From the Vice President for Finance and Management
A free express shuttle service connecting students, faculty, and staff who park in outlying lots along Rockwell Road and Letchworth Street to the center of campus will begin scheduled operation on Monday, February 8.

The “MGC Direct” will pick up riders in Lots M and G and take them directly to Lot C—also known as the Cleveland Hall circle—from 9:00 a.m. to noon when classes are in session. Two vans, which will be clearly marked as Buffalo State escort vans, will circulate riders simultaneously to ensure that wait times are minimal.

“We want this to be a useful service for our commuter students, faculty, and staff who are walking from the western parking lots to center campus on a daily basis,” said Lisa Krieger, assistant vice president for finance and management. “The goal is to create a convenient, direct ride to the center of campus. We hope to receive feedback from the campus community about the route and the ways it is helping, or how it can be improved.”

Lot M pickup locations will be at blue-light phones 34 and 42, while riders from Lot G can catch the shuttle on the north side of the maintenance barn. The first 100 riders on the MGC Direct will receive a coupon for a free cup of coffee or other beverage (up to a $2 value) at any campus food service location.

Services have also been added to the overnight escort shuttle van, which will now operate from 4:30 p.m. to 4:30 a.m. seven days a week when classes are in session. The evening shuttle picks up and drops off riders at blue-light phones in campus parking lots and along perimeter roads.

In general, the shuttle will run clockwise around campus, thereby providing those who are parked in Lots G or M a return trip to their cars after 4:30 p.m., when most campus users require such transportation. To catch the free evening shuttle, students, faculty, and staff need only wait at a blue-light phone along the route. Please refer to this campus map outlining the escort van routes. When staffing permits, two clearly marked escort vans will service the route.

Feedback and comments are encouraged for both services and can be e-mailed to VPFM@buffalostate.edu.

By Tony Astran

A new master’s program that allows foreign language teachers to earn professional licensure for teaching French or Spanish is now available through the Modern and Classical Languages Department. The master of science in education degree in foreign language education complements Buffalo State’s existing certificate programs for grades 7–12 and also grants an extension to teach grades 1–6.

The program provides coursework in four areas for a total of 30 credits: advanced study of foreign language, literature, and culture (12 credits); advanced study in foreign language teaching and learning (9 credits); computer-assisted instruction (3 credits); and educational research, culminating in a clinical thesis or project (6 credits) designed to help students address an area of inquiry relevant to their own classroom teaching experiences.

Mark Warford, associate professor of modern and classical languages, oversees the curriculum. He said the six-year period of developing the program and gaining state approval was worth the wait.

“A great deal of planning went into this program,” Warford said. “It took time to develop and refine the curriculum and courses. We gathered data to establish the need for students to earn this degree and also had a site visit by two outside reviewers. In the end, Buffalo State now offers a program that focuses like a laser on developing accomplished language teachers.”

Warford said that while there are other similar master’s programs in the region, Buffalo State’s new offering is unique because it is housed in a language department and also offers an extension to teach grades (1–6) earlier than the junior and senior high school levels, which, he said, is a growing trend in schools.

“It is a state requirement to earn a master’s degree a few years after beginning teaching,” Warford said. “There are currently dozens of foreign language teachers in the Buffalo area who need to pursue a master’s degree in order to retain their certification.”

To accommodate teachers’ busy schedules, Warford said, the department plans to offer hybrid and online options for most classes. “We aim to combine significant learning experiences with flexibility,” he said. “The online component is an exciting new frontier for us.” Warford said instructors will also encourage students to study abroad in order to enrich their learning.

Warford hopes the program will ultimately help retain good teachers already in schools while also enticing Buffalo State graduate students to remain at the college longer.

“We’re still trying to keep up with demand in New York State—especially locally,” he said. “First-year foreign language teachers are susceptible to backsliding because they feel isolated. Our program will help them learn techniques that will keep them engaged and innovative in their work. With the right encouragement, support, and confidence, they’ll succeed.”

The Buffalo State College preservice fieldwork program, Art Partners, will celebrate 15 years of service to the community with an exhibition and special reception from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. on Friday, February 5, in the Albright-Knox Art Gallery’s Education Department.

Lucy Andrus, professor of art education and art therapy, founded Art Partners in 1994 to address the need for building a bridge between inner-city schoolchildren and Buffalo State faculty and students in teacher training. The program brings art and culture education to urban children with special learning needs who are living and learning in economically depressed areas of the city. Every week for 15 years, Andrus has accompanied her students, teaching and conducting applied research alongside them in a variety of classrooms serving children at risk and those with identified disabilities.

