Additional dates for one-on-one consultations with Edmund Haspett, financial consultant with TIAA, have been added for Thursday, March 23, and Tuesday, April 11.

Mr. Haspett will be on campus for individual consultations with Buffalo State faculty and staff members between 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. in Cleveland Hall 416.

Appointments are required.

Visit the TIAA website to schedule an appointment or call (800) 732-8353 weekdays 8:00 a.m.–8:00 p.m.

Discuss your financial situation with an experienced TIAA consultant to help you plan for your future and pursue your financial goals. Take this opportunity to review your retirement savings or to increase or start a tax-deferred annuity.

Get answers to these questions and more:

• Am I invested in the right mix of investments to help meet my goals?
• Am I saving enough to create the retirement income I need?
• How do I take income from my retirement account once I stop working?

Space is limited. Sign up today.

Lent begins Wednesday, February 22. Mass and distribution of ashes will take place at 12:05 p.m. in Butler Library 210 and at 6:00 p.m. in the Newman Center Chapel.

The Newman Center is located at 1219 Elmwood Avenue, across from the Burchfield Penney Art Center.

The SUNY Faculty Development Community of Practice will host three Zoom meetings this semester. The purpose of these meetings is to bring together those who are involved in supporting teaching and learning and faculty-staff professional development efforts throughout SUNY. The meetings will be highly interactive, and participants will leave with concrete, practical ideas they can implement on their campuses right away.

If you are a faculty developer or a faculty or staff member from a teaching and learning center or a teaching, learning, and technology center; or a librarian, instructional designer, or other faculty or staff member who is involved in supporting faculty members with their instructional development, you can sign up for one or more of the following sessions through the SUNY Center for Professional Development website:

Collaborative Online International Learning Experiences for Faculty and Students
Presented by Hope Windle, SUNY COIL Center
Thursday, February 23
2:00–3:00 p.m.

Using a Community of Practice Approach for Preceptor/Clinical Supervisor Professional Development
Presented by Ann Botash, SUNY Upstate Medical University
Tuesday, March 21
11:00 a.m.–Noon

Effective Brightspace Practices
Presented by Jamie Heron, SUNY Center for Professional Development
Thursday, April 20
1:00–2:00 p.m.

The Political Science and Public Administration Department at SUNY Buffalo State University invites legal professionals and others to participate as judges and evaluators for the 2023 Great Lakes Regional Mock Trial Tournament. This is an undergraduate mock trial tournament sponsored by the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) and hosted by Buffalo State. Twenty-four teams from colleges and universities in New York, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut will participate in the four-round tournament on February 25 and 26. The top teams will move up to the next round of the AMTA competition—the Opening Round Championship Series (ORCS). Top teams from the ORCS will be granted a spot in the national championship tournament.

Two-hundred-plus student competitors, coaches, and parents attend this tournament, and the competitors have been preparing for this tournament since last August. They will be dealing with a complex civil case—a wrongful death case involving the crash of a private aircraft.

The success of this event depends on the willingness of Western New York’s legal community to donate their time for part of the weekend as judges and evaluators (scoring judges). We also welcome non-attorneys such as paralegals, legal assistants, law students, law interns, and other professionals. In the past, legal professionals and other volunteer evaluators have helped make this tournament a success. We hope this continues this year.

From the Chair of the Senate
I am thrilled to welcome Kristen Mruk as the new special assistant to the provost and senate. Ms. Mruk has already begun providing needed support to the administrative function of the Senate through updates to the website, the agenda distribution process, transcription of meeting minutes, and use of the Senate SharePoint to name a few. She has many years of experience with organizational management, particularly through her many executive board roles in the College Student Personnel Association of New York State (CSPA-NYS) and Association of College Unions International (ACUI). Please join me in welcoming Kristen Mruk to the position.

From the Chair of the Senate
The first meeting of the Buffalo State Senate for spring 2023 will be held Friday, February 10, at 3:00 p.m. in Newman Lecture Hall, Bulger Communication Center 215.

We will be joined on Friday by Nancy Kleniewski, SUNY liaison to Buffalo State, who has been charged by Interim Chancellor Deborah Stanley with the following:

• Determining the status of relationships between campus and faculty Senate leadership by reviewing pertinent documentation and conferring with a cross-spectrum of stakeholders;
• Improving the effectiveness of shared governance by engaging with the appropriate leadership in open, ongoing dialogue for the betterment of the campus community;
• Fostering a cooperative and inclusive working and learning environment on campus;
• Mediating any differences of opinion to create a balanced resolution, where possible;
• Assisting in the communication, finalization, and effectuation of the 2023–2024 Buffalo State appropriated budget; and
• Ensuring that an ongoing budget process and enrollment plan are implemented that reflect Buffalo State’s culture, mission, and needs while being aware of the fiscal limitations.

Kimberly Kline, professor of higher education administration, serves as chair of the Senate for the 2022–2023 academic year. Please contact her with questions. And please visit the Senate website to catch up on Senate news, find podcasts and minutes of past meetings, review reports and resolutions, and more.

The Undergraduate Research Small Grants Program provides up to $400 to assist undergraduate students in carrying out research, scholarly, or creative activities during the academic year. Up to $600 may be requested for a single project that involves two or more students. Funding is intended to help defray the costs to conduct the project and is limited to equipment, supplies, and domestic travel expenses. Award recipients are required to participate in the Student Research and Creativity Conference (SRCC) at Buffalo State on Friday, May 5, 2023. 

For support of activities occurring in spring 2023, the deadline for submission of the student portion of the application is Wednesday, February 22; the faculty mentor approval is due by Friday, February 24. For more details, please visit the online application portal on the Undergraduate Research website.

Buffalo State’s membership in the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities (CUMU) equates to many unique opportunities for faculty, staff, and student involvement. Join the CUMU leadership for an open house on Thursday, February 9, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. via Zoom to learn about the Anchor Learning Network, upcoming Community of Practice Huddles, the Metropolitan Universities Journal, research initiatives, and more. Register for the open house today.

Turn old clothing into something new by upcycling garments that no longer serve their original purpose during the Fashion and Textile Technology Department's Upcycled Re-Imagined Workshop on Friday, February 24, from 1:00 to 8:00 p.m. and Saturday, February 25, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Technology Building 340 (Design Studio). This workshop will allow participants to upcycle their own garment and make a new wearable garment for themselves or for someone else. This two-day workshop will be a fun-filled day where you can let your creativity flow.

RSVP by February 22.

Please advise seniors who are expecting to earn their degree for May 2023 that the deadline to submit their online graduation application is 11:59 p.m. Sunday, February 26.

Students who miss the deadline to apply online should email the Registrar's Office to request late consideration for graduation. Late applicants may experience a delay in the awarding of their degree.

The minimum number of credit hours for an undergraduate degree is 120. Students should review their Degree Works audit to make sure all requirements are being met before applying. More information and instructions on using the online graduation application system can be found on the Registrar's Office website.

Please contact the Registrar’s Office, Moot Hall 210, (716) 878-4811, with any questions or technical difficulties.