Governor Kathy Hochul has directed that flags on state government buildings be flown at half-staff beginning at sunrise Monday, May 13, until interment in honor of Vincent "Vinny" Giammarva, a construction heavy equipment operator in the Henrietta Maintenance Section, who was fatally injured in a work zone in the Town of Chili on May 9.

Mr. Giammarva was a 19-year employee of the New York State Thruway Authority. He is survived by his wife and two children.

More information is available on the governor's website.

Buffalo State University's Anne Frank Project is thrilled to announce its 16th annual social justice festival AFP 2024: Home: Building Our Collective Story September 25 and 26. We are currently seeking proposals from a variety of disciplines, cultures, perspectives, and communities to share and teach ways to build our collective homes. 

Here at Buffalo State, we welcome students from all over the world to immerse themselves in education, diversity, and social justice. This is our community. What if we took this one step further and created an environment not only considered a community but also a home?  

This year, we challenge our university students, faculty, staff, alumni, and off-campus audiences to define "home." How can we collectively bring our different stories together to build our collective story, our home? A home where our stories are protected, honored, and shared without fear.

Using our annual festival as a platform, we have the opportunity to achieve Anne Frank's wish to "repair the world" by deconstructing and rebuilding what we call home.  

We invite artists, activists, educators, and students to submit proposals to AFP 2024: Home: Building Our Collective Story. All proposals must reflect directly on this year's theme and follow AFP's kinesthetic and experiential pillars: one-third theory, two-thirds practice. Our annual festival, an academic ritual at Buffalo State, is a unique way to emphasize the importance of doing for a more meaningful and effective educational experience. This reflects Buffalo State University's commitment to applied research and experiential education.  

AFP staff members are available to assist proposers in crafting the kinesthetic element of their sessions. 

Submit your proposal today!

Questions about the festival? Please contact AFP's assistant director, Jonise Hall.

May is National Speech-Language-Hearing Month. How many of you know that speech-language pathologists treat language disorders in adults as well as in children? Almost 2.5 million people acquire a brain injury such as a stroke or traumatic brain injury (TBI) or a degenerative process like dementia every year in the United States. These can lead to language disorders.

A stroke in the left hemisphere of the brain often causes aphasia, a loss of language, but importantly, not intellect. People with aphasia know what they want to say but have trouble finding words, reading, and communicating through speech and writing. This makes communicating their ideas difficult. Primary progressive aphasia is different from stroke-related aphasia in that it eventually leads to dementia.

A stroke in the right hemisphere can lead to difficulties understanding figurative language, including jokes, and misinterpreting the tone of language. Sarcasm might sound like sincerity to a person with damage to the right hemisphere. TBIs can be caused by car crashes, concussions, or other injuries. Language, particularly retrieving words, speech clarity, and cognitive skills, for example, processing time, memory, and attention, can all be affected.

The Buffalo State Speech-Language-Hearing Clinic can evaluate and treat all these disorders. The plan is to assess clients' needs and personal objectives with them and their families, and design a personalized treatment program to make clients the best communicators they can be.

Please join us for our third annual Alumni Legacy Family Tree Cookout on Thursday, June 20, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the LoRusso Alumni and Visitor Center. This event is open to all those who are members of legacy families and all Buffalo State graduates and their guests.

Tickets are $5 per person and can be purchased on the Alumni Association website.

A legacy family refers to any alumnus or current student whose family member also graduated from Buffalo State University, such as a spouse, sibling, parent, or grandparent. Are you part of a legacy family at Buffalo State? Fill out the online form to let us know. You may even win a prize!

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Mental Health Awareness Month has been recognized in the United States since 1949 to increase awareness of the importance of mental health and wellness in our lives, and to celebrate recovery from mental illness.

Join us on a journey of self-discovery and healing with our specially crafted "Team Playlist"! Empower yourself and those around you and nourish your mind and spirit. Visit the BizLibrary home page to view the videos.

The Campbell Student Union will modify its hours from Sunday, May 19, to Wednesday, August 21. 

Monday-Friday: 8:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Saturday-Sunday: Closed

Hours are subject to change on dates when New Student Orientation is held over the summer.

Barnes & Noble Hours
The Barnes & Noble at Buffalo State Bookstore and the Starbucks Café will be open Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Spot Coffee Hours
Spot Coffee will be open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.

Please visit the Student Leadership and Engagement website for more information regarding space requests, building policies, rental fees, and availability.

We hope you will register to participate on our Buffalo State team for the J. P. Morgan Corporate Challenge, but we'd love to see so many more just walk or commune and support the event!

This year's Corporate Challenge will be held Thursday, June 13, in Delaware Park. The 3.5-mile race starts at 6:25 p.m. The registration fee of $43 per person includes the hospitality tent, a team T-shirt, a Corporate Challenge T-shirt, and much more. 

Please encourage your colleagues to register. The Corporate Challenge is a great time to connect with colleagues and community partners.

Please register online.

If you have an HMO such as Highmark of Western New York, you can use your benefit card to pay for your registration.

For more information, please contact Jude Jayatilleke, ACE program director, (716) 878-6028.

Two new exhibitions set to reinvigorate the Burchfield Penney Art Center for spring will open today, May 10, from 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. during M&T Second Friday.

In the Wendt and Doolittle galleries, Adjacent Spaces: Paintings by Karen Tashjian and Mark Lavatelli juxtaposes the work of two seasoned Western New York painters who focus on the built and natural environment, respectively. And Patricia Schnall Gutierrez: Remember Me will explore six decades of the multidisciplinary artist's personal narratives in the Project Space.

May M&T Second Friday will also feature live music by one of the freakiest and funkiest bands in town, BEĂś, in the second-floor reception space. Stop by Roux Soup Bar and CafĂ© for a variety of delicious soups, sammies, and salads. Join the education team for an all-ages art-making activity in the Useum Studio.

Gallery admission to the Burchfield Penney Art Center is free for Buffalo State University students. Admission is free for everyone on the second Friday of each month thanks to the generous support of M&T Bank. See you there!

Learn more on the Burchfield Penney website.

When issuing a student a non-passing grade, including an E, F, U, I, or N grade, please also report the student's last date of attendance when entering the grade online. This assists the Financial Aid Office in determining whether a student unofficially withdrew and whether the student is able to retain the aid he or she received.

The last date of attendance is the last date the student participated in class, took an exam, handed in homework, or actively engaged in an online course. If assigning an I or N grade, the last date of attendance is the last date you met with the student to discuss progress in the course. If you have no record of the student's attending, do not enter a date. Instead, use the grade of EV, which indicates that the student never attended the course.

Questions regarding this policy or procedure should be referred to the Financial Aid Office, (716) 878-4902. The grading guide (PDF, 162 KB) may also assist you.

Please join us for a retirement celebration for Ted Schmidt, professor of economics and finance, on Friday, May 17, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. in the Burchfield Penney Art Center. Come and have a drink in his honor! All colleagues and friends are welcome.

Generously sponsored by the Economics and Finance Department, the Burchfield Penney Art Center, and Dr. Schmidt's friends and colleagues.

RSVP if possible to Jennie Silverman, administrative assistant 1, (716) 878-4606.