The SUNY Buffalo State Sustainability Committee invites the campus community to attend an Arbor Day Tree-Planting Ceremony on Arbor Day, Friday, April 29, at noon at the east end of Bacon Hall, between Bacon  and Rockwell halls. The event will move to the Student Union Plaza, north of Cleveland Hall, in the event of inclement weather. 

We will plant a native tree, the eastern white pine, the symbolic “Tree of Peace” of the Iroquois Alliance. The eastern white pine is common in the woodlands of New York State and throughout eastern North America. This species of tree is very important in commerce for both its lumber and its ornamental value.

The event will also feature speakers whose topics will include the significance of Arbor Day, how urban trees are important for ecological systems, how the Maud Gordon Holmes Arboretum has become an important campus outdoor classroom, and the future of the arboretum.

Thank you to the Friends of the Maud Gordon Holmes Arboretum for donating the tree and supplies, and to the volunteers who will help plant the tree.

Please contact campus arborist Steven Sypniewski for more information. This is one of a series of April events sponsored by the Buffalo State College Sustainability Committee in celebration of Earth Day and Arbor Day.

Weigel Health Promotion, in collaboration with Molina Health, will offer a workshop on navigating the health-care coverage system today, April 25, at 11:00 a.m. in Weigel Wellness Center 203.

Topics will include the following:

• What is Medicaid Managed Care vs. Essential Plans vs. Child Health Plus (up to age 19)?
• Who is eligible? Even if you have insurance through an employer, you may qualify for a free or low-cost plan.
• Did you know that there is no household limit for Child Health Plus and there are never any co-pays?
• See if you qualify to save money on health insurance premiums. Save money in your paycheck  if you or your children qualify for Child Health Plus.
• Learn about the plan benefits with Molina Health and the coverage area.
• Learn about facilitated enrollment and community engagement—Molina's role in the community—and how it can assist in the enrollment process.

A question-and-answer segment will follow the presentation. Refreshments will be served. This workshop is open to students, faculty, and staff members and is co-sponsored by the Employee Assistance Program and Professional Development.

Please email Paula Madrigal, assistant director of prevention and health promotion, with questions. 

The best way to find information is to follow us on social media. We will post any last-minute additions, updates or cancellations as necessary.

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Faculty and staff members, please be mindful that during the month of Ramadan, Muslims fast (each day) from before sunrise all the way to sunset. Evenings are equally filled with prayer and reflection.

This year, Ramadan started on April 2 and will end on May 1, with Eid (the celebration after this fasting month) on May 2.

As the faculty adviser for the Muslim Student Association on campus, I urge faculty and staff members to take these dates into consideration with respect to their Muslim students. You might find students to be tired in general, so kindly show some leniency toward them. You might also extend some leniency with regard to things like tests or projects, especially given the timing of this year's Ramadan, with the semester winding down and the high-intensity workload that this time entails.

I appreciate your care and understanding.

The SUNY Buffalo State Sustainability Committee invites the campus community to attend the annual Earth Day and Arbor Day Environmental Fair on Thursday, April 28, from noon to 2:00 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union or outside in the Student Plaza, weather permitting.

See what the campus and the surrounding community are doing to make our campus and surrounding neighborhoods more environmentally sustainable. Learn how the trees in the Maud Gordon Holmes Arboretum and throughout the city of Buffalo are instrumental in the health of the local ecology and storm water quality, as well as add beauty to our surrounding landscape.

Explore what you can do as an individual to help with this great cause. There will be plenty of information tables to visit, giveaways, and fun activities.

Please contact campus arborist Steven Sypniewski for more information. This is one of a series of April events sponsored by the Buffalo State College Sustainability Committee in celebration of Earth Day and Arbor Day.

International Professional Development School (IPDS) will host its annual Beyond and Back event on Wednesday, April 27, from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. in the Campbell Student Union Assembly Halls.

