From the Chief of University Police
Buffalo State University's 2024 Annual Security and Fire Safety Report (PDF, 12 MB) is now available online. This report is required by federal law and contains policy statements and crime statistics for the university. The policy statements address Buffalo State's policies, procedures, and programs concerning safety and security, for example, policies for responding to emergency situations and sexual offenses. Three years' worth of crime statistics are included for certain types of crimes that were reported to have occurred on campus, in or on off-campus buildings or property owned or controlled by the university, and on public property within or immediately adjacent to the campus. This report is posted online (PDF, 500 KB).

You may also request a paper copy from University Police at (716) 878-6333 or police@buffalostate.edu if you are unable to view or print a copy from the website.

The Performing Arts Center is excited to offer special discounted tickets to the upcoming Debbie Gibson Acoustic Youth: Songs & Stories from the Electric Youth Era concert on Saturday, October 12, at 8:00 p.m. Tickets are just $20 and are available at this special rate for Buffalo State faculty, staff, and students only. Discounted tickets must be purchased at the Rockwell Hall Box Office in person during box office hours (Tuesday-Friday, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.). Buffalo State ID is required. A maximum of four tickets can be purchased at the discounted rate with each Buffalo State ID. Regular priced tickets can be purchased online anytime at buffalostatepac.org. 

Chartwells and the Small Business Development Center will host a farmers market today, September 26, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the Student Union Plaza. Local vendors will be selling candy, chocolate, jewelery, apparel, and more. Chartwells will also be selling fresh produce: pay $10 for a brown paper bag and fill it to capacity. Chartwells will also be selling early harvest butternut squash soup. We hope to see you there!

The Walk in Her Shoes Fashion Show, held to raise awareness of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) crisis in Canada and the United States, will be held Monday, October 14 (Indigenous Peoples Day), at 6:30 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Social Hall.

Indigenous women experience violence and sexual crimes at 10-12 times the national average, more than any other race. Murder is the third leading cause of death for Native women. Colonization, historical trauma, racism, and sexual objectification are the root causes of this injustice.

This show is hosted by Aiyana Jacy Martin, a current freshman at Buffalo State University and an active advocate for MMIW. She uses fashion to bring more visibility to the Indigenous culture and issues that have a devastating impact on the community.

This event is sponsored by Buffalo State's Equity and Campus Diversity Office and the Educational Opportunity Program (EOP).

Please email Aiyana Jacy Martin or Tristin Salter, program coordinator in Continuing Professional Studies, if you are interested in attending. Seating is limited for this event and will be first come, first served.

Please join us for "Demystifying Federal Data," a presentation by Amy Brombos, data dissemination specialist with the U.S. Census Bureau, on Monday, September 30, from 4:30 to 5:45 p.m. in Bacon Hall 115. This talk is part of the Data Science and Analytics Seminar Fall 2024 Series.

• Learn how to tell stories about the communities you live in using federal demographic and economic data. 
• Discover how the federal government obtains data about the population, households, businesses, and the economy. 
• Learn how the government categorizes and structures the data it collects. 
• Navigate millions of tables of raw data to draw correlations and create custom reports. 
• Explore USAjobs to learn about federal jobs and internships. 

Amy Brombos began her federal service during the 2020 Decennial Census campaign as the New York State partnership coordinator for the US Census Bureau. She earned the Bronze Medal for Leadership, the highest honor awarded to a civilian employee by the Department of Commerce, for her leadership during the COVID pandemic. She transitioned to the Data Dissemination and Training Branch in 2022 as a data specialist covering New York State and specializes in academic and educational data. Before working with the U.S. Census Bureau, Dr. Brombos spent over two decades in academia. She was a biology and physics teacher, chief information officer, researcher, and adjunct professor, teaching courses on data use for continuous school improvement and strategic planning, accreditation, and academic grant writing. Dr. Brombos is a graduate of the University of Hawai'i at Manoa with degrees in liberal arts (B.A.), sports psychology (B.S.), and interdisciplinary biomedical sciences (M.S.). She also earned degrees in secondary science education (M.S.) and educational leadership in higher education (Ed.D.) from D'Youville University in Buffalo. 

