purchases, even if they intend to reimburse the State for those expenses. In addition, travel cards must not be used to pay expenses that are not travel-related.

Questions about these guidelines may be addressed to the Buffalo State Accounts Payable and Travel Services Office at ext. 4117. Thank you.

The Weigel Health Center, in collaboration with the departments of Health and Wellness, Intercollegiate Athletics, and Dietetics and Nutrition, is now recruiting faculty, staff, and students interested in participating in an eight-week fitness program. Participants will be invited to improve their health by increasing physical activity and improving nutritional choices over the eight-week period. Free fitness and nutritional assessments will be offered to all participants, as well as nutritional counseling, free fitness planning, and orientations. If you are interested in learning more about this program, please contact Elaina Mertens, assistant professor of health and wellness, or Kim Jablonski, assistant director of mandated programs, Weigel Health Center. Please share this information with students.

If your department has new employees who will be authorized to sign purchase requisitions, you must complete a new Record of Authorized Signatures form for each department account. You will also need a new Record of Authorized Signatures form if an authorized signatory is on sabbatical and an interim will be in charge while he or she is away, or if there is a temporary department chair for summer only.

The form can be found on the Procurement Services website. Please complete the form and send the original to Procurement Services, Cleveland Hall 406, as soon as possible.

Blackboard drop-in sessions for students will take place from 12:15 to 1:15 p.m. in E. H. Butler Library 316 on the following dates:

• Thursday, February 6
• Thursday, February 13
• Thursday, February 20

Please call ext. 3036 with questions. Thank you.

Please review the newly added Blackboard training sessions on the CyberQuad Workshop Registration System.

The campus community is invited to join the African and African American studies program for an event in honor of Black History Month 2014 when Cheryl Finley, associate professor and director of visual studies at Cornell University, presents "Mixing Histories: Contemporary Art and Re-Imaging Slavery" on Wednesday, February 5, from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center's Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Auditorium. Reception to follow. This talk is made possible with support from the African and African American studies program, the Fine Arts Department, the Faculty and Staff Association, and the Grant Allocation Committee.

The Student Support Services Program, informally known as SSSP, will hold its annual Student Recognition Ceremony on Thursday, February 6, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center's Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Auditorium. This event serves to honor SSSP students for their academic achievements. Florence D. Johnson, the director, and her staff are proud to recognize more than 68 participants who are carrying a cumulative grade point average of 3.0–4.0.

The Student Support Services Program is a Title IV (TRIO) federally funded project that operates under the umbrella of the Sponsored Programs Office (formerly the Research Foundation) and University College. The program goals are retention, graduation, and good academic standing. The program is designed to provide opportunities for academic achievement, cultural enrichment, and tutorial assistance as well as to motivate students toward successful completion of their degrees. The annual recognition ceremony will be a catered event by the Emerson School of Hospitality. A reception will be held in the upper-level atrium. This program is proud to celebrate the success and persistence of all the students being recognized.

This event is not open to the campus community. Faculty and staff members who received invitations must make reservations to attend; please e-mail bernaras@buffalostate.edu. For further information, please call Armeta Bernard at ext. 4042.

Roots Caribbean Kitchen, located in the Campbell Student Union Food Court, is featuring a crispy beer-battered fish fry with fresh hand-cut French fries and a fountain beverage for only $6.99. This is a limited-time offer and won't be here long. Stop in and try it today.

Roots Caribbean Kitchen Hours of Operation
Monday–Friday
11:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m.
Saturday–Sunday
Closed

For more information on Buffalo State Dining, please visit our website.

Please join the Great Lakes Center for the seminar “Benthos Powers Lake Dynamics,” presented by Ronald Griffiths, ecologist at Oregon State University, on Thursday, February 27, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Classroom Building B118. Faculty, staff, and students are welcome. Light refreshments will be served.

A Blackboard training session for adjuncts is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today, January 30, in E. H. Butler Library 318. A number of spots are still open. If you are an adjunct faculty member who needs training and you are available this evening, please register using the Workshop Registration System.