As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Rubrics in Blackboard (Plus Lots of Examples)," presented by John Draeger, director of the Teaching and Learning Center, and Brooke Winckelmann, instructional designer, on Tuesday, August 11, from 1:00 to 1:50 p.m.

This session will focus on the benefits of using rubrics as a feedback tool. We’ll discuss how rubrics reinforce the course design and offer student choice. We’ll offer sample rubrics and “hands on” instruction for building rubrics in Blackboard.

You can access the webinar using the Teaching and Learning Center meeting room. Please review the BbCollaborate website to become familiar with using Blackboard Collaborate Ultra as a participant, if you'd like.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Microsoft Teams Meetings," presented by Todd Benzin, educational technology specialist, and Jonathan Hulbert, director of leadership and organizational development, on Tuesday, August 11, from 11:00 to 11:50 a.m.

Microsoft Teams is an alternative way to conduct online meetings covered under Buffalo State’s educational license with Microsoft. These meetings include audio, video, screen sharing, and more and can be created directly from Outlook. You don’t need to be a member of an organization or even have a Teams account to join a Teams meeting—just look in the invitation for instructions about calling in. Register to see if using Teams in this pilot setting can be useful to you. 

Access the webinar using our Microsoft Teams meeting link. The session can be joined from the Teams desktop app, the web version of Teams, or the Teams mobile app. Please use the Teams desktop for full features.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System. 

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Blackboard Learn Grade Center," presented by Brooke Winckelmann, instructional designer, on Tuesday, August 11, from 11:00 to 11:50 a.m.

The Grade Center in Blackboard Learn is more than just a way to record student grades. It is a dynamic and interactive tool, allowing you to collect student submissions, record data, calculate grades automatically, and monitor student progress. You can also drop the lowest grade, display percentages or letter grades, use a weighted grading system, and much more. 

By the end of this workshop, participants will have the skills necessary to use the Grade Center to manage student grades for assignments, tests, discussion posts, and more. You can also create manual grade columns for any campus-based activities or requirements you want to grade, such as special projects or participation. The Grade Center can be individualized to fit your needs to make your grading more efficient. 

This workshop is suitable for instructors teaching face-to-face, hybrid, or online courses.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

President Katherine Conway-Turner and other higher education leaders will serve as panelists in the virtual discussion "Where Do We Go from Here?" sponsored by the the Coalition of Urban and Metropolitan Universities (CUMU), on Thursday, August 13, from 2:00 to 3:30 p.m.

After the tragic killing of George Floyd, many colleges and universities released strong statements denouncing police brutality and the relentless racism Black Americans face. However, systemic racism has plagued our country for over 400 years. It isn’t something that will simply dissipate; it must be met with anti-racism strategies.

Please join CUMU for this live webinar featuring four CUMU university presidents and chancellors. This critical dialogue will center on how and why higher education leaders must go beyond rhetoric to combat systemic racism and inequities toward systematic and lasting change.

How can we develop proactive agendas that combat discrimination, inequalities, and injustices that are omnipresent in American society?

How can we support individual and institutional readiness in addressing racism and inequities?

What is our role as engaged anchor leaders in addressing our own institution’s history and role in creating the very systems and structures in place today?

This virtual discussion will highlight ways to center anti-racism in our urban missions and provide a space for attendees to think critically about their role within their institution and cities.

Learn more and RSVP for this free discussion.

Please note: questions may be submitted in advance when registering for this event.

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Giving Purposeful Feedback," presented by Brooke Winckelmann, instructional designer, on Tuesday, August 11, from 9:00 to 9:50 a.m. 

This discussion-centered session will complement module 7 (Giving Purposeful Feedback) of the self-paced Online Course Development series. We will recap important ideas from this module and expand on the discussion questions. 

Please come prepared to share your discussion responses for module 7 of the self-paced Online Course Development series. 

