Buffalo State’s annual State Employees Federated Appeal (SEFA) and United Way Campaign begins today, October 11. The college has a long tradition of generously giving to organizations that improve the lives of men, women, children, and pets in Western New York, and I am hopeful that we will again surpass our campus goal. The campaign theme is “Choose to Make a Difference.” We hope we can count on you to help Buffalo State maintain its status of having the highest rate of participation of any SUNY campus.

Pledges may be made electronically or through your department's ambassador. Thanks to all who are leading and participating in the 2022 SEFA/United Way Campaign.

Members of the campus community are invited to submit nominations for the following student awards:

President’s Medal for Outstanding Undergraduate and Graduate Student
One undergraduate student and one graduate student will be awarded the President’s Medal. The President’s Medal is the highest honor awarded to a student by Buffalo State. This award is given to a student who, through use of his or her natural talents and acquired skills, has demonstrated a commitment toward meeting the goals of higher education as set forth in the university’s mission statement. Recipients will deliver the student address at Commencement. A minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 is required for consideration for the President’s Medal for Outstanding Undergraduate Student.* Only students graduating in August 2022, December 2022, January 2023, or May 2023 are eligible for this award.

SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence
Please note: As of November 21, 2022, SUNY will not be selecting students for a special award for the 2022–2023 academic year. Students who were being considered for the special award should be nominated for the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence.

The Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence is the highest honor bestowed by SUNY upon a student. This award recognizes special achievement in at least three of the following areas: academic excellence, leadership, campus involvement, community service, or the arts. Examples of achievements and accomplishments to consider may include but are not limited to athletics, advocacy, military service, student government, teaching and service positions, involvement in clubs and organizations, volunteer work, and research experience. To be eligible, a student must graduate between June 2022 and May 2023. Successful candidates will be invited to the Capital District for an award ceremony and reception in April 2023.

Nomination Procedure
Nominations are being sought for both awards. Students must be nominated by a faculty or staff member at Buffalo State. Candidates must have demonstrated the qualities recognized by each award. Selection criteria are similar for each award; however, to be considered for the President’s Medal, a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 is required.* A student may be nominated for either or both awards.

Selection Criteria for Both Awards
Academic Excellence: Documented via grade point average, honors received, rank in class, research, and other scholarly projects.

Arts: Accomplishments and contributions in a particular arts-related discipline, including performance, visual arts, musical arts, skilled crafts, or other.

Citizenship: As measured by community service, the quality of extracurricular activities, and involvement in professional organizations.

Campus Involvement: As measured by significant accomplishments, contributions, or experiences in campus activities while a student at Buffalo State.

Leadership/Creativity: Documented local, state, national, or international recognition for excellence (e.g., recipient of major national scholarships or athletic awards, or recognition by national and international associations and honor societies).

For graduate students: Documented activities related to the discipline of graduate degree program or other university service leadership in a professional organization, or community outreach activities related to the field of study.

More information and nomination materials are available on the Student Affairs website.

Deadline
Nominations and supporting documentation may be submitted electronically by email to Student Affairs or delivered to Cleveland Hall 513 by 4:00 p.m. Monday, December 19.

Students should submit their portfolio either electronically in a single PDF or as hard copy in a binder and be sure to also email the three required Word documents alongside the portfolio (information form, personal statement, and résumé or curriculum vitae).

Please contact the Student Affairs Office, (716) 878-4704, with questions or concerns regarding the application process.

*Information will be verified with the Registrar's Office.

Members of the campus community are invited to submit nominations for the following student awards:

President’s Medal for Outstanding Undergraduate and Graduate Student
One undergraduate student and one graduate student will be awarded the President’s Medal. The President’s Medal is the highest honor awarded to a student by Buffalo State. This award is given to a student who, through use of his or her natural talents and acquired skills, has demonstrated a commitment toward meeting the goals of higher education as set forth in the university’s mission statement. Recipients will deliver the student address at Commencement. A minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 is required for consideration for this award. Only students graduating in August 2022, December 2022, January 2023, or May 2023 are eligible for this award.*

SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence
The Chancellor’s Award is the highest honor bestowed by SUNY upon a student. This award will be offered in two categories: (1) General Awards with special achievement in at least three of the following areas: academic excellence, leadership, campus involvement, community service, or the arts; (2) Special Awards, which will be bestowed to one student systemwide in each of the following categories: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Special Service (Mental Health); and Overcoming the Odds; and to up to five students systemwide in the Military category, honoring each branch of the military. These students may have already received recognition from campus, local, state, national, or international organizations, and we would like you to include that information in the nomination process. To be eligible, a student must graduate between June 2022 and May 2023. Successful candidates will be invited to the Capital District for an award ceremony and reception in April 2023.

Nomination Procedure
Nominations are being sought for both awards. Students must be nominated by a faculty or staff member at Buffalo State. Candidates must have demonstrated the qualities recognized by each award. Selection criteria are similar for each award; however, to be considered for the President’s Medal, a minimum cumulative grade point average of 3.5 is required.* A student may be nominated for either or both awards.

Selection Criteria for Both Awards
Academic Excellence: Documented via grade point average, honors received, rank in class, research, and other scholarly projects.

Arts: Accomplishments and contributions in a particular arts-related discipline, including performance, visual arts, musical arts, skilled crafts, or other.

Citizenship: As measured by community service, the quality of extracurricular activities, and involvement in professional organizations.

Campus Involvement: As measured by significant accomplishments, contributions, or experiences in campus activities while a student at Buffalo State.

Leadership/Creativity: Documented local, state, national, or international recognition for excellence (e.g., recipient of major national scholarships or athletic awards, or recognition by national and international associations and honor societies).

For graduate students: Documented activities related to the discipline of graduate degree program or other university service leadership in a professional organization, or community outreach activities related to the field of study.

