The University at Buffalo has reported that some university e-mail accounts have been compromised. While the university has indicated a probable cause, it is still not completely sure what happened. UB’s Spectrum has also posted an article about the compromised accounts, and WIVB has posted information as well.

Here’s what is being reported and how you can learn to avoid the same trap. The university believes the account credentials of faculty, students, and alumni were compromised because account holders used their UB usernames and passwords for another site or service. Please read about safe computing practices in the Buffalo State RITE Knowledge Base.

It’s a bit of work to stay secure online with connected electronic devices. But staying secure must be a top priority when thinking about registering for online services or completing forms with private information. Thinking there is nothing to lose is a HUGE mistake. When institutional credentials are used for other services, the entire campus may be compromised.

1. Do not use the same password for more than one account.
2. Learn to create a passphrase as your password; use an original passphrase or password for each account you have. See Tips for Creating Secure Password/Passphrase.
3. While you may need to use your Buffalo State e-mail address to register for a service on occasion (e.g., discounted cell service, subscriptions to the New York Times or Washington Post, or purchases from Dell or Apple), do not use your Buffalo State password with these accounts. Use a unique password for every account you have.
4. Regularly check https://haveibeenpwned.com. The owner of this site looks for pastes (stolen credentials pasted on the dark web) and breaches all over the world. Paste and breach information is reported on this site. When you arrive at the site, type in your e-mail address (no password is needed). If your e-mail address is part of a breach or paste, it will come up on this site. Type in each e-mail address you own and see if you’ve been pwned. If you’ve been pwned, a list of sites that have exposed your credentials will come up. Change your password for every account that has been pwned.

Following consultation with the College Senate and approval by all academic deans, I am pleased to announce the formation of two new interdisciplinary units: the Conflict Analysis and Resolution Interdisciplinary Unit and the Environmental Studies Interdisciplinary Unit.

Conflict Analysis and Resolution Interdisciplinary Unit
Conflict is an inevitable social and organizational reality. It also holds great potential for harm and good. The Conflict Analysis and Resolution Interdisciplinary Unit will help prepare students for a competitive job market by creating a master of science in conflict analysis and resolution program and a conflict resolution graduate certificate program. The programs will combine theory and application to address the need for highly skilled conflict resolvers to work in the fields of business, government, education, management, health care, child and family development, criminal justice, public service, ministry, social work, immigration, labor relations, international affairs and humanitarian work, communication, natural sciences, and both public and private sectors.

A graduate degree program in conflict analysis and resolution is not currently offered by a department at Buffalo State or any SUNY campus. Because of the wide range of disciplines from which participating faculty and courses will be drawn, these programs will be best served through an interdisciplinary unit rather than through a single academic department. The interdisciplinary unit will allow for the development of programs that capitalize on shared faculty expertise across disciplines. The Conflict Analysis and Resolution Interdisciplinary Unit will be housed in the School of Natural and Social Sciences. The initial co-coordinators for the IU will be Peter Yacobucci, associate professor, Political Science Department; and Clairissa Breen, assistant professor, Criminal Justice.

Environmental Studies Interdisciplinary Unit
Environmental studies is a fast-growing major in higher education and a staple course of study nationwide. Environmental studies takes a multidisciplinary approach toward understanding natural and social system interactions. It serves a wide range of disciplines including the arts, humanities, education, business, and the natural and social sciences.

A degree program in environmental studies is not currently offered by a department at Buffalo State, and because of the interdisciplinary nature of the field and the wide range of disciplines from which participating faculty will be draw, the program will be best served through an interdisciplinary unit rather than through a single academic department. An initial group of interested faculty include representatives from the Biology, Geography and Planning, Earth Sciences and Science Education, Economics and Finance, Philosophy, English, and Sociology departments. The Environmental Studies Interdisciplinary Unit will be housed in the School of Natural and Social Sciences.

We are pleased to invite the campus community to attend presentations from the 2018 Fostering Innovation in Teaching with Technology (FITT) scholars on Friday, June 8, from 9:00 to noon in Technology Building 160.

The FITT Academy is a weeklong intensive hands-on faculty development event sponsored by Resources for Information, Technology, and Education (RITE) that is designed to foster a “community of practice,” focused on advancing teaching with technology at Buffalo State. Please join us to learn more about the exciting and transformative accomplishments of FITT scholars and their shared experience. 

