By Phyllis Camesano

Patrick Ravines has been selected as the new director of Buffalo State College’s renowned Art Conservation Department, following a comprehensive international search. His appointment is effective July 2010.

Ravines comes to the college with more than 25 years of experience as a conservator, researcher, and administrator. He currently serves as senior project conservator and research fellow at the George Eastman House (GEH) International Museum of Photography and Film, working with the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art in a collaborative program to study the deterioration of daguerreotypes using advanced electron and optical imaging techniques.

“Patrick Ravines is ideally qualified to further advance our reputation, our curriculum, and our service to the art world,” said Kevin Railey, interim provost. “With great pleasure we welcome him to the campus and the community.”

Ravines is the fourth director of the art conservation program since its founding in 1970. His selection follows the departure of Elizabeth Peña a year ago. “We are grateful to the search committee for their thoughtful, comprehensive work,” said Benjamin Christy, dean of the School of Arts and Humanities. “I also want to personally thank Professor James Hamm, who served as interim director, providing adept leadership while continuing his faculty responsibilities.”

Prior to his position at GEH, Ravines was an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in the Advanced Residency Program in Photograph Conservation in Rochester, and, for more than a decade, chief of the Conservation Office at the Bahá’í World Centre in Haifa, Israel. He holds advanced degrees in chemistry (University of Wisconsin), library science, and library and archives conservation (Columbia University).

The Art Conservation Department is one of the leading programs of its kind in North America. Accepting only 10 students a year, the competitive three-year graduate program trains conservators of fine art and material cultural heritage. Graduates can be found in the conservation labs of major institutions across the United States, including the National Gallery of Art, the Library of Congress, and the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.; and the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. The department is currently planning an expansion in Rockwell Hall, scheduled to be completed in 2012.

From the Chair of the College Senate
The final meeting of the College Senate for the spring semester will be held at 2:00 p.m. Friday, May 14, in Classroom Building C122. Please note the earlier start time. The Senate caucus begins at 12:30 p.m., just before the Senate meeting, where voting for new officers of the Senate for 2010–2011 will take place. The agendais available on the College Senate Web site.

From the Senior Adviser to the President for Equity and Campus Diversity
Executive Order No. 33, signed by Gov. David A. Paterson on December 16, 2009, makes it an unlawful discriminatory practice for any state agency to discriminate against any person because of his or her gender identity.

Gender identity is defined as having or being perceived as having a gender identity, self-image, appearance, behavior, or expression, whether or not that gender identity, self-image, behavior, or expression is different from that traditionally associated with the sex assigned to that person at birth.

Therefore the Buffalo State College policy on Discrimination and Harassment has been revised as follows:

It is the policy of Buffalo State College to provide an employment and educational environment free from invidious discrimination on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or marital or veteran status.

It shall be a violation of this policy for any agent, student, or employee of Buffalo State College to discriminate on the basis of race, age, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, or marital or veteran status against any individual with respect to the terms of employment, education, or benefits of any program or activity at Buffalo State College.

All managers, supervisors, and employees at Buffalo State College shall make diligent, good-faith efforts to ensure that all employees are afforded equal opportunity without regard to any of the areas listed above.

From the Vice President for Finance and Management
Members of the campus community are invited to view and comment on different approaches for how the Buffalo State campus might grow and change over the next decade and beyond.

The suggested approaches are part of a Facilities Master Plan process involving interviews, site visits, building assessments, and analyses of the college’s future space needs. Planning consultants, led by Flynn Battaglia Architects, have developed three concept alternatives for how the campus might evolve.

We invite you to view the concept alternatives (PDF, 7MB) and provide feedback by Friday, May 21.

Because preferred elements of the three alternatives will be incorporated into the final recommendations, we welcome your comments on individual elements—not just the overall concepts.

A final plan will be presented in fall 2010.

From the Interim Provost
Buffalo State’s Communication Department has been awarded full accreditation by the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (ACEJMC), making the college the only public institution in New York State to be accredited in professional education for majors in journalism, media production, and public communication.

The action, which was by unanimous vote at the annual ACEJMC meeting last weekend in Washington, D.C., also places Buffalo State among the 15 percent of American colleges and universities offering ACEJMC-accredited communication degrees. The department has held preliminary provisional accreditation since 2008.

“I want to thank everyone associated with this achievement, which has truly been a combined effort,” said Ron Smith, Communication Department chair and professor. “Our faculty and staff—full-time, part-time, and retired—have been key to providing the level of education, individual scholarship, and professional commitment that is integral to accreditation.”

From the Interim Provost
I am happy to announce that Interim President Ponton has approved the establishment of the Center for Southeast Asia Environment and Sustainable Development, housed in the Geography and Planning Department.

The center’s mission is to improve the understanding of complex environmental and development issues facing the Southeast Asian region by fostering multidisciplinary, international collaboration in research, education, and capacity building. The director of the center will be Kim Irvine, professor of geography and planning; the center will report to the dean of the School of Natural and Social Sciences. More information can be found in this week’sarticle.

From the Interim President
The Buffalo State College Academic-Year Obligation, as defined by the Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title H, will commence on Monday, August 23, 2010, and end on Tuesday, May 31, 2011.

Article XI, Title H states that the academic-year obligation should not exceed 10 months, and that an academic-year employee may be required to commence his or her professional obligation at a date reasonably prior to September 1 as may be necessitated by a college’s operating requirements.