SUNY STEM instructors are invited to apply for the i-STEAM project on inclusive STEM education, a five-module online faculty development program supported through the SUNY Innovative Instruction Technology Grant (IITG) program. Up to 50 STEM instructors from across the SUNY system will collaboratively explore how to make STEM education more inclusive by reviewing, rethinking, and diversifying our curricular design and delivery while drawing on interdisciplinary perspectives, including from the humanities, arts, and knowledge traditions across cultures. Participants will explore AI tools and develop OER materials to leverage project goals. Program participants will meet four to five times throughout the fall 2024 semester, with a mini-symposium in spring 2025 to share their experience with SUNY STEM faculty.

Participants will receive a $300 stipend.

More information is available online. 

Please contact Gary Halada, associate professor of materials science and engineering at Stony Brook University, with questions.

Please join us for "Investing 101," presented by Voya Financial, on Tuesday, October 1, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. via Zoom. 

You don't need to be an expert or a stock market whiz to put an investment strategy into place. By focusing on just a few fundamentals, you can have a solid investment plan for your retirement or other financial goals. This engaging seminar will explain investing concepts in plain English and provide simple, practical ways to help you invest with confidence.

To register, please visit the Workshop Registration System.

Please join the Teaching and Learning Center for the session "To Theme or Not to Theme: The Impact of Themed Coursework on Students in Higher Education," presented by Pamela Schuetze-Pizarro, professor of psychology, and Kathy Doody, professor of exceptional education, on Friday, October 18, from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. in Butler Library 318.

Increasing student engagement and ultimately student retention is a priority in higher education, necessitating the development of innovative strategies to keep students engaged. One promising approach is themed courses, or courses that involve the incorporation of popular culture themes. In this workshop, we will define themed coursework, review the existing literature on the impact of themed coursework, and describe the findings of a study we have conducted on the impact of themed coursework on students in higher education. 

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

Instructional Design and Distance Learning along with the campus DLE Brightspace Stakeholder Committee will host representatives from SUNY Digital Innovation and Academic Services (DIAS) and SUNY Online for our SUNY Online Visit: Digital Learning Environment (DLE) on Thursday, September 26, in Butler Library 318.

Kim Scalzo, interim senior associate provost of digital innovation and academic services; Dan Feinberg, interim director of SUNY Online; and Harry Cargile, director of academic technology strategy and integration, will be on campus for sessions to hear from you and our students about using Brightspace, what you wish it would do, and how you see technologies like Brightspace enhancing teaching and learning.

9:55-10:40 a.m. - Student Open Session - A focus group with Buffalo State students. What is their experience with Brightspace? What is working well, and what could be improved? Where do they need additional support?

10:50-11:35 a.m. - Faculty/Staff Open Session - A focus group with Buffalo State faculty. What is their experience with Brightspace? What has improved over previous learning management systems? What is not working well? Where do they need additional support?

2:00-3:00 p.m. - Brightspace Showcase - An innovation showcase of the use of DLE at SUNY Buffalo State. What are people doing that is unique and uses the DLE in novel ways? What is a challenge you would like to solve using the DLE?

We hope you will be able to join us. All are welcome! Registration is encouraged.

Please join us for a short workshop about Butler Library's new Research Assistance Modules pilot this fall on Thursday, October 3, from 12:15 to 1:00 p.m. Butler Library has developed Brightspace modules on the following:

• APA Formatting and Citation 
• Using MS Word to Format Your APA Paper 
• What Is a Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed Source 
• Using Butler Library ALL-Search to Discover Library Resources

These modules can be embedded into a course, or students can earn completion badges. These modules are designed to assist online courses and programs from undergraduate to graduate level curriculum. These modules can also be used for traditional course delivery as a supplement to a research project or an in-person library instruction session. Please join us to learn more about this initiative and how we can help you and your students more effectively conduct research! Please register through the Workshop Registration System. For more information, please visit the Butler Library website.