The Civic and Community Engagement Office has established a service challenge to commemorate Buffalo State College’s 150th anniversary. We hope you will join us and help us connect our students to the celebration of the institution’s mission, identity, and commitment to being an urban-engaged campus!

Individual students, faculty, and staff members who complete 150 hours of community service between May 17, 2021, and August 31, 2022, will be recognized for their civic and community-engaged efforts. Students, faculty, or staff members who meet the criteria will receive a special 150th Anniversary Service Challenge Certificate of Completion and commemorative pin. Anyone who meets these requirements before April 11, 2022, will be included in the May 2022 Celebration of Community Engagement. We will continue to accept hours and applications through August 31, 2022, and send award certificates by mail. 

The 150th Anniversary Service Challenge is partial funded by the 150th Anniversary Committee. For more information and to register, please visit 150th Anniversary Service Challenge.

From the Interim Associate Vice President for Human Resource Management
Linda Kravitz, employee benefits manager, will retire from Buffalo State College after more than 20 years of service in the Human Resource Management Benefits Office. Her last official day in the office will be Friday, August 20. Ms. Kravitz has served with dedication and an exemplary understanding of benefits administration, ensuring that employees receive all the benefits for which they are eligible. Buffalo State has been fortunate to have her expertise, support, and collegiality these many years. We extend our warmest wishes and gratitude to her as she enters the next chapter in her life.

Mary Jo Malinowski, employee benefits assistant, is also retiring. Her last day in the office will be Wednesday, September 1. Ms. Malinowski has been a valued member of the human resources benefits team for almost six years, helping our employees with the intricacies of their benefits and leaves of absence with the utmost dedication and attention to detail. Her kindness, warmth, and fantastic sense of humor will be greatly missed by all.

With a tremendous amount of appreciation, we extend best wishes to them both for a wonderful and well-deserved retirement.

Please call 878-4821 or email benefits@buffalostate.edu with benefit-related questions.

The level of food insecurity in Western New York has risen since early 2020, and Buffalo State College and FeedMore WNY have teamed up to address this issue in the surrounding community of Black Rock. Buffalo State has a functioning “Adopt-a-Route” team that delivers meals every Wednesday from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. This team delivers hot and cold meals (Meals on Wheels) to those community neighbors who experience difficulties accessing nutritious foods on a consistent basis.

For a second year, we are gathering interest from faculty and staff members to help take care of our community neighbors. The commitment (with 8 to 12 volunteers) would amount to each volunteer delivering hot and cold meals for 60 to 90 minutes once every six weeks during the 11:00 a.m. hour. Volunteers work in pairs; meals are delivered to the doors of recipients, and the same route of delivery is followed each Wednesday. If you are interested in joining the dynamic team, please contact Carol DeNysschen, professor and chair of the Health, Nutrition, and Dietetics Department; or Laura Rao, director of civic and community engagement. Training is provided. Please consider making a difference to our neighbors.

Please join us for the Teaching and Learning Center’s “Applied Learning Course Proposal Workshop,” presented by Ann Emo, professor and chair of the Theater Department and applied learning faculty coordinator, on Tuesday, September 14, or Tuesday, November 9, from 12:15 to 1:30 p.m. in Butler Library 318.

Are you interested in integrating applied learning into your class? Are you already doing it? This workshop will walk you through the five tenets of applied learning at Buffalo State College so you can submit your class for Applied Learning Designation. Designation is assigned to individual instructors for each class that you teach. Please see the Applied Learning website for more information on the benefits of applied learning and the types of applied learning happening on our campus.

Please email Ann Emo with questions.  

Register for the September 14 workshop.

Register for the November 9 workshop.

Please join the Teaching and Learning Center for the information session "Introduction to COIL," presented by Melissa Holland, director of international education, on Wednesday, August 25, from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. in Butler Library 318.

Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) connects students and faculty in different countries for collaborative projects and discussions as part of their coursework. We invite you to join us to explore the possibilities when you bring COIL into your teaching and research. COIL collaborations provide meaningful, significant opportunities for global experiences built into programs of study. COIL enhances intercultural student interaction through meaningful online engagement, while providing universities a cost-effective way to ensure that their students are globally engaged. Buffalo State College is a member of the SUNY COIL center. As a member, the college can offer a multitude of professional development opportunities and a network of potential partners. Buffalo State faculty who have engaged in COIL will be available to share their experiences. Refreshments will be provided.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

Over the last few years, Book Riot and the New York Public Library have offered a “Read Harder” challenge to celebrate the joys of reading while also nudging readers outside their comfort zones. The challenge consists of a series of categories (e.g., YA nonfiction, a novel set within 100 miles of where you live, a book by or about a refugee).

The Teaching and Learning Center now offers its own version of the challenge. The following six categories are intended to encourage members of the Buffalo State College community to step outside their usual reading habits and read with a special purpose: 

1. Read an article or essay by a Buffalo State colleague. (It’s good to support peers.)
2. Read something about the scholarship of teaching and learning. (After all, this is sponsored by the Teaching and Learning Center.)
3. Read poetry or a short story with a Buffalo connection. (The many facets of urban engagement.) 
4. Revisit a classic in your field. (When was the last time you read this with fresh eyes?) 
5. Return to an assigned reading that you never finished. (If our students are not always doing the reading, maybe we didn’t either.) 
6. Read a graphic novel by or about someone who identifies differently than you do. (Embracing diversity in many forms.) 

The Teaching and Learning Center will host an event to celebrate all those who have completed the challenge. Please consider joining us. 

The Teaching and Learning Center is looking for full- and part-time faculty members interested in joining with other scholars working on their writing. The suggestion is that groups (about four or five participants) will meet every couple of weeks to share drafts of their work and provide feedback. The program is completely voluntary and unrelated to any formal job evaluation process (e.g., tenure and promotion). The goal is to offer support for writing efforts across campus. 

If you’re interested, please complete and submit this online form.

The Teacher Education Council (TEC) will meet Friday, September 10, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. in the Carmine Grande Conference Room, Cleveland Hall 418, for its first meeting this academic year. TEC representatives will receive a meeting invitation and Zoom link via email for those who would prefer to participate remotely. All TEC representatives and Teacher Education Unit members are encouraged to attend. Non-members who would like to attend remotely may contact their TEC representative for log-in information.

Counseling Center Services are free and confidential for registered Buffalo State students. We offer individual counseling, group counseling, workshops, and urgent-care consultations.

To schedule an initial phone screening, please call (716) 878-4436.

If you are concerned that a student is in crisis, please call and ask to speak with the urgent care counselor. The urgent care counselor will do a brief safety triage via phone and will make recommendations that may include

• an emergency risk assessment at the Counseling Center (adhering to current campus COVID-19 polices),
• immediate transport to a psychiatric emergency room,
• scheduling a more comprehensive assessment at the Counseling Center,
• a referral to on-campus resources such as the Weigel Wellness Center or Student Accessibility Services.

We kindly ask that you call to speak to a counselor before escorting students directly to the Counseling Center.

If you are concerned that a member of our campus community is in imminent danger, please call University Police at (716) 878-6333 for on-campus emergencies. For off-campus emergencies, call 911.

24-hour Crisis Hotlines for Mental Health Emergencies

• Crisis Services: (716) 834-3131
• National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: (800) 273-8255
• SUNY Crisis Text Line: Text Got5U to 741-741

During the fall 2021 semester, the Professional Development Center hopes to offer a meditation series for employees, which will include one 30-minute meditation session a week, either via Zoom or in Butler Library 318. Some sessions will be facilitated by a meditation instructor and others will be guided using an app or online video. Please complete this form by Friday, August 27, if you are interested in joining this group to indicate which days and times work best for you this semester.

Please email the Professional Development Center with questions.