Registration is underway for students, faculty, and staff to participate in this year’s important Bengals Dare to Care program. This year, we demonstrate our commitment to racial justice, social responsibility, and community building through a month-long experience in listening, learning, reflecting, and taking action.

From October 26 to November 22, engage in racial justice through virtual presentations with dynamic community partners, deeper learning, and action. Materials for deeper learning and opportunities for taking action are available on the Bengals Dare to Care website.

Register to participate in one of the virtual presentations:

• Tuesday, October 27, 4:00–5:00 p.m., Voting, Civil Rights, and Racial Equity, presented by Franchelle C. H. Parker and Max Anderson, Open Buffalo
• Wednesday, November 4, 2:00–3:00 p.m., Education and Racial Equity, presented by Daniel Robertson, Manager of Boys and Men of Color Initiative, Say Yes Buffalo
• Monday, November 9, 12:30–1:30 p.m., Diverse Voices within Communities of Color, presented by Kirby Briggs, Kirby’s Korner, and Alex Burgos, MOCHA Center
• Thursday, November 19, 12:15–1:15 p.m., Food Insecurity, Housing, and Racial Justice, presented by Ada Garcia-Poll, ’18; Hannah Kalmeyer, ’21; and Elyse Burgher, FeedMore WNY

We will continue to conduct COVID-19 pool testing for students next week through Thanksgiving break. Testing will take place in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall. Individual course sections are not being selected for testing. Instead, students will receive an e-mail with an assigned date and time frame to present themselves for testing. Though we have tried to assign time frames that minimize disruptions to students’ course schedules, we ask that you support any students who may arrive late to class with a note from the testing team. If a student is selected for testing, he or she must complete the testing in accordance with the recently issued Chancellor’s Uniform Conduct policy. Pool test results are available within 72 hours. Contact tracers will work with the campus in any situation where a positive result may emerge and will notify exposed individuals.

A “How to Swab” video, demonstrating what can be expected during testing, is available on Vimeo.

We ask faculty members to continue to have students present their Daily Symptom Tracker phone app results when arriving to class. Again, per the chancellor’s guidance, students are required to complete the symptom tracker before coming to class and should come to class only if the system has assigned them a GREEN dot and displays the following day’s date. (The system displays a date one day advance to reflect the 24-hour window of clearance.) If a student presents with any other color dot or has not completed the tracker, please refer him or her to the Weigel Wellness Center. More information about the COVID-19 Daily Symptom Tracker and the color key (PDF, 223 KB) can be found on the Weigel Wellness website.

We also ask faculty members to use assigned seating arrangements in their classrooms if possible. This will assist contact tracers in determining who was seated near positive cases. Assigned seating may even prevent an entire classroom from having to be quarantined.

I appreciate your continued efforts to help monitor, support, and keep our campus safe.

New York State enacted legislation in 2018 requiring all employers, including Buffalo State College, to ensure that their employees complete sexual harassment prevention training by October 9, 2020. Supervisors of graduate assistants, student assistants, or work-study students should ensure that these students complete the training in Blackboard Learn by Friday, October 9. The following training requirements meet all New York State requirements for sexual harassment prevention training. The Equity and Campus Diversity Office is offering the following options to comply with this requirement:

1. 2020 Recertification: Staff and Faculty Who Completed the 2019 Sexual Harassment Training
If you completed the 2019 Sexual Harassment Training, you need to complete only the 2020 Recertification training by October 9, 2020. Employees can complete the online training in their offices or anywhere else that they have access to Blackboard Learn at a time that is convenient for them. The training takes between 15 and 20 minutes to complete. Once you log in to Blackboard and access the training folder, please read all the directions and complete the required actions described.  

2.  2020 Certification: New Staff and Faculty Who Have Not Completed the 2019 Sexual Harassment Training
If you have not completed the 2019 Sexual Harassment Training, you need to complete only the 2020 Certification training by October 9, 2020. Employees can complete the online training in their offices or anywhere else that they have access to Blackboard Learn at a time that is convenient for them. The training takes between 45 minutes and one hour to complete. Once you log in to Blackboard and access the training folder, please read all the directions and complete the required actions described.  

3. Employees Who Do Not Have Access to Blackboard
For employees who do not have access to Blackboard (for example, Facilities staff members), the Equity and Campus Diversity Office is coordinating options to complete the training with your supervisor. Please contact the Equity and Campus Diversity Office, 878-6210, for more information.

Accessing the 2020 Recertification and Certification Training
The sexual harassment prevention training videos may be accessed through the "My Organizations" section of Blackboard Learn. The training link is titled "New York State Sexual Harassment Learning Modules." Completing the training videos and reviewing Buffalo State’s Policy and Procedures on Sexual Harassment complies with the college’s obligation to provide the sexual harassment prevention training and your requirement as a New York State employee to receive and complete sexual harassment prevention training.

For more information, please visit the Equity and Campus Diversity website or review the list of frequently asked questions. For all other questions, please contact the Equity and Campus Diversity Office, 878-6210.

Last year, we introduced “Faculty Engaged,” a new multimedia project to highlight the extraordinary work of our brilliant faculty. We had set out to release six episodes throughout the 2019–2020 academic year, but the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted our schedule before the final two installments could be produced. Fortunately, we gathered footage and interviews for our final two subjects before social distancing became the norm, and today we are excited to share our fifth episode.

In February, we visited with John Torrey, assistant professor of philosophy and Africana studies, to learn more about his career, research interests, and outstanding commitment to mentoring Buffalo State students...

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

Please note that as of July 2020, Adobe Sign is no longer bundled as part of Adobe Acrobat DC and is no longer covered under the SUNY license agreement with Adobe. Adobe Sign was made available through Acrobat DC for a short time only. Adobe now provides Sign as a separate enterprise tool with an additional cost and a separate contract.

