Meg Knowles’s latest short film was featured in August in a touring film program titled “Tough Stuff from the Buff” that screened at locations throughout the Pacific Northwest including the Pacific Cinematheque in Vancouver, British Columbia. Knowles’s work will also be featured in September at the Midwest 3-Minute Film Festival in Michigan, and in the Emerging Filmmakers Series at the Little Theatre in Rochester, New York.

John Thompson, associate professor, Computer Information Systems, participated in a panel presentation, “Writing for ISTE Publications,” at the National Education Computing Conference (NECC) in Washington, D.C., on July 1. Thompson is the editor of the ISTE publication Journal for Computing Teachers.NECC is the largest educational technology annual conference in the USA.

Deborah Silverman, assistant professor, Communication, served as moderator for a panel discussion, “Publish or Perish: Tips on Starting Your Scholarly Research Agenda,” at the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication convention in Boston, Massachusetts, August 5–8. Silverman also was a discussant for two research sessions in the Public Relations Division. She also received a “SuPRStar Award” from the Public Relations Division for her work in the field of ethics, including presentations at the Public Relations Society of America and Public Relations Student Society of America conferences and her service as the PRSA board liaison to its Board of Ethics and Professional Standards.

Toni Phillips, complex director, Residence Life, co-presented with Marcelina Rondon, EOP counselor at the University at Buffalo, “Many Faces of Our Students: Assisting Student-Parents in Higher Education to Succeed.” Phillips and Rondon were the only New York State presenters at the fifth annual Student-Parent Support Symposium, sponsored by the Ohio State University and held at the Holiday Inn in Columbus, Ohio, June 25–26.

Wendy Paterson, professor, Elementary Education and Reading, has accepted appointment as the dean of the Ralph C. Wilson School of Education at St. John Fisher College in Pittsford, New York. She concluded 21 years of service to Buffalo State on August 17, when she began her tenure as dean at Fisher.

Michael I. Niman, associate professor, Communication, served as consulting producer for the film We Love You,produced by three-time Academy Award nominee Jonathan Kalafer. The film won Best Documentary at the 13th annual Los Angeles International Short Film Festival, where it debuted on July 27. The 40-minute ethnodocumentary examines the Rainbow Family, a nomadic anarchist utopian group that was the focus of Niman’s doctoral dissertation and subsequent University of Tennessee Press book People of the Rainbow. The film is scheduled for general release in the fall.

Vincent Masci, Clerk 1, College Senate Office, received the Best Newcomer Award for his performance at the 2009 Infringement Festival at Nietzsche’s on August 2. Masci performed pop and Broadway songs of the ’60s with his band, Revelation, during the festival’s closing ceremonies.

Lisa Forrest, instructional technology librarian, E. H. Butler Library, received the Public Radio News Directors Incorporated (PRNDI) Award for her radio commentary “And So This Is Christmas,” which aired in December on WBFO, Buffalo’s National Public Radio station. PRNDI is the only national competition devoted solely to rewarding outstanding local public radio journalism and, according to Mark Scott, news director at WBFO, is a highly competitive and prestigious award. The commentary, a reflection on the Elmwood Village on Christmas Day, was recognized at PRNDI’s annual conference in Portland, Oregon, on June 13.

Sharon Cramer’s third book, A Teacher’s Guide to Change, was published in August, 2009 by Corwin Press. Cramer and coauthor Jan Stivers (Marist College) incorporated results from a research study on teachers’ experiences with change into a text designed to assist K–12 classroom teachers to experience and lead change in their personal and professional lives.

Maria Ceprano, professor, and Nancy Chicola,associate professor, Elementary Education and Reading, presented “Pre-service Teachers Collaborating with Families to Foster Global Literacy Connections” at the 16th International Conference on Learning, held in Barcelona, Spain, July 1–4. The presentation recounted how teacher candidates in their Social Studies Methods classes worked in partnership with their mentoring teachers, instructors, and an urban school community to develop positive associations with respect to literacy and other cultures.