Zhang Jie, professor of sociology and director of the Center for China Studies, published his paper "Suicidal Ideation among the Chinese Elderly and Its Correlates: A Comparison between the Rural and Urban Populations" in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 15 (3): 422. The study's coauthors were Wei Jianwen, Deng Yuping, Sun Long, and Guo Ping. Dr. Sun Long was a visiting scholar at Buffalo State in 2014–2015.

Anthony Chase, assistant dean of the School of Arts and Humanities, has been named senior theater writer for the Buffalo News. Dr. Chase, who serves as interim chair of the Theater Department at Buffalo State, recently also served as interim director of the Performing Arts Center at Rockwell Hall.

A new fifth edition of ??Public Speaking for Success: Strategies for Diverse Audiences and Occasions, by Bruce G. Bryski, associate professor of communication, and Timothy J. Brown was published by Hayden-McNeil/Macmillan Publishers (2018).

?Sales of the book's previous four editions have reached 5,000.

Candace Williams, assistant director of residential experience, was elected as the university college sector representative for the SUNY-Residence Life and Housing Administrators 2018–2020 board of officers. SUNY-RLHA is a professional organization that meets throughout the year to create professional development opportunities, address key housing issues, and discuss local, state, and federal legislation related to residence life professionals across New York state.

Kevin Williams, associate professor of earth sciences and science education, presented a GeoSunday workshop about geology on Earth and across the solar system, and how to present those concepts in a planetarium, on August 5 at Spitz Inc. in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania. The daylong workshop was attended by planetarium professionals from across the United States.

Raquel J. Schmidt, associate professor and incoming chair of the Exceptional Education Department, presented "The Science of Meditation and Mindfulness: Strategies for Teachers and Students" at the International Conference of the Council for Exceptional Children's Division of Internation Special Education and Services, held in Capetown, South Africa, July 3–5. Dr. Schmidt also facilitated several sessions at the conference.

Jane Cushman, associate professor of mathematics, was a faciliator at the July 2019 Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL) workshop held in Los Angeles, California. PRODUCT IBL workshops are practical, hands-on, interactive workshops for college math instructors interested in teaching via IBL or hybrid IBL. The focus of the workshops is on developing the skills and practices necessary for successful implementation of IBL.

Participants learned new skills from experienced IBL instructors, reflected on current teaching practices, and prepared to teach their own IBL math course during the next academic year. The IBL workshop is a residential workshop.

IBL is a form of active learning in which students are given a carefully scaffolded sequence of mathematical tasks and are asked to solve and make sense of them, working individually or in groups. Many varieties of IBL exist under one “big tent.” While courses may look different, they all rely on the core principles of (1) deep engagement in rich mathematical activities and (2) opportunities to collaborate with peers. Following these core principles, IBL courses enhance student learning by providing opportunities to learn the process of understanding and presenting math rather than simply watching someone else do it.

Brian Kantz, publications director; Nancy Paschke, associate director of publications; and Chantel Kutzbach, art director, College Relations Office, were honored by the State University of New York Council for University Advancement (SUNYCUAD) at the organization’s 2018 conference held in Syracuse in June. 

The College Relations staff members received the Best of Category award (magazines) for 1300 Elmwood magazine and the Judges’ Citation award (student recruitment packages) for an array of undergraduate admissions recruitment publications. The SUNYCUAD Awards for Excellence are judged by peers from across the SUNY system. This marks the fourth time in the past six years that 1300 Elmwood has been recognized as one of the top alumni magazines in the 64-campus system and the third time in the past four years that Buffalo State admissions recruitment publications (undergraduate and graduate) have been voted among the best in the system. Overall, College Relations has garnered 21 publications-related SUNYCUAD Awards over the past six years.

Michael Niman, professor of communication, was the keynote speaker at the Mott Hall High School commencement in Harlem on June 29. Niman's speech focused on Thomas Jefferson's admonishment to maintain "eternal vigilance" against tyranny, while also challenging students to be better people than the Founding Fathers.

Chris Shively, assistant professor of elementary education and reading, visited the He Dog School in Parmelee, South Dakota, June 9–16 to establish a relationship between He Dog school leaders and Buffalo State College. It is hoped that this relationship will develop into a Professional Development Schools partnership between the two schools in a manner similar to the partnerships Buffalo State has established with schools in Chile, the Dominican Republic, Italy, Germany, and Zambia.

The overarching goal of the partnership is to take education students from Buffalo State College to He Dog, a school composed of 100 percent Lakota children, so that they can work with the students. One of Shively’s subgoals is to recruit native students from the Seneca and Tuscarora nations of WNY into Buffalo State’s School of Education and make visiting He Dog part of their educational experience. As Darryl Tonemah (Tuscarora/Kiowa/Comanche), a local WNY psychologist who accompanied Shively, said, “We are looking to create a cultural exchange between native students in WNY and native students in South Dakota.” Shively was asked by Tonemah and Lindsey Cummings, a Lakota language teacher, to visit the school, lead engineering classes, and participate in Lakota cultural activities.

While there, Shively gave the Lakota children two engineering challenges to tackle. On the first day, students designed a “squishy circuit” (Johnson & Thomas, 2010) in order to send coded messages to each other using only light generated from the circuits. On the second day, he helped students take the Fluor National Engineering Challenge, which required students to design a ball launcher and receiver using everyday materials (e.g., cups, pencils, rulers, tape, rubber bands, paper). The sending codes challenge was inspired by the Lakota code talkers of World War II and IBM engineers, and the ball launcher/receiver challenge was inspired by the Lakota children’s love for basketball.

Shively also participated in Lakota arts healing, listened to Lakota storytellers, and learned about the value of the buffalo to the Lakota nation.

Shively is looking forward to taking Buffalo State students to South Dakota next year.