As Buffalo State and the nation commemorated the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King on January 19, I was reflecting on the reality of Dr. King’s legacy. What is clear is that Buffalo State is a campus that embraces the importance of equity, justice, and civil rights for all...

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I am discovering the many ways that Buffalo State is preparing students to understand, solve, and advance the complex questions we face as a region and a state. One such success story is our GIS program...

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Engagement is an important and central aspect of the Buffalo State experience. Students are engaged in and outside the classroom, and every attempt is made to help students cultivate a life where they become engaged students and subsequently committed members of their professional and civic communities...

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I am pleased to invite the campus community to the annual luncheon honoring our colleagues who are in their 25th year of service at Buffalo State College. The event will take place on Tuesday, March 10, at noon in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. Reservations will be accepted through Monday, March 2.

The 39 employees crossing the 25-year mark this year:

Solochidi oL Ahiarah, Business
Sylvia D. Bakos, Fine Arts
Kelly G. Boos, School of Natural and Social Sciences
Alfred M. Cappello, Computing and Technology Services
Darryl C. Carter, STEP
Kristin N. Chambers, ICHP/CDHS
Leslie K. Day, Elementary Education and Reading
Mohan S. Devgun, Engineering Technology
Leslie D. Dixie-Smith, Student Accounts
Tom M. Giambrone, Mathematics
Stephanie R. Goldberg, Engineering Technology
Pura R. Gonzalez, ICHP/CDHS
Jeanne M. Guzy, University College
Abdollah Hajikandi, Educational Opportunity Program
Gail M. Hartman, Registrar’s Office
Barbara A. Huddleston-Mattai, Social Work
Deborah Jones, Admissions
Susan M. Keller-Mathers, Center for Studies in Creativity
Joseph M. Kelly, Business Department
Joseph A. Kurdziel, Campus Services
Valerie A. Lehman, ITEC
Elizabeth A. Lenegan, Philosophy and Humanities
P. Rudy Mattai, Social and Psychological Foundations of Education
Rafika Merini, Modern and Classical Languages
Joan E. Nicolette, Academic Support Programs
Thomas Ochs, Performing Arts Center
Hal D. Payne, Students Affairs
Kenneth P. Payne, Fine Arts
Gerard J. Puccio, Center for Studies in Creativity
Dennis M. Richmeyer, Campus Services
Carmen D. Santiago, ICHP/CDHS
Ted P. Schmidt, Economics and Finance
Wendy Scott, Writing Program
Joan E. Slater, Housing and Auxiliary Services
Ronald D. Smith, Communication
Randal J. Snyder, Biology
Ron Stewart, Sociology
Julie A. Stumpf, ICHP/CDHS
Marie E. Unson, Computing and Technology Services

To make a reservation, please complete and return the reservation form (doc) to the President's Office. If you have questions, please call Laurie Graziano or Melissa Slisz at ext. 4101.

I am pleased to announce the following appointments to the President’s Marketing and Communication Committee. This committee will

• develop recommendations to enhance or facilitate Buffalo State College’s communication and marketing messages;
• suggest ways to broaden the range and type of messages targeted toward prospective and current students and others who influence these students’ college choices.

Committee Membership
Timothy J. Walsh, Associate Vice President, College Relations, Chair
Erin R. Alonzo, Associate Vice President, Enrollment Management
Susanne P. Bair, Vice President for Institutional Advancement
Jerod T. Dahlgren, Director, Public Relations
Bonita R. Durand, Chief of Staff
Thomas C. Koller, Senior Associate Director, Intercollegiate Athletics
Christine A. Lai, Associate Professor, Business
Seth A. Oyer, Assistant Professor, Communication
Kevin J. Railey, Associate Provost and Dean, Graduate School
Deborah A. Silverman, Associate Professor, Communication
Carmela Thompson, Director, Admissions
Daniel C. Vélez, Associate Vice President, Student Success
Kevin K. Williams, Associate Professor, Earth Sciences and Science Education
Steven Cornelio, Undergraduate Student
Sean McCormick, Graduate Student

I am pleased to announce the following appointments to the Strategic Enrollment Steering Committee (SESC). The SESC serves in an advisory role to the president and will address the following strategic enrollment issues:

• Strategies that meet long-term and short-term enrollment goals
• Enrollment targets that provide an advantageous mix of undergraduate, graduate, and special populations that maintain the overall enrollment goal set by the President's Cabinet
• Innovative and effective strategies to enhance recruitment and retention of students
• Strategic enrollment growth to meet regional and statewide needs
• Plans that are consistent with the mission and values of the college

The committee will also

• review the results of new programs and policies that enhance recruitment and enrollment efforts;
• report regularly to the president and the cabinet;
• submit an annual report of the work of the committee.

