Dan MacIsaac, professor of physics, published his article “Effectiveness of a Simulated Thermodynamics Lab in a Grade Eight Lyceum Class,” studying Baku middle school children, in the Jurnal Pendidikan Fisika Indonesia 17 (2): 133–140. The article was coauthored with Qalib Sharifov of the Azerbaijan State Pedagogical University. Their remote electronic pandemic collaboration arose from online discussions and mutual citations about computer simulation use by school students learning electric field theory and circuit fundamentals.

Aaron Shugar, Andrew W. Mellon Professor; Rebecca Ploeger, associate professor; and Meredeth Lavelle, program manager, of the Art Conservation Department, published the article “A Review of 50 Years of Teaching Conservation Science at SUNY Buffalo State” in the Journal of the American Institute for Conservation. The article re?ects on the evolution, challenges, and future of conservation science education from the perspective of the Buffalo State Patricia H. and Richard E. Garman Art Conservation program at Buffalo State College, now in its 50th year.

Drew Kahn, SUNY Distinguished Service Professor and director of the Anne Frank Project, contributed a chapter to a recently published education book, The BIG Book of Engagement Strategies, by Heather Lyon (2021, EduMatch). His work can be found in Chapter 3: “Communication Strategies—Strategy 10: Building Interdependence with Story-Based Learning.”

The Communication Department received the Buffalo Broadcasters Association’s Partnership Award for its collaboration with the BBA on the production of the television series Broadcasting Buffalo. College President Katherine Conway-Turner and Communication Department chair Deborah Silverman accepted the award on behalf of the department at the BBA's Hall of Fame dinner on November 4. The series is believed to be the only collaboration of its kind in the United States. The two Communication classes involved in the series' production—COM 337: Electronic News Producing and COM 429: Advanced Multi-Camera Studio Production, taught by lecturers Ellen Notarius and Erick Karnath, respectively—will work with the BBA again in spring 2022 on the next season of the series.

Last year, the Buffalo State Civic and Community Engagement Office presented the BBA and Mr. Karnath and Ms. Notarius with its Reciprocal Partnership Award.

Jason Knight, associate professor of geography and planning, recently released a two-county housing needs assessment for Erie and Niagara counties. The report, Engaging the Future of Housing in the Buffalo-Niagara Region: A Preliminary Exploration of Challenges That Lie Ahead, was coauthored with Russell Weaver, director of research at the Cornell ILR Buffalo Co-Lab, and prepared for and funded by the Partnership for the Public Good and the Local Initiatives Support Corporation WNY.

Gerald Mead, lecturer in the Art and Design Department, served on the review panel for the New York State Council on the Arts 2021 Individual Artist Decentralization Grants and juried the entries for the national exhibition 10th Anniversary Art of the Book & Paper, on view at the Rochester Public Library July 9–October 30. He also juried applicants for the annual downtown Springville Art Crawl, organized by the Springville Center for the Arts, on June 5, and was a panelist for a New York Foundation for the Arts panel discussion for artists titled “Institutional Opportunities and Networking,” held on March 13.

Catherine Cardina, associate professor of health, nutrition, and dietetics, published a research article, "The Significance of High-Quality Physical Education Teachers" in the Physical Educator 78 (5), 503–520. The paper’s coauthor is Alisa James, associate dean of education, health, and human services at SUNY College at Brockport.

Be Good, Make Me Proud, a short film directed by Buffalo State College faculty members Dorothea Braemer, assistant professor of communication, and Steve Peraza, assistant professor of history and social studies education, won the prize for Best WNY Short Film from the Buffalo International Film Festival in October. The 17-minute video is a heartwarming, thoughtful tribute to Arthur O. Eve, former New York State assembly member and deputy speaker, who was instrumental in pioneering the first Educational Opportunity Program, at Buffalo State College in 1967.

Read the Record article.

Kristen Mruk, associate director of student leadership and engagement, has been inducted into the College Student Personnel Association of New York State's Crystal Circle following successful completion of her full presidential term in the association. Ms. Mruk served one year as president-elect, from 2018 to 2019; one year as president, from 2019 to 2020; and a final year as past president, from 2020 to 2021. Her term officially concluded following the CSPA-NYS annual conference, held virtually this year from October 18 to 22. In recognition of their continued service to the association, Crystal Circle members receive lifetime membership to CSPA-NYS.

Arjun Pathak, assistant professor of physics, published the peer-reviewed scientific article “Anisotropically Large Anomalous and Topological Hall Effect in a Kagome Magnet” in the American Physical Society journal Physical Review B. Buffalo State College students Jacob Casey, physics major, and Randall Filippone, electrical engineering technology major, served as coauthors on the paper, along with other collaborators.

In this work, Dr. Pathak conceived the idea and provided overall synthesis; carried out bulk characterization such as crystal structure, magnetic, electrical resistivity, and Hall effect at Buffalo State; and explained the observed quantum behavior of ErMn6Sn6 kagome magnet. This material is considered as the potential material for future quantum computing and quantum information science application. The National Quantum Initiative Act was signed into law by former United States President Donald Trump on December 21, 2018, “to accelerate quantum research and development for the economic and national security of the United States.”