The Take Back the Night program this year again showcased how the Buffalo State community comes together to prevent sexual assault and to support those who have faced this violation...

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I am pleased to announce the appointment of David Cox as director of new student and family programs at Buffalo State College, following a national search. His term begins May 17, 2016.

Cox comes to Buffalo State from Bethune Cookman University, where since 2012 he has served as director of the Office of Orientation and Transition Programs. At Bethune Cookman, he was responsible for working collaboratively with a broad range of campus constituencies in developing, planning, implementing, and assessing all new undergraduate student orientation programs. Bethune Cookman relied on Cox to work on freshman transition programs, develop resources to support families, and implement parent and family programs for a growing population of first-generation college students and families. Additionally, Cox supervised a diverse staff of undergraduate and graduate employees, interns, and volunteers.

Before joining Bethune Cookman, Cox held positions as associate dean of academic affairs and instructor of psychology at Keiser University (2010–2012), where he collaborated across the institution to develop student academic support services, provided academic advising, and assisted in the hiring of faculty. Before his work at Keiser University, he taught middle school and high school from 2006 through 2010.

Cox earned his master of arts in counseling from Webster University and bachelor of science in technology education from SUNY Oswego.

Please join me in congratulating Kevin Railey, who was named provost at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, New York, on Tuesday. You can read more about his new role on the St. John Fisher website.

Kevin has served as Buffalo State’s associate provost and dean of the Graduate School since 2007, leading important initiatives such as advancements in campuswide scholarly and creative pursuits, the Carnegie Classification for Community Engagement, and a comprehensive professional development program. He first joined the Buffalo State community as a faculty member in the English Department in 1991, and later held posts as interim provost, interim associate vice president for enrollment management, chair of the English Department, and coordinator of the freshman writing program.

The campus community thanks Kevin for his years of tireless commitment to Buffalo State’s mission, values, and goals, and we wish him the best of luck in his new position.

This year the Buffalo State Great Lakes Center turns 50, and last week the Great Lakes Center and its many supporters came together to celebrate the event...

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Colleagues,

As Kevin Railey will be leaving us to become the provost at St. John Fisher, I will be looking for an interim dean of the Graduate School for academic year 2016–2017, to begin June 1. We will conduct an internal search in the next few weeks. If you would like to be considered, please send me a letter of interest (no more than two pages) and an updated curriculum vitae by Monday, May 2.

As a faculty member, I was called upon to give expert comments to local newspapers, to local television networks, and a few times for magazine articles...

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Every year the Buffalo Niagara Ambassador Awards ceremony provides the opportunity to pay tribute to hospitality and tourism professionals who serve as examples of all that our students can and should achieve in the industry. It’s also a chance to award exemplary students with scholarships. Events like this would not be possible without philanthropy.

During this year’s award ceremony held on April 20, the hospitality and tourism faculty recognized one of its top students, senior Cara Crowder, with the $15,000 Statler Scholarship of Excellence. We are extremely grateful to a foundation that recognizes the hard work of our students with such generous scholarships.

The Statler Foundation continues to provide incredible support to our hospitality and tourism program. It has provided $25,000 in scholarships this year, along with $20,000 for the study-abroad program in Italy. It also has given $375,000 for culinary facilities in the newly renovated Caudell Hall.

During the Ambassador Awards ceremony, scholarships also were awarded to students from other donors, including Pano’s Restaurant, Hart Hotels, the New York State Club Managers Association, the New York State Restaurant Association, and the Hospitality and Tourism Department.

I know with the help of the many community partners who support the hospitality and tourism program, our students have a bright future ahead.

The 144th Commencement is quickly approaching—Saturday, May 14, will arrive before we know it...

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At its April 8, 2016, meeting, the College Senate voted to recommend to the president the following revisions to the J-Term Policy as outlined in the resolution below:

WHEREAS, college policy currently limits the number of credits for which undergraduate and graduate students can enroll during the fall and spring semesters; and

WHEREAS, processes exist to grant students semester credit overrides, if warranted; and

WHEREAS, J-Term courses are offered in a very compressed schedule compared with fall and spring semesters; and

WHEREAS, students registering for excessive credits during J-Term also demonstrate an increased percentage of unsuccessfully completed J-Term credits (J-Term 2016 data: 1 cr = 39 students [.03% unsuccessful completion]; 3 cr = 382 students [.02% unsuccessful completion]; 6 cr = 144 students [18% unsuccessful completion]; 9 cr = 20 students [30% unsuccessful completion]; 12 cr = 4 students [50% unsuccessful completion]; 18 cr = 4 students [50% unsuccessful completion]); and

WHEREAS, J-Term financial aid is considered part of the student’s spring financial aid and, thus, use of J-Term financial aid reduces a student’s spring financial aid eligibility and, further, J-Term registrations can negatively affect upcoming semesters’ financial aid eligibility (i.e., turning a student on federal aid warning into ineligible for federal aid due to unsuccessful completion of J-Term classes),

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Buffalo State College adopt the following J-Term Credit Limit Policy, with a suggested implementation at the start of J-Term 2017:

Undergraduate and graduate students are limited in their J-Term registrations to a maximum of 7 credits for students in good academic standing, and to a maximum of 4 credits for students not in good academic standing. Maximum credit overrides may be approved by academic departments for students in good academic standing or by deans’ offices for students not in good academic standing.

I hereby authorize the changes to the J-Term Credit Limit Policy as outlined in the recommendation from the College Senate, effective with the January 2017 term. I charge the provost with responsibility for implementing the policy changes and communicating these change broadly and widely to faculty, students, and staff.

At its April 8, 2016, meeting, the College Senate voted to recommend to the president adoption of the broad-based fee increase as outlined in the resolution from the Student Welfare Committee:

WHEREAS, enrollments have declined for the past three years, causing a reduction in revenues for the broad-based fee accounts; and

WHEREAS, fringe benefit costs continue to increase expenses,

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the College Senate support the administration’s broad-based fee increase of 3 percent (or $32) for the 2016–2017 fiscal year, with the following individual changes: increases for Athletics = $16; Health = $13; and Technology = $3.

I hereby authorize the broad-based fee increase of 3 percent or $32 ($16 for Athletics, $13 for Health, and $3 for Technology) for the 2016–2017 academic year. I charge the vice presidents for finance and management and student affairs and the chief information officer with the responsibility for implementing the fees, and monitoring and reporting on the use of the fee income at regular intervals throughout the year.