Buffalo State faculty and staff members are encouraged to participate in an online webinar about institutional copyright policies with Steven McDonald, general counsel at the Rhode Island School of Design, on Wednesday, December 7, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. This webinar is sponsored by the Center for Intellectual Property (CIP).

Join McDonald as he shares his knowledge and experience about institutional copyright policies followed by a Q&A session. Buffalo State is an institutional member of the CIP, a member-based community dedicated to providing copyright education, research, and resources to higher education institutions. To participate in the webinar, Buffalo State faculty and staff members must create an account on the CIP website. Contact Melaine Kenyon  for instructions and the institution verification password.

The winners of the Buffalo State SEFA/United Way raffle prizes are as follows:

• First Prize: Reserved Parking Space – Jon Michael Fox, Center for Studies in Creativity
• Second Prize: One-Year Membership to the Fitness Center – Tracey Trietley, Performing Arts Center
• Third Prize; $100 Gift Certificate to Barnes & Nobles at Buffalo State Bookstore – Marbel Garrett, Modern and Classical Languages
• Fourth Prize: iPod – Daniel Herr, Facilities Planning
• Fifth Prize: iPod – Sara Mann Kahris, Speech-Language Pathology
• Sixth Prize: One Ticket to the Scholarship Gala – Cynthia Syracuse, Financial Aid
• Seventh Prize: George Wilson–Signed Football – Corinna West, Student Accounts
• Eighth Prize: Year of the Arts! (Tickets to Theater, Dance, and Music Performances, T-Shirt, Stickers, and a Calendar) – Jessie Lombardo, Career Development Center
• Ninth Prize: Wine Chiller – Jiu Feng, Information Technology Exchange Center

Please pick up your prizes in the Continuing Professional Studies Office, located in Cleveland Hall 210.

Attention, Buffalo State faculty and staff members. You are invited to attend this webinar on Thursday, December 1, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. in the Research Foundation conference room (Bishop Hall 18). There is no charge to participate; contact Mary Kren if you plan to attend.

David Stone, associate vice president for research at Northern Illinois University, will lead a webinar on the ways scholars and researchers can position themselves to apply successfully for grants. He will build on two articles he wrote for the Chronicle of Higher Education, "Becoming a Successful Principal Investigator" and "How Your Grant Proposal Compares." In addition to professional positioning, he will also address the importance of collaborative tools in developing successful projects and effective proposals.

Stone also co-chairs the task forces on Community and Economic Development and Health Research and Education for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Grants Resource Center.

The fall 2011 “Conversations” series concludes on Friday, December 9, as Lisa Berglund, associate professor of English, presents “Secular Bibles: Annotations in Early American Dictionaries” at 3:00 p.m. in Ketchum Hall 320.   Colleagues, friends, graduate students, and advanced undergraduate students are welcome.

“Conversations” will continue in the spring, featuring work by Philip B. Ogle, department chair and professor of fine arts (February 24), Kyeonghi Baek, assistant professor of political science (March 30), and John D. Draeger, associate professor of philosophy and humanities (April 13). We hope to see you there.

The annual Design Student Show is currently on display through December 2 in the Czurles-Nelson Gallery in Upton Hall. Join us this Thursday, December 1, for a reception from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. as we celebrate our talented student designers in ceramics, fibers, metals/jewelry, wood/furniture, and communication design. For more information, call the Design Department at ext. 6032.

Through National Student Exchange, Buffalo State students have the opportunity to study for a semester or an academic year at one of 200 participating colleges or universities at affordable tuition rates and receive credits toward graduation using financial aid! Visit the Special Programs Office in South Wing 420 or call ext. 4328 and speak to Christine Cali to plan a classroom visit. Provide your students with this possibility for enriching their college experience!

Students can learn about studying the criminal justice system in China, as well as about visiting important cultural sites such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, for two weeks in May 2012 during this information session on Thursday, December 1, at 12:15 p.m. in Classroom Building B108. Knowledge of Chinese is not required. Students will also learn how financial aid applies to the program and about available scholarships. Please encourage students not to miss this résumé-building experience!

Abstracts for the SUNY Conference on Instruction and Technology (CIT) 2012 are due Monday, January 23. The holidays are right around the corner, and so is the deadline to submit your abstract for CIT! The conference takes place May 29–June 1, 2012, on the campus of Stony Brook University.

Abstract submissions are now being accepted at the introductory, intermediate, and advanced levels for the following formats: paper, panel, hands-on demo, workshop, poster, and Birds of a Feather.

This is also a great opportunity to be published! If your abstract is accepted for presentation at CIT, you are eligible to submit a full paper to be considered for publication in the Journal of Educational Technology Systems.

Visit the CIT website and click on “Submit Your Proposal” on the right side of the page. For additional conference information, select the “CIT 2012” link.

Best wishes for a safe and happy holiday season!

Three art workshops are scheduled in December at the Burchfield Penney Art Center. Advance registration is required. Call ext. 3216 with questions or to register. More information is available on the Burchfield Penney website.

Toddler Art Workshop
Saturday, December 3, 10:30–11:30 a.m.
Based on their upcoming book, My Stroller Is a Spaceship: Nurturing Creative Thinking Skills with Young Children, Michaelene Dawson and Cyndi Burnett (assistant professor, Buffalo State's International Center for Studies in Creativity) offer a class that will develop and nurture toddlers' creative-thinking and problem-solving skills. After an exploration of the galleries, toddlers and their caregivers will return to the studio classroom for playful, hands-on art activities focusing on various creative-thinking skills. Come dressed to get messy. Cost: $10 for Burchfield Penney members, $14 for “not yet” members.

Doodle-Bots: The Art and Science of Robotics, with Melissa Leopard; Ages 6–12
Saturday, December 3, 12:30–4:30 p.m.
Charles Burchfield loved doodling, but he probably never doodled like this! Join Melissa Leopard (founder of Tinkering School Buffalo) for an adventurous day of playing, puttering, dabbling, and doodling. Kids will design and build their own robotic drawing machines and become “cautious daredevils” by learning how to safely use “dangerous” tools and materials, like box cutters, battery packs, and motors. The day will conclude with a scrimmage of scribbles as the doodle-bots scramble together in a penned-in corral built specifically to contain the felt-tip frenzy. Cost: $36 for Burchfield Penney members, $48 for “not yet” members.

Sugar Sculpting: It’s Not Just Icing on the Cake, with Carolyn Panzica; Ages 6 and Up
Saturday, December 10, 10:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.
The holiday tradition of decorating sweet treats is transformed into an amazing art form with this sugar-sculpting experience you can share with your family members and friends. Artist Carolyn Panzica’s sugar sculpture pieces in this fall’s Art in Craft Media and last spring’s An Overabundance of Detail exhibitions serve as the inspiration for this class. Participants will use royal icing and food coloring to draw and paint three-dimensional scenes on canvases of fondant that will dry hard and can then be hung as pieces of art. If you’re looking for a unique gift this holiday season, consider this class! What could be better than sharing time with your family and friends while making art together? Cost: $36 for Burchfield Penney members, $48 for “not yet” members. Kids under 7 free with paying adult.

John Draeger, associate professor of philosophy, will present "Exploring the Limits of Toleration" today, November 29, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Ketchum Hall 113 as part of the Philosophy and Humanities Department's fall Faculty-Student Colloquium series. Philosophy major Nathaniel Rey will serve as commentator.