Before attending this session, we ask that you self-enroll in the “Online Course Development Series – Self-Paced" organization in Blackboard Learn and review the materials found within module 7. The series provides best practices for online teaching and learning, as well as guidance with educational technology.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Practice Session: Running Synchronous Breakout Groups in Blackboard Collaborate Ultra," presented by Todd Benzin, educational technology specialist, on Monday, August 10, from 2:00 to 2:50 p.m.

This interactive session will let you practice using the breakout group feature within Blackboard Collaborate Ultra. We recommend attending a "Blackboard Collaborate Ultra" workshop and the "Blackboard Collaborate Ultra: Breakout Groups" workshop before attending this practice session. 

You can access the webinar using Todd Benzin's Training Room. Please review the BbCollaborate website to become familiar with using Blackboard Collaborate Ultra as a participant, if you'd like. 

Google Chrome or Firefox is highly recommended as a browser. If you have a webcam and microphone, that's great. If not, you should be able to get everything you need as long as your headset or speakers are working.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Blackboard Collaborate Ultra: Breakout Groups," presented by Todd Benzin, educational technology specialist, on Monday, August 10, from 1:00 to 1:50 p.m.

This session will show how to create and manage breakout groups in Blackboard Collaborate Ultra. To facilitate small group collaboration, you can create breakout groups that are separate from the main room and assign attendees to them. Breakout groups have their own private audio, video, whiteboard, application sharing, and chat. Any collaboration that takes place in a group is independent of the main room (and other groups).

We recommend attending a Blackboard Collaborate Ultra workshop before attending this workshop on breakout groups. 

You can access the webinar using Todd Benzin's Training Room. Please review the BbCollaborate website to become familiar with using Blackboard Collaborate Ultra as a participant, if you'd like. 

Google Chrome or Firefox is highly recommended as a browser. If you have a webcam and microphone, that's great. If not, you should be able to get everything you need as long as your headset or speakers are working.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Strategies for Small Group Activities in Your Asynchronous Online Course," presented by Pamela Schuetze, professor of psychology, on Monday, August 10, from noon to 12:50 p.m.

This session will introduce technologies that help facilitate small group activities in an asynchronous environment. 

You can access the webinar using the Teaching and Learning Center meeting room. Please review the BbCollaborate website to become familiar with using Blackboard Collaborate Ultra as a participant, if you'd like.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

As we prepare for fall 2020, please join us for the webinar "Adding Gamification and Badging to an Online/Remote Course," presented by Andrea Nikischer, associate professor of adult education, on Monday, August 10, from 11:00 to 11:50 a.m.

This webinar will prepare instructors to add basic elements of gamification to an online or remote course. Participants will learn how to create badges in Blackboard. Examples from an online graduate course will be shared. 

You can access the webinar using the Teaching and Learning Center meeting room. Please review the BbCollaborate website to become familiar with using Blackboard Collaborate Ultra as a participant, if you'd like.

Please register through the Workshop Registration System.

In preparation for a safe and productive return to the workplace, mail and parcel delivery will resume today, August 3, to the 10 buildings that historically experience the highest mail and parcel volume. These buildings are listed below. On days when classes are in session, mail and parcels will be delivered early each morning to the mail rooms in these 10 buildings. This process is intended to limit contact among campus employees during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Buckham Hall
Butler Library
Campbell Student Union
Classroom Building
Cleveland Hall
Moore Complex
Moot Hall
Rockwell Hall
Science and Mathematics Complex
Technology Building

Staff members from these 10 buildings who prefer to continue to pick up parcels at Clinton Center may call 878-5729 to make these arrangements.

Faculty and staff members in all other buildings are asked to continue to pick up mail and parcels at the Clinton Center, as initiated during spring 2020.

This procedure is effective immediately and is subject to change.

Questions related to this process may be directed to vpfm@buffalostate.edu. Your patience is very much appreciated as we embark on a safe and productive fall semester.