SESC Membership
Erin R. Alonzo, Associate Vice President, Enrollment Management, Chair 
Emily W. Boyce, Chair and Associate Professor, Music
Daniel J. Heims, Assistant Director, Orientation
David R. Henry, Associate Professor, Elementary Education and Reading
Abdollah Hajikandi, Assistant Director of Academic Services, Educational Opportunity Program
Eric J. Krieg, Chair and Professor, Sociology
Margaret T. Letzelter, Assistant to the Dean, Graduate School
Kevin J. Miller, Chair and Professor, Exceptional Education
Karen O’Quin, Associate Dean, School of Natural and Social Sciences
Margaret A. Shaw Burnett, Associate Vice President, Continuing and Professional Studies
James A. Thor, Associate Vice President and Comptroller
Amitra A. Wall, Assistant Dean, Intellectual Foundations
Timothy J. Walsh, Associate Vice President, College Relations
Rita M. Zientek, Interim Dean, School of the Professions

I encourage the Buffalo State community to nominate deserving colleagues for President’s Awards and SUNY Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence. Award guidelines are available on the Academic Affairs website. Please see the Nomination Resources page for helpful information and tips on assembling nomination dossiers.

President’s Awards for Excellence
Nominations with supporting materials for the President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Advisement; Advancement of Equity and Campus Diversity; Career Achievement for Faculty; Career Achievement for Professional Staff; Faculty and Staff Mentoring; Librarianship; Research, Scholarship, and Creativity; Service to the College; Teaching; or as an Undergraduate Research Mentor are due to the provost by the first Monday in March each year. This year’s deadline is Monday, March 2. Please submit nominations electronically to Carolyn Martino, assistant to the provost.

Chancellor’s Awards for Excellence
Nominations for the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Adjunct Teaching are due to the provost by September 15 each year. Please submit nominations electronically to Carolyn Martino, assistant to the provost.

Nominations with supporting materials for Distinguished Teaching Professor, Distinguished Service Professor, or the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, Professional Service, Librarianship, Scholarship and Creative Activities, or Faculty Service are due to the provost, Cleveland Hall 519, by the third Monday in October each year. This year’s deadline is Monday, October 19. When feasible, please submit nominations electronically to Carolyn Martino, assistant to the provost.

For SUNY Chancellor’s Awards, nominators should prepare their nomination letters in the format of a summary presentation, as specified in the SUNY award guidelines. The first page of all nomination packets should be the Buffalo State Nomination Checklist Cover Sheet (PDF).

Have you noticed something slightly different this week? If not, pay closer attention and join the spirit of Buffalo State’s Random Acts of Kindness Week. I encourage you to make a deliberate effort to spread kindness both on campus and off this week, beginning February 9...

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I have established a new Committee on Undergraduate Retention to provide recommendations that will increase the persistence, retention, and graduation rates of undergraduate students. I am pleased to announce the following appointments to the committee:

Committee Membership
Mark W. Severson, Dean, School of Natural and Social Sciences, Co-Chair
Daniel C. Vélez, Associate Vice President, Student Success, Co-Chair
Daniel M. Blum, Lecturer, History and Social Studies Education
Lynne M. Boorady, Chair and Associate Professor, Fashion and Textile Technology
Jerry S. Boyes, Director and Head Football Coach, Intercollegiate Athletics
Connie F. Cook, Director, Financial Aid
Leslie K. Day, Lecturer, Elementary Education and Reading
Brian D. Dubenion, Assistant Director of Residence Life for Student Success, Residence Life
Jennifer S. Hunt, Associate Professor, Psychology
Yanick H. Jenkins, Director, Educational Opportunity Program
James Mayrose, Chair and Associate Professor, Engineering Technology
Lisa A. Rafferty, Associate Professor, Exceptional Education
Deborah A. Silverman, Associate Professor, Communication
Ralph L. Wahlstrom, Professor, English
Susan F. Wright, Director, Student Accounts
Hal D. Payne, Vice President for Student Affairs, Ex Officio
Dennis K. Ponton, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Ex Officio

The Community Policing Advisory Committee was originally formed after a review of recommendations in the May 2002 report of the Ad Hoc Community Policing Committee and in the October 2002 Middle States Commission on Higher Education report to the faculty, administration, College Council, and students of Buffalo State College. The committee is being reinstated in 2015 to address the recommendations of a 2013–2014 independent consultant’s Public Safety Management Study of the campus.

I am pleased to announce the following appointments to the committee:

Committee Membership
James J. Sobol, Associate Professor, Criminal Justice, Chair
Peter M. Carey, Chief of Police, University Police
Jerod T. Dahlgren, Director of Public Relations, College Relations
Jill M. D’Angelo, Associate Professor, Criminal Justice
Patrick H. Freeman, University Police Officer 1, University Police
Michael A. Heflin, Director, Residence Life
Karen A. Clinton Jones, Chief Diversity Officer, Equity and Campus Diversity
Charles B. Kenyon, Associate Vice President and Dean of Students, Student Affairs
Joan L. McCool, Director, Counseling Center
Amy M. McMillan, Associate Professor, Biology
Richard F. Myers, University Police Officer 2, University Police
Amy M. Pedlow, Assistant Chief of Police, University Police
Ronald D. Smith, Professor, Communication
Daniel C. Vélez, Associate Vice President, Student Success
Oscar W. Budde, Graduate Student Association Representative
Ashleigh-Ann C. Sutherland, President, United Students Government
Asiria B. Cornielle, Undergraduate Student Representative
Jordan A. Tyson, Undergraduate Student Representative