This work has resulted in new course development and content in the areas of diversity training and teaching students with learning differences, national conference presentations and training workshops, and contributions to the professional body of knowledge through national publication. Art Partners has contributed to the education and training of more than 300 Buffalo State art teacher candidates whose volunteer contributions of time and effort have helped make the program possible.

“Art Partners has contributed immensely to my own professional as well as personal development on many levels,” Andrus said. “It has been through the eyes of the children we’ve served that I have seen a clearer picture of what our youth need from the adults in their lives and the best way to go about providing it for them through our teaching and nurturing. I’m most grateful to have had this life-changing opportunity.”

Friday’s reception will recognize the accomplishments and mark the 15th anniversary of Art Partners. All are welcome to attend. The artwork produced by the children and teens in the program attests to the power of collaboration, commitment, and the arts to teach, heal, and bring diverse people together in harmony. The exhibit will be on view through February 14.

By Tony Astran

Buffalo State College welcomes Anthony Mullen, 2009 National Teacher of the Year, to campus on Wednesday, February 3, at 3:00 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall. Mullen’s presentation, “Recovering Lost Students,” centers on the importance of emotional health as it relates to learning, particularly for at-risk students.

Mullen, a special-education teacher at Greenwich High School in Greenwich, Connecticut, is also the 2009 Connecticut Teacher of the Year. Ronald S. Rochon, dean of the School of Education and associate vice president for teacher education, said he is humbled and excited to have Buffalo State host a visit during Mullen’s yearlong speaking tour.

“This event is a way for our community to celebrate teaching and teacher education, and help students see the highest peak of the profession,” Rochon said. “I think his talk will help people better understand the passion, energy, and desire for teaching. He’ll also discuss some of the challenges and current policies that affect our profession.”

Rochon said he hopes Mullen’s discussion will be well attended by faculty, staff, students, and the community. The School of Education has already contacted its partners in the Professional Development Schools Consortium and CEURE, as well as area libraries and learning centers. Rochon said Mullen’s visit underscores the importance of college partnerships with pre-K–12 schools.

“The children taught in those schools will be our future students,” Rochon said. “We can partner with schools to help children understand the importance of becoming young scholars.”

The National Teacher of the Year Program has been administered by the Council of Chief State School Officers since 1952. The winner is chosen from among the State Teachers of the Year by a national selection committee representing major national education organizations and is introduced by the president of the United States in April. He or she is then released from classroom duties during the year to travel nationally and internationally as a spokesperson for the teaching profession.

Mullen, a 20-year employee of the New York Police Department, earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Long Island University in 1990 while on the job. He later changed his career focus and earned a master’s degree in elementary and special education from Mercy College in 2001. He has taught at Greenwich High School since 2002.

In his application for National Teacher of the Year, Mullen described his philosophy of education as being “built upon the pillars of passion, professionalism, and perseverance.” He further stated, “The greatest institution for social change is the school, and the greatest instrument of change is the teacher. Schools are the catalyst for human progress because the dissemination of knowledge has created the world in which we live.” Mullen warned, however, that “if we truly wish to leave no child behind, then a national commitment to address the emotional health of our children is needed.”

The event is sponsored by the School of Education and is free and open to the public. The School of Education is also arranging for Mullen to speak with students before the lecture.

Learning communities at Buffalo State have helped first-year students make strong academic and social connections on campus during the past decade. As the number of traditional learning communities continues to grow, other quasi communities with different structures are beginning to take shape—and produce similar effective results.

The Biology Department experimented with a new model last semester in which a section of BSC 101 taught by Amy McMillan, associate professor of biology, included only first-year biology students. Those students also took the same types of courses to round out their first-semester experience. In addition, the Theater Department continued a program that began in 2008 in which first-year theater students took 10 credits together.

According to Doug Koritz, assistant dean of intellectual foundations, learning communities allow students to make academic and social connections on campus, and help them develop closer relationships with faculty. They also particularly benefit first-generation and minority students—both of which, he said, are an integral part of Buffalo State’s student population.

“Research shows that learning communities can be effective no matter what structure they have,” Koritz said. “Learning communities help students explore concepts that they oftentimes would not experience until their junior year. The focus on liberal arts provides direction for students, which is so helpful because many are unsure how they’d like to focus their studies.”

