The Honorary Degree Committee is charged with identifying candidates for the State University of New York honorary doctorates, SUNY’s highest academic honor, and preparing nomination portfolios. Honorary degrees are awarded to recognize excellence that exemplifies the mission and purpose of the State University of New York in the following fields: public affairs, the sciences, humanities and the arts, scholarship and education, business and philanthropy, and social services.

Honorary degrees also can honor meritorious or outstanding service to the university, the state of New York, the United States, or humanity at large, or people whose lives serve as examples of the university’s aspirations for its students.

Please forward the names of suggested nominees for SUNY honorary doctorates, along with a brief rationale, to Maryruth Glogowski, Cleveland Hall 515A, or to any other committee member by Friday, November 11.

The second annual FITT Academy will be held June 5–9, 2017, and the call for project proposals (PDF, 91.5 KB) is now open. The Fostering Innovation in Teaching with Technology (FITT) Academy is a hands-on project-specific faculty development opportunity sponsored by Resources for Information, Technology, and Education (RITE). This event, which was recently highlighted in the President's Fall Forum, is designed for full-time faculty or lecturers to launch a faculty community of practice focused on advancing teaching with technology. Project proposals, which may be submitted electronically, are due by Thursday, January 5, 2017, and will be reviewed by the FITT Academy Committee, which includes RITE staff and the 2016 FITT scholars. Applicants will be notified of accepted project proposals by early March. If selected, participants will be assigned to a Project Support Team that will assist in crafting a project charter, including project timeline, resources required, budget, and assessment plan.

Examples of ideal FITT projects:

• Redesign a module or unit of course resources or assessments from classroom to online using Blackboard.
• Locate and incorporate an existing open educational resource (OER) into one or more learning modules.
• Redesign a portion of a face-to-face class to incorporate active learning techniques facilitated through technology.

Stipends are available to support FITT initiatives, so don't miss out! Additional information on the FITT Academy can be found on the RITE website.

I am pleased to announce the following appointments to the 2016–2017 Orientation Advisory Committee:

Co-Chair: Drew Kahn, Professor, Theater; Director, Anne Frank Project
Co-Chair: David Cox, Director, New Student and Family Programs

Barish Ali, Associate Professor, English
Jean DiPirro, Associate Professor, Psychology
Kristen Helling, Assistant Director, Student Life
Pixita del Prado Hill, Professor, Elementary Education and Reading
Christopher Hillman, Assistant Recreation and Intramural Manager, Intercollegiate Athletics
Shelly Inniss-Jackson, COMPASS Program Coordinator, Student Success
Jude Jayatilleke, Senior Academic Adviser, Educational Opportunity Program
Carlos Jones, Associate Dean, School of Arts and Humanities
John Mack, Senior Counselor, Counseling Center
KeunYoung Oh, Associate Professor, Fashion and Textile Technology
Karen O’Quin, Associate Dean, School of Natural and Social Sciences
Maria Pacheco, Associate Professor, Chemistry
Amy Runfola, Assistant Director of Transfer Admissions, Admissions
Bhakti Sharma, Chair and Associate Professor, Interior Design
Daniel C. Vélez, Associate Vice President, Student Success

The Orientation Advisory Committee provides support, feedback, and advice for the New Student and Family Programs Office and its director. The committee provides input into the design, implementation, and assessment of orientation for first-year students, transfer students, and their families.

Composed of faculty from each of the academic schools in Academic Affairs as well as units in Student Affairs to include developmental programs, Enrollment Management, and Student Success, the committee is charged with the following responsibilities:

1. Review the existing orientation model and provide feedback on its elements.
2. Provide feedback on the connections between orientation programming, student learning objectives, and the college mission.
3. Review the college's strategic plan and ensure orientation alignment.
4. Provide advice for the orientation director as new programming is initiated.
5. Act as orientation ambassadors to provide clarity of orientation programming for multiple campus constituents.
6. Provide insight from orientation stakeholders throughout the Buffalo State community.
7. Provide feedback on new and innovative ways to orient students to Buffalo State.
8. Review NODA best practices and CAS standards to ensure programmatic cohesion.

The orientation program is an integral part of a comprehensive retention, engagement, and persistence framework. As such, the advisory committee will consider how its recommendations ensure that Buffalo State is designing programs that provide students with the right balance of mandatory and essential content that ensures they are learning what is necessary to make the transition into the community.

Please remember that all international travel with students must be coordinated through the International and Exchange Programs unit. It is crucial that our efforts be organized to ensure that the institution is indemnified and that our risk-mitigation plan is respected. More information for planning a faculty-led trip can be found on the International Education website.

Tricia Herritt is Buffalo State’s director of international education. She can be reached at (716) 878-4620 or via e-mail at herrittl@buffalostate.edu. 

Robert Summers is Buffalo State’s assistant dean for international and exchange programs. He can be reached at (716) 878-5443 or via e-mail at summerrh@buffalostate.edu.

Increasing retention is a key focus of the college’s 2016–2021 Strategic Plan. We know how crucial it is. After all, attracting students to our campus is one thing; making sure they have the tools they need to succeed is another.

One way to achieve this is by offering students more academic support services. This is where the new Academic Achievement Center (AAC) comes in. The AAC will serve as a one-stop center for a range of student services, all housed within Butler Library.

Although the completed facility won’t open until 2020, a $75,000 grant from the John R. Oishei Foundation made it possible to begin the first phase this fall. The grant allowed the college to hire AAC director Aimee Woznick in August. She’ll be the guiding force during execution of the subsequent AAC phases.

Another element of phase one, a new Drop-in Advising Center located within the library’s Information Commons, also opened this fall, thanks to Millington Lockwood Business Interiors. The Advising Center’s cubicle has been outfitted with sleek furniture that Millington Lockwood’s president, Michael Bonitatibus, ’79, provided to us at a special rate.

The Oishei Foundation and Millington Lockwood helped us launch an exciting and forward-thinking project that should result in better service for our students and higher graduation rates. What a terrific example of individual gifts contributing to Buffalo State’s overall mission of empowering students to succeed and inspiring a lifelong passion for learning.

I had the pleasure this week of attending the 17th annual Faculty and Staff Research and Creativity Fall Forum, held in Houston Gymnasium...

Please follow my blog at http://kateconwayturner.tumblr.com.

We are conducting a review of our campus child-care services to determine how we might better meet the needs of the campus community. Please assist us in this review by completing a short survey. The survey will take approximately five minutes to complete. All who complete the survey will be entered in a drawing to win a $75 Visa gift card.

Thank you for your participation and for helping us make our Child Care Center the best it can be.

Faculty and staff members in Academic Affairs are invited to join me for a wine and cheese reception on Friday, January 20, 2017, from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. This will be a working meeting. Attendees will break up into workgroups focusing on budget, recruitment, and retention issues. To assist with planning, please respond by Wednesday, December 21.

At the center of the democratic process is the fundamental right of all adult citizens to vote for those who they think are best suited to lead, to handle responsibility, to consider complex issues, to make important decisions, and to develop policy that fairly and appropriately governs our cities, states, and country...

Please follow my blog at http://kateconwayturner.tumblr.com.

My husband, Dr. Alvin Turner, and I cordially invite you to attend the annual Campus Holiday Party on Friday, December 9, from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. We also invite you to join us in the giving spirit of the season by bringing a new unwrapped toy for a child in our local community.

Please respond by Friday, December 2.