IPDS programs are designed for educators—including teacher candidates at every grade level and area of study, as well as those who are planning to work in schools or with children in other capacities. This year's Beyond and Back will act as an all-IPDS information fair, where leaders will provide an overview of IPDS—what our programs have in common and what makes each unique—and outline program and travel dates, processes, and deadlines.

Stay for a walkabout to gather information materials, meet with program leaders, and explore IPDS alumni experiences. Leave with a better understanding of which program best fits your personal and professional aspirations and academic timeline.

Beyond and Back is open to all faculty, staff, and students. No registration required.

The Faculty-Student Association (FSA) is accepting applications for the spring 2022 grant cycle. The application deadline is Sunday, May 1. FSA grants are awarded by the FSA board of directors to fund programs that will promote and cultivate educational and extracurricular activities and events on the Buffalo State College campus. All student groups, faculty, and staff members are welcome to apply. Please visit the FSA website for the application and guidelines.

For further information, please contact Hope Dunbar, executive director of the FSA.

The HESAA Collective, a graduate student organization within the Higher Education Administration Department, will host a virtual panel to further enhance understanding of the experience of Black student affairs professionals working in higher education on Tuesday, April 26, at 7:30 p.m. The event is open to all campus community members.

The panel will feature four student affairs professionals from a variety of institutions who represent various levels of professional experience in higher education:

Amitra Wall, Associate Provost at Buffalo State College
Eann Robinson, Director of NUOP at Niagara University
Terri Massenberg, Residence Life Coordinator at SUNY Purchase
Qiana Perrean Smith, Director of Residence Life at the Ohio State University

#BLKSAP

Please register for the webinar.

The Great Lakes Center (GLC) is pleased to release its spring 2022 newsletter (PDF, 1MB). This issue focuses on the continuation of a major grant, students returning to work in our labs after the pandemic, graduate student research, modifications to our main research vessel, and a biocontrol method for a terrestrial invasive species.

Each article is also posted separately as a news article on our website:

Newsletter #20: GLC continues monitoring benthos of all Great Lakes

Newsletter #20: Students return to work

Newsletter #20: State of Lake Erie meeting

Newsletter #20: Modifications to the R/V John J. Freidhoff

Newsletter #20: Freezin’ for a reason: Both gobies and researchers endure winter in local streams

Newsletter #20: Swallow-wort Biocontrol Research and Outreach Group

If you’d like to be on the mailing list for future editions of the newsletter, please email the GLC with the subject “Newsletter mailing list.”

Academic advisers are available in person for drop-in advising in the new Academic Advising Center located on the first floor of Butler Library, near Starbucks. 

We are here to assist any student during drop-in advising hours. Although students are expected to meet with their assigned advisers regarding course selection for registration, drop-in advisers are well equipped to offer general guidance, triage academic and personal issues, and assist students with administrative and technical processes, including guiding students through using Banner or Degree Works and facilitating connections to campus resources for immediate concerns. 

Semester Drop-in Advising Hours
Monday–Thursday 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. 
Friday 10:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.

Summer Drop-in Advising Hours
Monday–Thursday 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Friday office open for appointments only.

For more information, call (716) 878-5223, email the Academic Advising Center, or visit Butler Library 149.

From the Chair of the College Senate Bylaws and Elections Committee
The College Senate caucus to elect the officers of the College Senate for the 2022–2023 academic year will be held Friday, May 13, from noon to 1:00 p.m. in Bulger Communication Center 215 (Newman Lecture Hall), before the 2:00 p.m. final spring Senate meeting. Only continuing or newly elected senators, academics, and professionals are invited to attend.

Several Senate positions will be open for 2022–2023. Terms begin Monday, August 29.

• College Senate Chair
• College Senate Vice Chair
• College Senate Standing Committee Chairs:
  » Academic Plan Committee
  » Budget and Staff Allocations Committee
  » Bylaws and Elections Committee
  » Curriculum Committee
  » Faculty and Staff Welfare Committee
  » Instruction and Research Committee
  » Standards for Students Committee
• College Senate Standing Committee Vice Chair:
  » Student Welfare Committee (committee chair is a student senator elected at the first fall 2022 Senate meeting)