From the Chief of University Police
The holiday shopping season is an opportunity for criminals to take advantage of millions of online consumers. Their goal is to get your personal and financial information to steal your identity and take your money. The following tips can help you stay safe online.

Implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) on your accounts and make it much less likely you will get hacked. Even if attackers obtain your password, they may not be able to access your account if it is protected by this multiple-step verification process. 

Update your software. Consider turning on automatic updates.  

Think before you click. Most successful cyberattacks start with a phishing email designed to look as though it is from a retailer but really has malicious links or asks you to input your personal or financial information. If it looks suspicious, something is probably not right.

Use strong passwords or, ideally, a password manager to generate and store unique passwords.

Make sure your information is being encrypted. All reputable merchants use encryption to transmit information from your browser to their servers. Look in your browser’s location bar to make sure the website address begins with “https:” instead of “http:.” Also look for the padlock icon. If the padlock is locked, your information is encrypted.

Do not let criminals ruin your holiday spirit. Follow these tips to protect yourself and have a wonderful holiday break.

The Buffalo State men's soccer team will be collecting donations for Toys for Tots until Friday, December 16. All toys can be dropped off in the main Athletics Department office or in Houston Gym 233. Toys for Tots is asking for new toys only this year. Thanks to everyone for their donations!

The Buffalo State men's soccer team is still collecting donations for Toys for Tots until Friday, December 16. All toys can be dropped off in the main Athletics Department office or in Houston Gym 233. Toys for Tots is asking for new toys only this year. Thanks to everyone for their donations!

All faculty members are encouraged to begin training in Brightspace, the new SUNY-wide learning management system selected to replace Blackboard Learn.

In-Person Training Options
In-person training sessions will be offered by Instructional Design and Distance Learning (IDDL). These sessions will be hosted on campus in a variety of labs across campus. Registration is through the Workshop Registration System.

The Brightspace Fundamentals Workshop Series is designed for instructors new to Brightspace and is suitable for instructors teaching in any modality: face-to-face, hybrid, or online.

Workshops in the series are Navigation and Interface; Communication Tools; Authoring and Publishing Content; Gradable Activities: Assignments, Discussions, and Quizzes; and Gradebook.

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

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

Please contact Jamie Tabone, instructional designer, with questions. Please see the IDDL website for more information.

As the campus continues to prepare for the transition from Blackboard Learn to D2L Brightspace, certain actions are required of faculty and students, and many supports are available to aid in the successful transition. 

Faculty Support
Migrating content: Blackboard Learn content can be imported into D2L Brightspace. Faculty members can take steps to move their own content, or they can request that it be moved by SUNY. Regardless of which way the content is migrated, faculty members should inspect all migrated courses to ensure that all content has migrated accurately and is functioning as expected. Please reference the Daily article "Migrate Content from Blackboard Learn to D2L Brightspace" for exact steps to self-migrate content or to submit a request.  

Workshop Opportunities
A variety of workshops are available for faculty to attend. It is best to participate in these sessions early so that you are prepared and have the necessary time to adjust to the new system and either develop your course or make any changes to your course content. The article "Getting Started with Brightspace: Access, Training, and Resources" provides a detailed description of all workshop opportunities. 

Student Support
All students received a message from the “Announcer” on November 21 informing them of the migration. Instructional Design and Distance Learning have been participating in the tabling opportunities in the Campbell Student Union during Bengal Pause to discuss the steps students should take to prepare. In addition, an article in the Record provided insight from students who were in the pilot of Brightspace in fall 2022.

Online Resources

• Buffalo State Knowledge Base Articles  
• SUNY Online Faculty Resources (Use Buffalo State credentials to login) 
• Brightspace Help 

Important Dates

• December 19, 2022 – Brightspace link will be added to the Student Toolbox.
• December 22, 2022 – D2L Brightspace becomes the official campus-supported learning management system for Buffalo State. Blackboard Learn link will be removed from both Student and Faculty/Staff Toolbox. (Access to the system will still be available, so best to bookmark the site.)
• April 10, 2023 – Last Day to Access Blackboard. This is to ensure that any students with grades of Incomplete (I) from fall 2022 have the appropriate time to complete their work.

Desire2Learn (D2L) Brightspace was selected to replace Blackboard as the learning management system (LMS) for the SUNY Digital Learning Environment (DLE). All courses will use Brightspace starting with J-Term 2023.

This is your opportunity to see Brightspace courses and ask questions of a panel of Buffalo State pilot faculty members who can share their experience with you. Currently, Buffalo State has 25 pilot faculty members teaching over 90 sections to over 900 Buffalo State students for the fall 22 semester. 

Two sessions are planned:

• Tuesday, December 13, 12:30–1:30 p.m., Butler Library 314
• Friday, December 16, 10:00–11:00 a.m., via Microsoft Teams

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

Please contact Jamie Tabone, instructional designer, with questions. Please see the IDDL website for more information.

The Daily Bulletin will take a holiday break from December 26, 2022, to January 2, 2023. The deadline for submissions for the January 3 issue is 3:00 p.m. Friday, December 23. During the break, users may submit items for Wednesday, January 4, and beyond. Happy holidays from Marketing and Communications!

The southeast portion of Lot I-32 will be offline from December 19 through January 27 to accommodate the final phase of the construction project at Bacon Hall. Parking within the lot will be reduced by roughly 10 spaces, including three accessible spaces, during this period. Six accessible spaces will continue to be available in the lot. Vehicles displaying a handicap accessible permit that cannot find suitable parking in Lot I-32 during this time may use metered locations in Lot I-30 or R-4 without payment. The accessible northeast entrance to Bacon Hall will remain open.

Please email Parking Services with any questions about this temporary lot closure. We appreciate your cooperation and understanding.

Campus map (PDF, 3.9 MB)

The Daily Bulletin will take a holiday break from December 26, 2022, to January 2, 2023. The deadline for submissions for the January 3 issue is 3:00 p.m. Friday, December 23. During the break, users may submit items for Wednesday, January 4, and beyond. Happy holidays from Marketing and Communications.

From the Chair of the College Senate 
The final meeting of the College Senate for fall 2022 will be held tomorrow, December 9, at 2:00 p.m. in Newman Lecture Hall, Bulger Communication Center 215. Please note the one hour earlier start time. Kimberly Kline, professor of higher education administration, serves as chair of the College Senate for the 2022–2023 academic year. Please?contact?Dr. Kline?with questions. 

We encourage everyone to visit the?College Senate website?to catch up on?Senate news, find?podcasts and minutes?of past meetings, review?reports?and?resolutions, and more.