If you previously used Sign to insert signatures into an existing PDF, you can find instructions on how to sign an existing PDF using Acrobat Reader DC, Mac OS Preview App, or Acrobat Reader DC (iOS and iPad OS) in this guide from Boston College. Information Technology will continue to explore other viable options.

The Governor’s Office of Employee Relations has announced that alternative work arrangements (the state’s telecommuting pilot program) have been extended to January 1, 2021. As a result, Temporary Work Location/Flexible Work Schedule Agreements at Buffalo State College will remain in effect until this date. It is not necessary for employees to submit requests for extension of these agreements.

Department heads and supervisors must ensure that staff members using alternative work arrangements have an approved plan on file.

Terms of the original, approved agreements will remain in effect as follows.

The employee agrees to and understands the following:

• I am responsible for creating a work plan, including hours worked and work performed, and I must submit my signed document to my supervisor or manager.
• I will be available for work-related discussion online or by phone.
• I will need to use my own equipment, supplies, and telephone/Internet connection to perform job duties.
• I must continue to fulfill my professional obligation and must continue to meet the performance expectations of my position.
• If I do not produce a work product and my essential functions are not performed, I will charge my leave accruals in order to be paid.
• In the event of any circumstances that make work from an alternative location impracticable, my supervisor may require me to report to the regular work site OR charge appropriate leave accruals.
• I am subject to the same federal and state laws, policies, and procedures applicable to employees at the regular college work site.
• The college is not liable for injuries to third parties at the alternative work location or liable for damages to the employee’s personal or real property.
• Any approved temporary request is subject to revision, suspension, or revocation based on future guidance by the college or the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations (GOER) and/or SUNY or the Research Foundation of SUNY.
• These protocols will be in place only as current circumstances involving the COVID-19 pandemic warrant.

Should you have concerns that you are unable to continue the terms of the approved agreement, please contact your supervisor immediately. Thank you.

In accordance with a directive from the State University of New York, all state-operated SUNY campuses, including Buffalo State College, will conduct testing of employees who are required to report in person to campus to complete some or all of their work obligation. This directive is effective immediately and continues through December 31, 2020.

Because of the critical need to quickly identify and control the spread of the COVID-19 infection, SUNY has established agreements with UUP, CSEA, PBANYS, and PEF to conduct mandatory testing of represented employees. Management/Confidential (M/C) employees are also included in the mandatory testing.

To detect COVID-19 cases and identify asymptomatic carriers, Buffalo State has implemented regular surveillance testing via self-administered saliva tests. Pool testing—combining samples from several people and conducting one laboratory test on the combined pool of samples—will be used to quickly identify and address potential outbreaks within our campus population.

We will collect the samples, which will then be pooled and assessed at a laboratory. Results from the pools are expected to be returned confidentially within 48 hours of receipt. We are in the process of coordinating the logistics of sample collection.

When you are selected to participate in pool testing, you will receive an e-mail informing you of the date, time, and location of your test, along with relevant instructions. If you are reporting to campus on the assigned date, and the time of the test is during your regular work hours, you are required to complete the test. All testing must be completed during the assigned time frame.

Please note that Buffalo State is extending the opportunity to be tested to all campus employees including those represented by NYSCOPBA and staff members of the Buffalo State College Foundation and SUNY Research Foundation at Buffalo State. These employees are strongly encouraged to participate.

To understand what to expect during the testing process, please watch this brief video. Please e-mail hrcovidresponse@buffalostate.edu or call Human Resource Management at 878-3042 if you have questions.

On your testing date, if you answer “yes” to any of the health screening questions on the Daily Health Screening Questionnaire—indicating that you may have been exposed to COVID-19—please do not report to work or for testing.

Thank you for your participation in this important process aimed at protecting the health and safety of our campus community.

Please continue to practice social distancing, wear face masks, and wash your hands regularly.

I invite all members of the campus community to participate in one of Buffalo State College’s signature events, the Anne Frank Project’s 12th annual Social Justice Festival. This free event will be live and remote via BlueJeans or Instagram October 13–15 and is open to the public.

Visit the AFP 2020 website to view the full schedule (PDF, 700 KB) and register for sessions. 

The Career Development Center will host more than 100 graduate schools and programs at its annual Graduate and Professional School Fair on Thursday, October 22, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. online. All students and alumni are encouraged to attend this free virtual event. This is a great way to learn more about a variety of programs and the admission process, as well as make connections with recruiters.

Top five reasons why recruiters recommend attending the virtual fair:

1. Schools may give out application fee waivers. This can add up to hundreds of dollars in waived fees!
2. Some schools may provide an entrance exam fee waiver or show you how to receive course waivers for prerequisites and entrance exam waivers.
3. Get insider tips on scholarships and financial assistance.
4. Many of the reps at the fair serve on the admissions committee, so you can learn what they really want to hear in your essay.
5. Get connected with advisers and faculty members for direct follow-up questions.

For a complete list of participating schools, please visit the Events page of the Career Development Center website. For more information, contact the Career Development Center, 878-5811.

Buffalo State College has always valued, encouraged, and supported faculty sabbaticals. We recognize their importance for personal and professional growth. For decades, sabbaticals have provided opportunities for faculty members to conduct research, create artistic works, and generate writing projects that, in the end, serve our students. 

Unfortunately, because of the extraordinary situation COVID-19 has presented and the financial constraints we are under, no sabbaticals will be reviewed for approval this academic year; however, faculty members who were eligible this year for a sabbatical will be given priority when sabbatical funding returns in the future. I appreciate your understanding.