Buffalo State alumnus and theatrical pop singer Vinzent Massi will be interviewed and will perform on WBNY-FM 91.3 on Thursday, December 8, at 8:00 p.m. The singer and his band will perform acoustic selections from their concerts. Massi and his band, the Revelation, just completed a successful concert at the Burchfield Penney on October 29.

Representatives from Community Blue, Independent Health, and the Empire Plan will be on campus from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Thursday, December 8, in E. H. Butler Library 210 to answer questions about current health insurance plans and anticipated changes in coverage for 2012.

Employee benefits staff members also will be present to assist employees in making changes to health insurance coverage. Attendees may have their blood pressure checked; learn about the benefits of and sample massage therapy; learn how to maximize dental and vision care benefits from CSEA, UUP Benefit Trust Funds, and GHI Preferred Dental; get ideas on how to balance work, home, and life from NYS-Balance; and obtain information about the Employee Assistance Program and meet EAP coordinators. Students from the Health and Wellness Department will also be conducting various health screenings. Call Human Resource Management at ext. 4821 if you have any questions.

Each year, employees who are enrolled in the New York State Health Insurance Program may select a different health plan by completing change forms in the Human Resource Management Office. Employees may choose from the Empire Plan or one of the health maintenance organizations.

Employees will have 30 days from the date the 2012 rates are approved and published to change their health insurance carriers. The New York State Employee Benefits Division will mail information about the new health plan rates and deadline dates to enrolled employees’ home addresses. “Choices,” a comparison booklet of the 2012 insurance plans, will be available in the Human Resource Management Office and on the HR website at the end of November.

Please call Human Resource Management at ext. 4821 with questions.

Professor David A. Grahame from the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences will present his seminar "Protein Conformational Changes Coupled to Catalysis at the [4Fe-4S]-Ni-Ni Center of Acetyl-CoA Synthase" on Thursday, November 17, during Bengal Pause (12:15–1:30 p.m.) in Science Building 272. The following is his seminar abstract:

Acetyl-CoA synthase (ACS) is used by various species of anaerobic bacteria, including acetogens, and in methanogens and other archaea to catalyze the de novo synthesis as well as overall cleavage of the acetyl group of acetyl-CoA from simple one-carbon precursors at the level of CH3 and CO. The enzyme contains a unique active site metal cluster, designated the A cluster, that consists of a binuclear Ni-Ni center bridged to an [Fe4S4] cluster. The enzyme is unique in biochemistry in its use of organo-nickel chemistry to catalyze a carbonylation/decarbonylation reaction. In bacteria, ACS is tightly associated with CO dehydrogenase to form the bifunctional heterotetrameric enzyme CODH/ACS, whereas, in archaea ACS is a component of the large multienzyme complex acetyl-CoA decarbonylase/synthase (ACDS), which comprises five different subunits that make up the subcomponent proteins ACS, CODH, and a corrinoid enzyme. ACS enzymes exhibit multiple redox-dependent activities, including overall acetyl-CoA synthesis, acetyltransferase, and an isotopic exchange reaction between the carbonyl group of acetyl-CoA and CO. Results from systematic measurements of these activities applied to different ACS protein forms are presented, providing new insight into the mechanism of ACS catalysis, the importance of protein conformational changes in the cleavage of the acetyl C-C bond, and the overall function of the enzyme in both bacterial and archaeal systems.

Applications and nominations are requested for students to be considered for the following student awards. The deadline for nominations is Wednesday, November 23.

Student Leadership Awards

• Mildred Keller Campbell Leadership Award
• Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges
• Phillip Santa Maria Award for Student Leadership in Equity and Campus Diversity
   

Student Humanitarian Awards

• Luis M. Antonetti Student Humanitarian Award
• Minnie and Joe Engel Student Humanitarian Award
• Phillip Santa Maria Memorial Award

Nomination forms are available online. For more information, call Charles B. Kenyon, dean of students, ext. 4618.

Employees may now voluntarily cancel their health insurance coverage, voluntarily decline coverage for their dependents, or change their pretax contribution status for 2012. A form is required to make these changes. Note: Unless there is a qualifying event, the 10-week waiting period still applies to enroll for health insurance for the first time, or to add previously eligible dependents to existing coverage.

Please call Human Resource Management at ext. 4821 with questions.

The University at Buffalo Gifted Math Program is accepting nominations from teachers and parents of exceptional sixth-graders. GMP has been serving children in Western New York since 1980. We replace school math with a challenging curriculum for gifted children in seventh through 12th grades. We are also open to connecting with mathematics education majors and programs to provide opportunities to observe and work with gifted children. For more information, please visit our website or call 645-4467.

You have to feed your brain to think clearly. Brains use a lot of energy and need a constant supply of fuel. Find out what foods you should be eating more of at Buffalo State Dining’s Balanced U Party, today in Bengal Hall (in the Campbell Student Union) from noon to 2:00 p.m. Meet with our registered dietitian, Jill Troiano, and enjoy free samples of food that are guaranteed to boost your brain!

Enter with a meal swipe or lunch door price of $8.39. For more information on Buffalo State Dining’s Balance U program, visit www.dineoncampus.com/bsc.

The open enrollment period for the 2012 Flex Spending Account (FSA) program ends today, November 14. The program offers two benefits: the Health Care Spending Account (HCSAccount) and the Dependent Care Advantage Account (DCAAccount).

The HCSAccount allows employees to set aside from $100 to $4,000 annually in pretax salary to pay for health-care expenses not reimbursed by health insurance.

The DCAAccount allows employees to set aside up to $5,000 annually for child care, elder care, or disabled dependent care expenses on a pretax basis. The employer contribution is available for the 2012 plan year to M/C employees and employees represented by CSEA, PEF, and GSEU. The availability of the employer contribution depends on the outcome of negotiations between the state and the unions that participate in the program. For employer contribution updates, please visit the FSA website at  www.flexspend.ny.gov. 

Participants currently enrolled in the HCSAccount or DCAAccount must reenroll to continue benefits for 2012.

Apply online or call the Flex Spending Account hotline at (800) 358-7202.

Today's deadline will be strictly enforced.

This webinar is presented as part of the SUNY Teaching, Learning, Technology Cooperative on Monday, November 21, from 9:30 to 11:00 a.m. in the Professional Development Center (E. H. Butler Library 181B). The presentation is designed to aid in the transition from learner-centered theory to its actual application in the online environment. Learn how to deepen student learning by moving students up and down Bloom's Taxonomy in discussion forums and how to use active learning techniques to give students choice in both group work and individualized work. Participants will share activities and ideas. There was no opportunity to preview this webinar.

Register at http://bscintra.buffalostate.edu/registration/classdetails.asp?class=2650.