2018 FITT Scholars and Projects 

8:30–9:00 a.m.
Continental breakfast  

9:00–9:10 a.m.
Opening remarks 

9:10–9:30 a.m.
Kathleen McNerney, Assistant Professor, Speech-Language Pathology
The Use of Badges to Increase the Knowledge of Graduate Students in the Speech-Language Pathology Department 

9:40–10:00 a.m.
Andrea Nikischer, Assistant Professor, Adult Education
Increasing Engagement and Retention by Adding Gamification to an Online Graduate Course 

10:10–10:30 a.m.
Nirmala Nutakki, Lecturer, Mathematics
Digital E-learning Modules to Support the Learning of Elementary Mathematics Content by Pre-Service Teachers 

10:40–11:00 a.m.
Robin O'Dell, Associate Professor, Mathematics
Providing Interactive Remediation and Support via Adobe Captivate 

11:10–11:30 a.m.
Lisa Rafferty, Chair and Associate Professor, Exceptional Education
Increasing Student Engagement and Individualized Feedback in an e-Learning Environment 

11:30–11:45 a.m.
Closing remarks

I am pleased to announce the membership and charge of the Buffalo State College Information Security Team. No matter how big or small an institution may be, there is a vital importance in ensuring data security for both the institution as well as the end users. Careful planning, implementation, monitoring, and maintenance of strict controls are necessary to protect all assets, especially information, which is extremely valuable to any organization.

The Information Security Team is composed of the following core team members:

Judith B. Basinski, Associate Vice President for Data and Analytics
Melaine C. Kenyon, Director of Technology Support Services
Thomas D. Killian, Director of Enterprise Information Services
Melissa J. Miszkiewicz, Director of RITE Strategic Partnerships
Jeffrey J. Sick, Senior Systems Programmer
Romney G. Taylor, University Database Administrator
Jason P. Welborn, Manager, RITE Support Desk

The team is charged with providing guidance and counsel to the CIO/VP in defining objectives for information security while building relationships and goodwill; establishing annual and long-range security and compliance goals; working in collaboration with RITE governance to develop and implement effective and reasonable policies and practices to ensure information security and compliance with relevant legislation and legal interpretation; creating education and awareness programs and advising operating units at all levels on security issues, best practices, and vulnerabilities; convening ad hoc security committees as appropriate and providing leadership for breach response and notification actions for the college; establishing processes to review implementation of new technologies to ensure security compliance; and convening a Security Incident Response Team (SIRT) as needed or requested to address and investigate security incidences that may arise.

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Jim Finnerty as our next vice president for institutional advancement and executive director of the Buffalo State College Foundation. Mr. Finnerty, who will officially join the Buffalo State community on July 16, 2018, previously served as the senior director of campaigns for the Children’s Hospital of Buffalo Foundation while also holding the title of acting senior director of development for the Foundations of Kaleida Health—Children’s Hospital Foundation/Kaleida Health Foundation.

Throughout his career, Mr. Finnerty has provided fundraising, campaign, and financial leadership for a variety of clients and organizations. In his position with the Children’s Hospital Foundation, Mr. Finnerty played an integral leadership role in the completion of the $52 million campaign in support of the new John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital, including securing a $10 million leadership gift, which was the largest single gift in the institution’s 120-year history. I believe his exceptional fundraising and management skills—coupled with his knowledge and passion for our wonderful city and region—make for a terrific fit to lead our Institutional Advancement team as we continue to foster relationships with our cherished alumni, friends, and donors to the college. We look forward to Mr. Finnerty joining the Buffalo State family this summer.

I invite you to read more about Mr. Finnerty’s background in the biography below.

I would like to thank the members of the search committee and the search chair, Wendy Paterson, dean of the School of Education, for their efforts and service to Buffalo State.

And lastly, please join me in thanking and recognizing William Benfanti, associate vice president for government and alumni relations, for his insightful and skilled leadership during his tenure as interim vice president and executive director of the foundation. Mr. Benfanti’s judicious approach and astute analysis of policy and related management decisions will continue to benefit the college in the future.

About Jim Finnerty
Mr. Finnerty came to Buffalo as a consultant with CCS Fundraising in 2011 to lead the feasibility study for the new Oishei Children’s Hospital. He quickly became a part of the Western New York community and relocated to East Aurora to stay on and complete the campaign.

As the senior director of campaigns for the Children’s Hospital of Buffalo Foundation, Mr. Finnerty closed more than $33 million in leadership gifts toward the successful completion of the campaign in support of Oishei Children’s Hospital. He created and led personalized solicitation teams for all leadership gifts, and formed and managed the campaign’s volunteer committee. In 2014, Mr. Finnerty also assumed the role of acting senior director of development for the Foundations of Kaleida Health, leading a nine-person development staff. In this role, he led board development efforts, solicited seven-figure gifts, implemented performance improvements for the annual fund, initiated an event management system to drive key performance indicators, and managed process improvements for Raiser’s Edge.

Before Children’s Hospital, as an executive director for CCS Fundraising, Mr. Finnerty prepared leadership at nonprofit organizations across New England for their first or largest capital campaigns. In 2012, he was named director of development for Generate4Schools, where he assisted and engaged public school foundation boards across the country. In both of these positions, he provided campaign counsel for the new Oishei Children’s Hospital.

