The Graduate School will host the Graduate Open House on Saturday, September 10, from 10:00 a.m. to noon in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall.

Students can learn about a new opportunity to study in Chile for three weeks next summer during this information session on Tuesday, September 13, at 12:15 p.m. in Classroom Building B119. The program provides two options: Spanish and sociology with volunteer work at an organization addressing poverty, or Spanish and elementary education shadowing teacher candidates and volunteering in schools. Students will find out how financial aid applies and about scholarships that are available, as well as how credits earned on the program can fulfill requirements here. Refreshments will be served, compliments of the Sociology Department.

The Graduate School will hold a meeting on Friday, September 30, from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. in E. H. Butler Library 210 to review important topics concerning graduate education and get your feedback about issues to explore. Topics will include the establishment of a Graduate Student Organization, the electronic thesis submission process, and new graduate programs. See you there!

The Burchfield Penney Art Center will host “Collaboration and Conflict: Robert Frost’s ‘Mending Wall,’” a  New York Council for the Humanities Conversation by David A. Sanders, professor emeritus of English at St. John Fisher College, on Sunday, September 11, at 2:00 p.m.

The New York Council for the Humanities Conversations Bureau promotes thoughtful, engaged community dialogue with 90-minute discussions based on short texts related to American identity, guided by a scholar-facilitator.

As we Americans are aware, we need to live and work alongside others from whom we differ strongly, if not radically, in outlook and opinion. Frost’s poem “Mending Wall” presents such a situation. The poem’s narrator works with his neighbor to repair the tumbled-down boundary wall that he claims they would be better off without. But when he tries to get his neighbor to discuss it, all the neighbor will say is, “Good fences make good neighbors.”

This conversation explores the principles and values behind the positions taken by each of the two men in the poem and the ways that Frost reveals the complexities of their situation. It will also consider the reasons that they work together despite their differences and, finally, how their collaboration demonstrates some of the core values of a democratic society.

The event is free and open to the public, but space is limited. Please call ext. 4534 for reservations.

Stop in to Moura's NY Deli and Café at the Burchfield Penney for lunch and receive a free soft drink and bag of chips with any sandwich or salad purchase, through September 10, 2011.

The 12th annual Faculty and Staff Research and Creativity Fall Forum will be held on Thursday, October 27, in the Houston Gym.

The goal of this forum is to develop, encourage, and support Buffalo State faculty and staff research and creativity, and to make collaborative research endeavors and grantsmanship more accessible. This is an excellent opportunity to network with other Buffalo State faculty and staff and to identify common scholarly and creative interests you may have.

All faculty and staff are invited to organize an exhibit to present current research, creative activity, or other scholarship. Individual, departmental, or group exhibits are welcome.

To participate, please complete the online form. Titles and abstracts/descriptions are to be submitted electronically by Friday, September 30.

Please visit the Fall Forum web page on the Research Foundation’s website for more information.

The Research Foundation will host two hands-on workshops about PIVOT on Wednesday, September 14. PIVOT is a new tool from Community of Science that provides research administrators, research development professionals, and their institutions the edge to bring together the right research opportunities, funding, and people—quickly and easily. It provides global and local connections that strengthen research by exploring new avenues for funding and collaboration—for faculty, staff researchers, and graduate students.

Plan to attend one of two hands-on sessions:

Date: Wednesday, September 14
Time: Session 1:  9:00 to 10:15 a.m. or Session 2: 10:30 to 11:45 a.m.
Place: Classroom Building C104

To register, e-mail rfcommunication@rf.buffalostate.edu. Please indicate the session you wish to attend. More information is available on the Research Foundation website. Please contact mary@rf.buffalostate.edu with questions.

We will be starting our third at-work session on September 15. As a group, we have lost more than 1,200 pounds! Come and check out our next meeting for free on Thursday, September 8, at 12:15 p.m. in E. H. Butler Library 208. We need to have at least 20 participants to keep this going. The session would run for 17 weeks for $186; this includes 19 weeks of free e-tools (a three-part payment plan is available; you must bring three checks for $62 each). Please be prepared to pay on September 15. If you need additional information, please contact Melissa Slisz, ext. 4101.

All students, faculty, staff, alumni, and supporters of Buffalo State College: Join the faith community of the Newman Center as we invoke God's blessing on the new academic year at the annual Convocation and Mass of the Holy Spirit on Sunday, September 11, at 10:30 a.m. in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. This year, we will honor Deborah and Thomas Renzi with the Newman Award for their support of our mission to form future Catholic leaders.  A reception will follow. We desire your presence and need your support. To reserve a space, please contact the Newman Center at 882-1080 or newmancenter@buffalostate.edu.

Banner INB will be unavailable on Saturday and Sunday, September 10 and 11, to allow for the application of a number of software patches. Self-Service Banner (SSB) will be functioning normally during this time. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.