As the end of the semester approaches, stress levels for students, faculty, and staff mount. If you have considered learning to meditate, now is your opportunity. As little as five to 10 minutes of meditation a day can make a difference in your life.
 
Meditation is a natural state of the human mind—at rest, open, alert. The basic meditation technique predates all religious traditions, though it is used in one way or another by each of them. Undertaken as a steady practice, meditation allows the mind to relax and settle. It encourages our inherent qualities of stability, clarity, and mental strength to emerge.

Every Tuesday (ongoing) at 5:30 p.m. in Weigel Health Center 203. Bring your own cushion or use one of our chairs. Introductory instruction will be offered followed by a brief period of meditation practice. All students, faculty, and staff are invited. For more information, contact Trudy Stern, ext. 6711.

The grading window will close tomorrow, December 21, at 9:00 p.m. Detailed documentation for entering grades is available at http://buffalostate.edu/banner/documents/grading.pdf. Assistance is available by calling the Computing Help Desk at ext. 4357 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you have questions about grading, please call the Registrar's Office at ext. 4811.

Faculty members will enter their fall 2011 grades using Banner. The grading window is now open and will close Wednesday, December 21, at 9:00 p.m. Detailed documentation for entering grades is available at http://buffalostate.edu/banner/documents/grading.pdf. Assistance is also available by calling the Computing Help Desk at ext. 4357 Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you have any questions about grading, please call the Registrar's Office at ext. 4811.

Faculty members will enter their fall 2011 grades using Banner. The grading window will open Monday, December 12, at 9:00 a.m. and close Wednesday, December 21, at 9:00 p.m. In preparation, faculty are encouraged to log on to Banner to be sure that all their courses are listed under their account. Detailed documentation for entering grades is available at http://buffalostate.edu/banner/documents/grading.pdf. Additionally, assistance is available by calling the Computing Help Desk at ext. 4357 Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. If you have any questions about grading, please call the Registrar's Office at ext. 4811.

Gifts galore! Don't miss out. Come and discover the handcrafted ceramic bowls, silk scarves, sterling silver earrings, wood items, photographs, and paintings. These are only a few of the items available for sale today, December 7, from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and tomorrow, Thursday, December 8, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Come to the Czurles-Nelson Gallery in Upton Hall, buy that holiday gift, and support our art education, design, and fine arts students at the same time!

Please direct any questions to Carol Townsend at ext. 4986.

Students requesting a letter grade in place of a pass/fail grade should submit a Substitution for Pass/Fail form no later than Tuesday, December 20.

To prepare for fall 2011 grading, please check all your course rosters in Banner for accuracy, including independent studies, project courses, and courses by contract. Please call the Registrar's Office at ext. 4811 with discrepancies before the grading window opens on Monday, December 12.

Effective January 1, 2012, NYSHIP will offer the Opt-Out Program to CSEA-represented, PEF-represented, and M/C employees. This program will allow eligible employees who have other employer-sponsored group health insurance to opt out of their NYSHIP coverage in exchange for an incentive payment. The incentive payment is $1,000 for opting out of individual coverage or $3,000 for opting out of family coverage.

If you are currently enrolled in NYSHIP and wish to participate in the Opt-Out Program, you must elect to opt out during the annual Option Transfer Period and attest to having other employer-sponsored group health insurance. You must complete and return the NYS Health Insurance Transaction Form and the 2012 Opt-Out Attestation Form to Cleveland Hall 410 by Friday, December 30, 2011. If you enroll in the program and you are eligible for dental and vision coverage under the state plan, your eligibility for dental and vision coverage will not be affected.  

The complete Opt-Out Program description, including eligibility requirements and enrollment forms, is available in Cleveland Hall 410 or on the Human Resource Management website.

Please call Human Resource Management at ext. 4821 with questions or for additional information.

Bengal Bucks holiday gift cards are available for purchase through December 23 and are available in $5, $10 and $25 increments. They are dollar for dollar, and they never expire as long as you are a student or faculty or staff member at Buffalo State. They can be used at any Buffalo State Dining food unit including Resident Dining, the Food Court, all grab-and-go locations, vending machines, the Burchfield Penny gift shop and café, and Barnes & Noble.

Gift cards can be purchased in the Bengal Card Office, located in E. H. Butler Library 108.

For more information on any dining location, visit www.dineoncampus.com/bsc.

Learn how web conferencing software such as Elluminate was used to keep classes going last winter despite school closings. Join Charles Rigdon of the University of Missouri and Jason Busbin from the University of West Georgia as they share firsthand tips and tricks to get you prepared for the winter ahead. This webinar will be shown in the Professional Development Center (E. H. Butler Library 181B) today, December 6, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. Refreshments will be served. No registration is necessary. There was no opportunity to preview this webinar.