From 1999 to 2011, Mr. Finnerty worked in business development and health-care management for Datawatch, which led to the formation of a private company, the Crito Group. At the Crito Group, Mr. Finnerty managed a 50-person office and guided boards of rural and critical access hospitals through financial sustainability assessments, resulting in strategies to increase net revenues, reduce expenses, or increase access to capital.

Mr. Finnerty started his professional entrepreneurial career by creating a business called College Financial Aid Consulting (1993–1998). Here, he helped hundreds of first-generation college students gain access to higher education opportunities.

Mr. Finnerty earned a B.A. in economics in 1993 from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine.

Members of the Buffalo State community are invited to attend the sixth annual SUNY Pride Conference, “Pride without Borders: Sharing Our Stories Beyond the Rainbow,” on Friday and Saturday, October 12 and 13, on the campus of SUNY Oneonta.

This conference is meant to highlight and celebrate LGBTQIA+ experiences through fostered dialogue across academic and practical experiences, disciplinary focuses, and institutional perspectives, as well as provide support and resources to those who attend. Today’s students entering college come with new attitudes and understandings around gender and sexuality. Despite the progress made in different areas of policy, education, and popular culture, there’s still a lot of work to be done in order to give the best support and education to students in a nation full of uncertainty. To this effect, this year’s theme serves to provide an avenue for different voices to be heard and allow for greater representation of individuals who are so often silenced.

The SUNY Pride Conference Committee cordially invites students, community members, resource professionals, junior and senior faculty members, and administrators to submit proposals for the upcoming conference theme, “Pride without Borders: Sharing Our Stories Beyond the Rainbow.”

The SUNY Pride Conference Committee is also excited to announce an addition to the presentations this year: a Professional Track for current professionals and educators who work with and serve the LGBTQIA+ community (e.g., K–12 teachers, faculty members, administrators, staff members, counselors, community leaders, advisers) to share research, trends, and best practices for supporting students in the community and beyond. Please note on the submission form if you would like your presentation to count toward the Professional Track. Students will not be able to attend presentations or workshops in the Professional Track.

Student presenters should seek guidance from a faculty or staff member at their home institutions. The faculty or staff member should mentor the student through the process of writing the conference proposal, organizing a presentation on a specific theme, and presenting his or her scholarship to an audience.

SUNY Pride Learning Outcomes

Conference participants will be able to

• identify multiple aspects of diversity, including the ongoing development of identity and creating an inclusive community;
• explore and analyze current trends and issues that LGBTQIA+ college students face;
• create a network of student leaders and professionals; and
• explore powerful approaches to diversity, inclusion, and wellness through a local and global lens.

Below are some areas of potential interest that fit in this year’s theme and learning outcomes:

Invisibility of LGBTQIA+ Identities
Legacy of Intersectionality and/or Globalization
Marginalization and Resilience
Implications of Public Policy for LGBTQIA+ Communities
Heteronormativity/Homonormativity
LGBTQIA+ Transnational and Translocal Activism
Post-Colonial and De-Colonial Narratives
LGBTQIA+ Mental Health and Wellness
Global LGBTQIA+ Experiences
Political Climate and Impacts
Social Justice Movements
Allyship and Intervention
Acts of Resistance and Healing
Embodied Research and Teaching
Cultural Queerness
Non-normative Genders and Sexualities
Violence against LGBTQIA+ Bodies

To submit a proposal, please complete the Presentation Proposal Form before 11:59 p.m. Monday, September 10.

Please visit the conference website over the summer for more information and updates. Please contact Emily Phelps, chair of the SUNY Pride Conference Committee, with questions.

One of the many reasons I love being a part of a campus community is that I learn something new every day...

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

As part of the recently announced Student Affairs realignment, the New Student and Family Programs Office will now be located in the 400 suite of the Campbell Student Union under the newly developed area of Student Leadership and Engagement, while the Student Conduct and Community Standards Office will move to the lower level of Porter Hall.

Phone numbers for all offices and employees will remain the same. Office phones may experience periodic disruptions in service this week. If you cannot reach one of these offices, please call the Dean of Students Office at 878-4618.

It is with mixed emotions that I have accepted the resignation of Brad Fuster, associate vice president for institutional effectiveness, effective July 20, 2018. Dr. Fuster will be leaving Buffalo State to take on an exciting new role as interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at Keuka College. Please join me in thanking him for his outstanding service to Buffalo State and wishing him well in his new position.

The President’s Cabinet has approved the Policy on E-mail Services for Retired Employees (PDF, 191 KB) as recommended by the college's RITE Executive Committee. This policy guides the disposition of faculty and staff email accounts upon employee retirement. Continuing accounts may be requested through the RITE Self-Service Portal.