Please join the Residence Life Office as we kick off our annual Paraprofessional Appreciation Week (P.A.W.) celebrating the dedication, service, and leadership of our paraprofessional student leaders. Paraprofessionals include first-year mentors (FYM), resident assistants (RA), apartment assistants (AA), office assistants (OA), the Residence Hall Association (RHA), and the Residence Hall Judicial Board (RHJB).

Beginning Monday, April 16, we are encouraging students, faculty, and staff to take a "PAWS" to recognize a paraprofessional that you may know. You can obtain a paw print from any residence hall office from 7:00 p.m. to midnight, or from the Residence Life Office, located in Porter Hall, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. These paws will be displayed in the windows and halls of the residence halls. Paraprofessional Appreciation Week concludes Sunday, April 22.

Thank you to all who submitted proposals for the fourth annual Anne Frank Project, "Our Shared Humanity: Embracing Responsibility," during the busy first round. The conference will be held on campus September 12–15. The second round of proposals, for Buffalo State faculty, staff, and students and the Western New York community, is now open. Round 2 proposals are due Wednesday, April 25.

For complete conference details and the easy online proposal application, visit www.theannefrankproject.com/afp2012.html. For more information, please call the AFP office at ext. 5221 or e-mail theannefrankproject@buffalostate.edu.

Ice sculpture is a form of sculpture that uses ice as the raw material. Sculptures from ice can be abstract or realistic and can be functional or purely decorative. If you've ever wondered how ice sculptures are made, then wonder no more. Join Buffalo State Dining for an ice-sculpting demonstration as we make a baby grand piano on Tuesday, April 17, in the Student Union Quad from noon to 1:00 p.m.

For more information on Buffalo State Dining, visit our website.

The Muriel A. Howard Award for the Promotion of Equity and Campus Diversity recognizes faculty and staff who have gone beyond their usual duties to promote respect for diversity and individual differences through classroom discussions, curricular experiences, out-of-classroom activities, projects, discussions, or special mentorships that go beyond what is usually expected as part of their regular job expectations or teaching assignments. We welcome nominations from students, faculty, and staff so that we might acknowledge members of our community who live the values of respect for diversity and advocacy for social justice at a luncheon on Tuesday, May 8. The award criteria and nomination form can be found on the Equity and Campus Diversity Office website. The application deadline is Wednesday, April 18.

Do you want to add more video content to your courses? Do you have trouble locating it? Do you know the content you want but can’t seem to find it anywhere? Explore the many resources available to you in the E. H. Butler Library collection and on the Internet. Learn how to find videos and how to include them in your ANGEL courses. Presented by Mark McBride and Al Riess on Friday, April 27, from 10:00 to 10:50 a.m. in E. H. Butler Library 314.

Register at http://bscintra.buffalostate.edu/registration/classdetails.asp?class=2840.

Do you want to try e-books in your courses? This presentation will introduce you to the collection of e-book materials in the library such as ebrary and the EBSCO e-book collection. Learn how to access e-books and how to bring them into your courses. Presented by Mark McBride and Al Riess on Wednesday, April 25, from 11:00 to 11:50 a.m. in E. H. Butler Library 314.

Register at http://bscintra.buffalostate.edu/registration/classdetails.asp?class=2839.

The Buffalo State Child Care Center will begin registration for its School-Age Summer Camp on Monday, April 16. The camp is geared for ages 6 through 11 and runs from June 25 through August 24. Our program includes many field trips and in-house enrichment activities. Please call the center at ext. 5335 for more information.

Sharpen your cooking skills with Buffalo State Dining. Learn the proper technique to roll sushi today from noon to 1:00 p.m. in Resident Dining, located in the Campbell Student Union. Enter Resident Dining with a meal swipe or door rate of $8.39.

For more information on Buffalo State Dining, visit our website.

The Teacher Education Council bylaws have been revised to reflect the new framework for teacher education at Buffalo State College. The proposed bylaws can be found on the Teacher Education Unit website, along with the current bylaws and an overview of the changes. Each full-time teacher education faculty member will receive an e-mail requesting that he or she cast a vote to accept the proposed TEC bylaws. Electronic voting will take place between Thursday, April 12, and Wednesday, April 18.

Shuzhu Gao, associate dean and professor in the College of Elementary Education at Capital Normal University in Beijing, will present two talks for Buffalo State faculty and students. The first, on Wednesday, April 18, at 6:00 p.m., will convey some of the historical meanings of Chinese characters and connect them with their mathematical meanings and use today that results in ambiguity. His second talk, at noon on Friday, April 20, will focus on the natural mental structures in children and their implications for teaching mathematics. Both talks will be held in Ketchum Hall 113. I hope you are able to join us in welcoming Shuzhu Gao to Buffalo State.