The Daily Bulletin Archive

From the President
At its May 9, 2008, meeting, the College Senate voted to approve and forward to the president the following motions for approval and action:

Reports to the Budget and Staff Allocation Committee

WHEREAS, it is standard practice to provide end-of-year expenditure data for all institutions, public and private;

WHEREAS, transparency in budget data is a necessary component to create trust throughout an institution;

WHEREAS, Buffalo State College used to provide these data; and

WHEREAS, the College Senate and the Budget and Staff Allocation Committee need timely and accurate end-of-year expenditure data to adequately perform their oversight roles,

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the president request that the Vice President for Finance and Management’s Office provide to the College Senate on an annual basis, beginning with fiscal year 2008–2009, financial reports comparing initial allocations (July 1) with end-of-year expenditures (June 30) by vice presidential area.

I hereby accept the recommendation of the College Senate and hereby authorize the Vice President for Finance and Management's Office to include a comparison of initial allocations with end-of-year expenditures by vice presidential area to the list of financial reports provided annually to the College Senate, beginning with fiscal year 2008–2009.

Motion to Accept an Additional Measure of English Language Proficiency for International Applicants to Buffalo State

WHEREAS, Buffalo State currently accepts only the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) as proof of English language proficiency from international applicants;

WHEREAS, this limits our ability to recruit in countries such as China, where we have many contacts that would enable us to attract students but where the TOEFL exam is not readily accessible (few test dates, few testing centers); and

WHEREAS, the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), a highly regarded and often more widely available measure than TOEFL, is recognized by universities throughout the English-speaking world, including 13 other four-year SUNY campuses (all four university centers and nine arts and sciences campuses) and nearly half of Buffalo State’s aspirational peers,

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that Buffalo State College also accept the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) as a measure of English language proficiency for international applicants to Buffalo State College (a minimum score of 5.5 for applicants to undergraduate programs and a minimum score of 6.0 for applicants to graduate programs), effective as soon as possible.

I hereby accept the recommendation of the College Senate and approve the policy to accept the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) in addition to the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) as a measure of English language proficiency for international applicants to Buffalo State College, effective September 1, 2008. I charge the provost with the responsibility of implementing the policy change.

Motion for Extending the Policy on Waiving Non-trustee General Education Requirements for Transfer Students Holding A.A. and A.S. Degrees to Also Include B.A. and B.S. Degree Holders.

This motion applies to GE-C and to GE2K requirements, which have both List A (trustee requirements) and List B (Non-trustee/Buffalo State requirements). Since Intellectual Foundations does not have List A and B, it does not apply to IF.

Buffalo State’s current policy (page 13 of the 2007–2009 Undergraduate Catalog) reads as follows:

“Students transferring to Buffalo State with an A.A. or A.S degree must complete the remaining hours of the trustees’ general educational requirements at Buffalo State but are not obligated to take additional Buffalo State general education courses (now referred to as Intellectual Foundations courses) beyond those mandated by SUNY. This continues the policy established in fall 1996 that waives the Buffalo State general education requirements for students who enter with an A.A. or A.S. degree.”

WHEREAS, a waiver policy currently exists for transfer students holding the lower A.A. or A.S. degrees but not the higher B.A. or B.S. degrees;

WHEREAS, transfer students with B.A. or B.S. degrees must petition through the Academic Appeals Committee to have non-trustee general education requirements waived, and the Academic Appeals Committee reports approving 100 percent of such petitions;

WHEREAS, transfer students with B.A. or B.S. degrees do not always know that they can petition these requirements, thereby creating inequity within our degree standards; and

WHEREAS, transfer students unaware of the petition process who take unnecessary coursework fill seats that could be used by students actually needing the course for degree completion,

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the current policy be revised to read (changes in bold):

“Students transferring to Buffalo State with an A.A., A.S.,B.A., or B.S. degree must complete the remaining hours of the trustees’ general educational requirements at Buffalo State but are not obligated to take additional Buffalo State general education courses (now referred to as Intellectual Foundations courses) beyond those mandated by SUNY. This extends the policy established in fall 1996 that waives the Buffalo State general education requirements for students who enter with an A.A. or A.S. degree.”

I hereby accept the recommendation of the College Senate and hereby approve the revision to the current policy on waiving non-trustee general education requirements for transfer students to include bachelor of arts and bachelor of science degree holders. I charge the provost with the responsibility of implementing the policy change effective September 1, 2008, and updating the college catalog at the time of its next printing.