Rita Zientek, associate dean of the School of the Professions, explored the affects of themed learning communities on academic success in her 2008 dissertation for a Ph.D. in higher education administration at the University at Buffalo. Zientek chose the topic because she wanted to study something specific to Buffalo State that affected all schools across campus.

“The transition from high school to college can be difficult for many students, and first-year attrition continues to be a problem for many institutions,” she said. “The results of my study showed that participation in learning communities generally resulted in higher first-semester grade point averages. Learning communities can light the fire for students’ desire to learn.”

McMillan, whose BSC 101 class focused on “The Evolution of Evolutionary Thought,” said teaching about critical thinking and writing felt like a new experience. Students also took varying sections of CWP 101, CHE 111, and BIO 211 or BIO 213 but relied on BSC 101 as the base for their first-semester experience.

“The class offered a loose-enough agenda to have heart-to-heart talks about larger issues, such as advising, study techniques, career tracks, and courses needed to successfully graduate as a biology student,” McMillan said. “Students felt like they were part of a community and learned more about the Buffalo State ‘system’ because of the structure.”

First-year students in the Theater Department took classes in acting (THA 226), play reading (THA 189), theater fundamentals (THA 216), and a practicum (THA 230) for a total of 10 credits, in addition to sections of CWP 101 and BSC 101. Drew Kahn, professor and chair of the Theater Department, first tried the model in 2008 and will continue it because of its success.

“We are recruiting classes of students now,” he said. “While we’re not an ‘official’ learning community, we recognize the importance of having our students learn as an ensemble throughout their years at Buffalo State. These student-artists will be working together academically, artistically, and socially to build sets and perform plays.”

Kahn is convinced the learning-community-like structure helps first-year students quickly become more advanced. “They gain tremendous confidence in seeing that the whole department is behind them,” he said. “The shared experiences help students adapt to college faster and provide a consistency of expectations, vocabulary, and skill sets.

“The structure also helps students on an emotional level,” Kahn added. “I think the psychology of how a student feels about the college experience translates to the stage. They need to feel comfortable with their surroundings to take risks on stage, be themselves, and reach their full potential. Our faculty are able to push for rigor, and we’re able to better ascertain where students are in their development, which creates a richer casting process.”

The Biology Department hopes to have as many as three biology-only sections of BSC 101 in the fall, while the Theater Department plans to continue its cohort experience for at least another three years.

“For students who work hard, it’ll be fantastic to see the relationships grow as they move on to the upper classes,” McMillan said.

“By being responsive to students’ emotional needs through learning communities, we help create a group of students who are ‘hungry’ to learn,” Kahn said. “The structure allows for true connections and caring, which is so important to academic success.”

What could be a better way in which to celebrate the joy of Lent than starting the Fridays in Lent with the Liturgy of the Eucharist? Join us here at the Newman Center, 1219 Elmwood Avenue, in the Chapel, at 8 AM on Friday, March 28, April 4 and April 11 to give God thanks and praise and feast on Word and Sacrament.

SUBMITTING FINAL GRADES FOR FALL 2004:Grading window will close at 8 p.m. Monday, December 20. http://www.buffalostate.edu/sabre/facstaff/ will provide you with times for Drop-In Assistance as well a Faculty Guide to Sabre that includes Grading in Sabre. Substitute for Pass/Fail Option: If you, as the instructor, are permitting the substitution of a letter grade for the Pass/Fail option, please submit (instructor or student) the signed SUBSTITUTION FOR PASS/FAIL OPTION FORM to the Registrars' Office, Moot Hall.

Dr. Lee Ann Grace has been appointed assistant dean for International and Exchange Programs in University College. She will oversee a new office to be established in January and housed in Twin Rise, comprised of the current International Education, International Student Affairs, International Learning Styles, and Special Programs (National Student Exchange)offices, as well as the Center for China Studies and the International Studies minor.

On February 8, 2005 Buffalo State will hold its 6th Annual Faculty/Staff Scholarship and Creativity Celebration to highlight the quality and diversity of faculty/staff scholarly and creative activities. All presentations will be poster sessions. Activities will be in Houston Gym, 10:30 – 2:30 p.m. Lunch will be served. This is an excellent opportunity to network with colleagues. To present, complete and return the form found at: http://www.buffalostate.edu/graduatestudies/appl/call_for_papers.doc Submission deadline: Friday, Nov. 12. Contact Gina Game gameg@rf.buffalostate.edu or 878-6700.

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