From the Interim President
At its March 12, 2010, meeting, the College Senate voted to forward the following resolution to increase the athletic fee to the interim president for approval:

Motion on Athletic Fee Increase
Prepared by the College Senate Budget and Staff Allocations Committee (BSAC) and co-sponsored by the 
College Senate Student Welfare Committee, spring 2010

Whereas intercollegiate athletics, recreation, and intramural sports activities are integral components of Buffalo State’s educational experience, such that full-time students are currently assessed a $125 per semester Athletic Fee; and

Whereas mandatory fees represent a sizeable fraction of the cost of attending Buffalo State and students have recently been asked to pay higher tuition, which taken together are straining our students’ ability to pay for a college education at Buffalo State in difficult economic times; and

Whereas Athletic Fee revenues cover 84 percent of the cost of our intercollegiate athletics, recreation, and intramural sports programs, a far higher percentage than any other SUNY college; and

Whereas intercollegiate athletic programs generate approximately $4.6 million annually in tuition, fees, room, and board from student-athletes who might otherwise not attend Buffalo State; and

Whereas a deficit of almost $160,000 in the Intercollegiate Athletics budget is projected for FY2010, causing the Buffalo State Intercollegiate Athletic Board (IAB) to recommend an $8 per semester increase in the Athletic Fee, which would raise the total fee for full-time students to $133 each semester starting in fall 2010,

Therefore, be it resolved that the Buffalo State College administration should seek an increase in the Athletic Fee of $8 per semester for full-time students (pro-rated for part-time), starting in fall 2010, as recommended by the IAB; and

Be it also resolved that the Buffalo State College administration should earnestly and immediately seek out and develop other means to help offset the costs associated with operating the intercollegiate athletic programs, thereby lessening our dependence on Athletic Fee revenues for the operation of intercollegiate athletics, recreation, and intramural sports activities at Buffalo State.

I approve the increase in the Athletic Fee of $8 per semester for full-time students (pro-rated for part-time students) effective fall 2010. I charge the vice president for student affairs with the responsibility of preparing a report by November 1, 2010, that describes possibilities for alternative funding support for these fee-based programs that includes revenue-generation options.

From the Interim President
I am pleased to announce that Howard Zemsky, vice chair of the Buffalo State College Council, will be presented with the President’s Distinguished Service Award at the Faculty and Staff Spring Celebration on May 7.

Zemsky is managing partner of Larkin Development Co., a firm that has developed 800,000 square feet of commercial office space in Buffalo since 2000, including rehabilitation of the former Larkin Terminal Warehouse building. He is also managing partner of Niagara’s Finest Inns, a group of boutique hotels and restaurants in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, and managing partner of Taurus Partners LLC, a private equity firm in Buffalo. This year he served Buffalo State as chair of the Presidential Search Advisory Committee and co-chair of the Buffalo State College Foundation Scholarship Gala.

This award recognizes individuals or groups who have made significant, sustained contributions to Buffalo State College or the larger community. Award recipients are selected by the president upon recommendation of a review committee that considers the following criteria:

• Educating the Individual
• Serving the Public
• Enriching the Community

This year’s committee was chaired by Edward O. Smith Jr., SUNY Distinguished Service Professor of history, and comprised James Brandys, member of the Buffalo State College Council; Claire Collier, director of special projects, Institutional Advancement; Charlene Fontana, assistant to the director of student life; Dan Kushel, SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of art conservation; and Aimable Twagilimana, professor of English.

The following statement, which was included in the nomination materials, best describes why this recognition is so appropriate:

“Howard Zemsky’s fresh enthusiasm lets him be leader, colleague, supporter, or fan—because his positive energy can fit whatever role the project needs. His leadership is always collegial, because he always approaches the task as the work of the community. That’s why his leadership always generates more than he alone gives. He affirms this place, and this community, and asks of us that we work as hopefully and as energetically and as positively as does he. That is his achievement and the pathway to ours.”

I hope you will join me in congratulating Howard Zemsky and in thanking him for his exceptional service to Buffalo State and the Buffalo community.

By Mary A. Durlak

Alexander Karatayev, director of the Great Lakes Center, presented its most recent annual report in April. Highlights include several ongoing projects, including the nearshore and offshore Lake Erie nutrient study (NOLENS), which investigates why nutrient-abatement strategies have not resulted in the responses scientists expected. A related project assessed Lake Ontario nearshore nutrients last year. Twenty grant proposals were submitted during this fiscal year, with a total request of almost $7 million.

Christopher Pennuto, research scientist and professor of biology, discussed progress made on a new master’s program in Great Lakes ecosystems. Mark Clapsadl, Great Lakes Center field station manager, discussed renovations to the field station, funded by the Buffalo State Research Foundation. Renovations to be completed in 2010 include a wireless weather station, a microscopy lab, insulated tanks in the wet lab, and blinds for the Dick Smith Teaching Pavilion.

Scientists at the Environmental Toxicology Laboratory continued research into environmental pollutants to assess their carcinogenic properties and other ill effects on health. Several proposals have been submitted to the National Institutes for Health.

Many other projects are ongoing, including designing round goby barriers, the impact of climate change on subarctic lakes, and the study of native clams in Texas.