The Muslim Student Association held “Love Shouldn’t Hurt,” a domestic violence workshop Friday, which featured guest speakers Sheikh Isma’il and April Arman. Muslim Women’s Council, a sub-group of MSA, organized the event as part of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Interim Provost A. Scott Weber confirmed Saturday that funded Ph.D. students will remain in assistantships, meaning they will continue to have benefits such as health insurance, dental insurance and retirement plans. Some students worried their roles would change to fellowships –– which don’t include these benefits –– when the August Ph.D. Excellence Initiative announcement stated first-year Ph.D. students will not teach classes.
UB students were elbows-deep in garbage on Wednesday, searching for sustainable ways to manage large-scale waste and encourage companies to do the same.
UB’s new Tutoring and Academic Support Services (TASS) in Capen Hall has seen roughly 1,000 students since opening on Sept. 9. Cheryl Taplin, director of student success and retention, proposed the idea for a center to teach all undergraduates, as UB’s previous tutoring services only catered to select majors. Now, UB offers free hour-long tutoring sessions in 130 Capen Hall Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Sunday 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Students can book appointments ahead of time through the Student Success Portal or walk in to the office, according to Vivian Jimenez, interim director of the Office for Tutoring and Academic Support Services. The 36 undergraduate and graduate tutors are paired with students based on subject.
Twenty-four students, including Latin American Student Association members, marched in the pouring rain Wednesday to demand UB celebrate its minority students. Protesters began in the Student Union and made their way, with arms linked, through the academic spine to Capen Hall.
The Student Association Assembly passed a resolution on Thursday calling on UB to “divest” from fossil fuels. Although there is no proof that UB is investing in fossil fuel industries, the resolution asks the UB Foundation, UB President Satish Tripathi, Interim Provost A. Scott Weber and the UB Council to direct “adequate attention and militant resources” toward “divesting” all UB funds from fossil fuel industries. SA Board of Directors Chair Hayden Gise introduced the resolution to the BOD on Sept. 25, but the board rejected it. Since the assembly passed the resolution, Gise said copies of the resolution will be sent “immediately” to those being asked to divest.
Roughly 100 students gathered in the Student Union as three drag queens captured the attention of passersby on National Coming Out Day Friday.
UB opened its new biorepository facility Friday, providing “state-of-the-art” storage for research samples at UB’s Clinical and Translational Research Center. The UB Biorepository is a mechanized facility that collects, processes, stores and distributes millions of biological samples and keeps them in the lab at a constant -81 degrees Celsius. Committees have been working on creating UB’s “vital” biorepository for seven years. Now, UB is the first SUNY college to have a biorepository. It is open to UB researchers as well as researchers from other public and private colleges and universities, research centers and industry partners.
Roughly $900,000 in UB transactions between 2016 and 2018 are “questionable,” according to a 20-page audit report released by the Office of the State Comptroller (OSC) Friday. The transactions primarily come from UB’s contractual relationships with the UB Foundation (UB Foundation Activities, Inc.) and Corr Distributors, Inc. (custodial equipment maintenance) between April 2016 and Sept. 2018. The report’s key findings criticize the university for its “poor monitoring of spending and contracting practices” which “resulted in potential lost savings and cost avoidance,” among other things.
Most students go to UB Stadium to watch football, but for those who prefer esports, the opportunity to see a SUNY-wide esports tournament at the stadium may soon be a reality. UB’s new esports team allows students to compete against other universities in various video games, with the goal of someday hosting a “massive” tournament at the UB Stadium.
Buffalo community members gathered at Third Street in Niagara Falls on Tuesday to march against domestic violence and hang purple ribbons on trees to show support for victims. Roughly 50 community members participated in the event, which featured artwork displays in the Wine on Third restaurant. Pinnacle Community Services held the walk to raise awareness for women and families who have dealt with domestic abuse and to highlight Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Passage House shelter, which helped with the event, is part of Pinnacle Community Services and provides shelter for abused women and their children.
UB President Satish Tripathi’s lunch preferences may seem plain and even incomplete ––for instance, ordering a Garden Burger with no buns –– but he assures his vision for the campus isn’t.
UB held a panel discussion on Monday to raise awareness for child sex abuse and discuss New York State’s recent Child Victims Act. New York State Senator Brad Hoylman (D/WF-Manhattan) proposed the bill in January, but similar bills have been introduced as early as 2006 and continuously voted down. The New York State Assembly and Senate passed the bill early this year and Governor Andrew Cuomo signed it into law on Feb. 14.
There are over 7,000 breweries in the U.S. and 41 are right here in Western New York. And what’s a better combination than a cold beer and a Bills game in a fun, rustic location? Breweries are the perfect spot for a delicious drink and good conversation. Most customers can find a beer to enjoy in each brewery and most, if not all, offer the option to try a flight, allowing customers to get a taste of four or five different beers. Most breweries also have beer experts on-site to answer questions and give brewery tours.
UB President Satish Tripathi delivered his eighth annual State of the University address in the Student Union Theater Friday. Tripathi discussed UB 2020, both retrospectively and looking into the future, UB’s carbon footprint, research advancements and UB’s increased ranking as the No. 31 best public research university in front of roughly 350 students, faculty and community members. Tripathi also spoke briefly about the Ph.D. Excellence Initiative after the address.
Nine formerly recognized UB fraternities announced on Wednesday they had separated from UB and formed the Buffalo Independent Interfraternity Council, supported by each organization’s national headquarters.
Few people leave an impact on their community significant enough to be called a legend. Retired professor James Pappas has earned this title, and the Buffalo community wants to recognize the work he’s done.
UB Information Technology installed 42 new iMacs with Adobe Creative Cloud in the Lockwood Cybrary and on the third floor of the Oscar Silverman Library at the beginning of the semester.
Interim Provost A. Scott Weber announced on Wednesday he will provide bridge-funding to all UB colleges, fully covering the Ph.D. stipend increase for 2020-21 and covering 50% for 2021-22.
Robin Schulze, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, held a meeting with CAS faculty on Friday to discuss the decision to halt 2020-21 funded Ph.D. recruitment. She began by apologizing for making the decision “too quickly” and “in all the wrong ways” without faculty input, because of a “financial exigency.”
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