SUNY Chancellor’s Award: Special Awards: Documented activities and achievements related to one of the following categories: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Special Service (Mental Health); Overcoming the Odds; or Military.

More information and nomination materials are available on the Student Affairs website.

Deadline
Nominations and supporting documentation may be submitted electronically by email to Student Affairs or delivered to Cleveland Hall 513 by 4:00 p.m. Monday, December 19.

Students should submit their portfolio either electronically in a single PDF or as hard copy in a binder and be sure to also email the three required Word documents alongside the portfolio (information form, personal statement, and résumé or curriculum vitae).

Please contact the Student Affairs Office, (716) 878-4704, with questions or concerns regarding the application process.

*Information will be verified with the Registrar's Office.

At Buffalo State, we are building on our prior successes and continuing to work together on a new multiyear plan to expand our enrollment portfolio and secure a financially stable and sustainable future. We invite you to follow our progress toward our goals through ongoing strategic initiatives via the website A Sustainable Future at Buffalo State. This is an evolving site, and it will be updated as progress is made and data are collected.

Please encourage students and alumni to attend the 2022 Graduate and Professional School Fair, hosted by Career and Professional Education, on Tuesday, October 25, between 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. in the Student Union Social Hall. More than 60 graduate schools with a variety of programs, including law, medicine, business, education, government, and more, are participating at the event. Students can learn more about a variety of programs and the admission process, as well as make connections with recruiters from across New York State, the Northeast, and beyond. Student registration is strongly encouraged though not required.

Benefits of participating in the Graduate and Professional School Fair include meeting the reps who may be on graduate admissions committees, getting tips on graduate essays, and potentially getting waivers for application or entrance exam fees.

For more information, please contact Career and Professional Education.

Buffalo State is currently in the pilot phase of D2L Brightspace with 25 pilot faculty members, 90 course sections, and more than 900 students.

All courses will be in D2L Brightspace beginning with the 2023 J-Term. Faculty members teaching in J-Term 2023 have been contacted on how to access Brightspace and have been provided with resources for training and course content migration. In addition, all faculty members with online teaching credentials on file have been contacted on how they too can begin to prepare for future semesters.

Faculty members teaching in J-Term and spring 2023 now have access to Brightspace and the courses for which they are scheduled to teach according to Banner. All faculty members should begin participating in the variety of training opportunities that are being provided by SUNY and Instructional Design and Distance Learning. SUNY has created an optional Training Path Self-Assessment to help you identify which training options might work best for you. The Brightspace Fundamentals Workshop Series includes sessions on Navigation and Interface; Communication; Authoring/Publishing Content; Gradable Activities: Quizzes, Assignments, and Discussions; and Gradebook. This series is designed for instructors new to Brightspace and is suitable for instructors teaching in any modality: face-to-face, hybrid, or online.

Online synchronous workshops will be provided by the SUNY Center for Professional Development. Registration is open.

Online asynchronous modules are available with the Buffalo State Brightspace environment. You can log in to mylearning.buffalostate.edu using the Network Login option with your Buffalo State username and password. If you are experiencing log-in issues, please submit a ticket via the IT portal.

In-person sessions will be offered by Instructional Design and Distance Learning and the Teaching and Learning Center. These sessions will be hosted on campus in a variety of labs across campus. Registration is through the Workshop Registration System.

Further questions about Brightspace can be submitted to the IT portal.

I am pleased to announce that the following faculty and staff members will serve on the 2022–2023 Honorary Degree Committee:

Chair: Aaron Daniel Annas, Director, Television and Film Arts
William Benfanti, Associate Vice President for Institutional Advancement
Dorothea Braemer, Assistant Professor, Communication Department
Atta Ceesay, Chair and Associate Professor, Political Science and Public Administration Department
Julian Cole, Chair and Associate Professor, Modern and Classical Languages Department
Macy Todd, Associate Professor, English Department
Jennifer Toohey, Associate Professor, Theater Department

LeVar Burke, chief of staff in the President’s Office, will provide staff support to the committee.

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The Honorary Degree Committee is charged with identifying candidates for the State University of New York honorary doctorate, 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 to LeVar Burke, Cleveland Hall 518, by Thursday, October 20.

Please join me at the annual Fall Address as I deliver my message to the Buffalo State community on Tuesday, October 18, at 12:15 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center’s Tower Auditorium. All members of the campus community are encouraged to attend.

Please join me at the annual Fall Address as I deliver my message to the Buffalo State community today, October 18, at 12:15 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center’s Tower Auditorium. All members of the campus community are encouraged to attend.

The Emergency Response Planning Group and University Police will conduct a test of the college’s outdoor emergency alert horn at 1:30 p.m. Thursday, October 27.

People who are outdoors during the test will hear a series of three loud 60-second horn blasts emanating from the central heating plant. Please note: the horn is primarily intended to be audible at outdoor locations on campus—not inside buildings.

In a real emergency, the horn would sound for a minimum of five full minutes. If a real emergency alert is signaled, immediately seek shelter and await further instructions communicated via Buff State Alert, email, suny.buffalostate.edu, or direct instructions from University Police. For more information on Buffalo State’s comprehensive emergency response plan, please visit the UPD website.

Approximately 30 minutes before the test horn sounds, the college will issue a campuswide test of the Buff State Alert emergency communication system. At this time, all students, faculty, and staff members who have registered with the service will be sent a test message.

Students, faculty, and staff members are strongly encouraged to enroll in Buff State Alert, or modify their preferences, by visiting the Buff State Alert website and logging in with their Buffalo State username and password. Those who do not have a Buffalo State username or password but want to receive text messages from Buff State Alert can sign up by texting the phrase “buffalostate” to 79516.