Graduate Student Association

Call for Candidates

On April 10 – 13, 2017 the following offices will be filled through a general election of graduate students at UB:

PRESIDENT

VICE PRESIDENT

TREASURER

The salaries for each of these positions will be $14,500 and the elected officers must be present and available to serve in the duties of their office from June 1, 2017 until May 31, 2018.

Any student enrolled in a department that is currently represented by GSA and has attended two Senate meeting in the past twelve months prior to becoming a candidate shall be eligible to run for office.  If you have not yet attended any GSA Senate meetings, the remaining dates to fulfill this requirement are December 7, 2016, February 1, 2017, and March 1, 2017.  *PLEASE NOTE THAT THE DECEMBER SENATE MEETING IS TONIGHT AND SIGN-IN STARTS AT 6:00PM!!*

*Please note that international students holding an assistantship will be restricted by INS work requirements and may not be eligible to run for office under United States Law.*

Petitions for candidacy will be made available on Monday, January 30^th, 2017 and are due back to the Election Committee Chair by Monday, March 6^th 2017 at 4:30pm in the GSA Office (310 Student Union).

All prospective candidates must attend a mandatory meeting with members of the Election Committee where the Election Rules and Regulations will be handed out and reviewed.  Meetings will be arranged between prospective candidates and the Election Committee to occur between Wednesday, March 8^th and Wednesday, March 15^th, 2017.

Please contact the Election Committee Chair, Alexandra Agostinelli (ajagosti@buffalo.edu) to inquire about the details of the application procedure and formalities.

The GSA President is proposing a resolution to the GSA Senate at tonight’s meeting in order to seek improved services for parenting students at UB.  Please see the attached resolution for further details.  Any comments or concerns may be addressed to Tanja Aho at gsa-president@buffalo.edu.

Dear Students:

The Council of Advocacy and Leadership is an organization consisting of all seven student government Presidents, the Chief Justice of the Student Wide Judiciary, and the UB Council Student Representative at the University at Buffalo. Our purpose is to provide resolutions on key issues at every level of the University hierarchy affecting any and all student governments and their constituencies. Collectively, we represent all 30,000 students at UB.

In light of the recent Presidential election, a series of events have occurred across college campuses, both throughout SUNY and the nation. As the elected representatives of the entire student population, we want to make our message clear: we support equality for ALL. Equality for all students of color, equality for all religious denominations, and equality for all sexual orientations, gender expressions and identities. We will not tolerate a campus environment that accepts or allows discrimination, much less one that actively promotes hatred, harassment, and an unsafe environment. Every student has the right to free speech, but what we have witnessed goes far beyond that right.

Regardless of your stance on the results of the Presidential election, it is important to recognize and understand the minds of those surrounding you. Some students feel excitement; others feel fear. As students, educators, and future leaders, it is our place to encourage positive discussion and growth that benefits our community. We cannot be complacent in striving for unity in our ever-changing society, particularly in this time of transition.
We commend UB students on their methods of sharing their concerns and the respect shown to their peers. Do not be afraid to speak truth to power and always stand up for what you believe in, for our voices are the tools through which our future is crafted.

Should you have any questions, concerns, or ideas to share, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Sincerely,
The Council of Leadership and Advocacy

Tanja Aho, President, Graduate Student Association
Connor Arquette, President, Medical School Polity
James Corra, UB Council Student Representative
Nicholas D’Angelo, President, Student Bar Association
Jacob Henning, Chief Justice, Student Wide Judiciary
Jeffrey Morrisey, President, Graduate Management Association
Sara Perrone, President, American Student Dental Association
Matthew Rivera, President, Undergraduate Student Association
Taylor White, President, School of Pharmacy Student Association

Dear fellow graduate students:

Paper deadline coming up? Wishing you had an extra pair of eyes to look over your work?

The Graduate Student Association (GSA)’s editing assistance program is currently accepting submissions for all fee-paying graduate students at all stages of their degree. Graduate students with materials ready for submission or presentation receive constructive feedback from advanced English graduate student editors, ranging from sentence-level to minor content-oriented questions. Further, projects that undergo editing, whether large or small, benefit from readers outside of the field of study: submission can include MA and PhD thesis/dissertation submission (individual chapters and completed projects), journal articles for scientific and humanities papers, academic job application materials, seminar papers, and response papers.

Submissions can be either paper or electronic (Microsoft Word files). To submit, please visit the GSA website for the submission website and provide a note on your deadlines: http://gsa.buffalo.edu. The service is attentive to the need for privacy that comes along with larger projects. Though we ask students to allow for a 2-3 week turn-around for edits, we typically can return papers within specially requested time frames.

Questions? Editors can be reached gsa-editorial@buffalo.edu.

Best,

GSA Editorial Services

Speed-reading and memorization workshops for UB students to help read textbooks more effectively.

These workshops are free to all UB students.

Register here: 

https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/rt/8654184932818422274?source=UB

Because class space is limited, we are asking that students RSVP through the link above.

A Message from Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

Dear Students:

After the harsh and ugly rhetoric of the campaign, many of you are concerned about what might happen next.

Let me be clear: This is the State of New York, not a state of fear. We will not tolerate hate or racism.

We have been and always will be a place where people of many backgrounds have come to seek freedom and opportunity. Almost all who live here can trace their roots to someplace else.

We cherish our diversity. We find strength in our differences. Whether you are gay or straight, Muslim or Christian or Jewish or Buddhist, rich or poor, black or white or Latino or Asian, man or woman, cisgender or transgender, we respect all people in the State of New York.

The Statue of Liberty is a proud symbol of American values, and she stands in our harbor. We feel a special responsibility to make her offer of refuge and hope a reality every day.

As long as you are here, you are New Yorkers. You are members of our community, and we will stand up for you.

The State of New York has strict laws against hate crimes and discrimination and we fully and firmly enforce them. It is illegal in this state to target, harass or discriminate against a person because of his or her race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual orientation. We are a tolerant people, and cannot and will not let our freedoms be undermined.

New York State has a toll-free hotline where people can report incidents of bias and discrimination. Our responsibility is to protect all who are here, whether native-born or immigrant, whether documented or not. The hotline strengthens our efforts. Contacting us will not affect your immigration status.

New Yorkers who have experienced bias or discrimination should call the toll-free hotline at (888) 392-3644 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday – Friday.

If you want to report a crime or fear for your safety, call 911 immediately.

New Yorkers feel a particular affection for young immigrants. For centuries, our state has thrived on the energy and ambition of the young people seeking to build their lives here. Your intelligence, your creativity, your idealism enriches us all. You are welcome here.
Sincerely,

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

Student Assembly President Marc J. Cohen and the collective Student Government Presidents across SUNY speak out on hate speech at Geneseo, New Paltz, and Elsewhere

 For Immediate Release: November 15, 2016

Contact: Nicholas Simons, Nicholas.Simons@sunysa.org

“The collective students of the State University of New York will not stand for acts of hatred and discrimination on our campuses or in our communities. We will not cower in the face of bigotry, discrimination, or prejudice. We will move forward united in the spirit of equality and meet such adversity head-on. Those committing these heinous crimes should know that you will be found, prosecuted, and brought to justice. We call on law enforcement to continue their investigations into these acts, and we call on students to be active bystanders. To everyone feeling discouraged by the recent messages of intolerance, know this: you are not alone. We as the elected leaders of the State University of New York’s 600,000 students across our 64 campuses will not be silenced, we will not be intimidated, and we will not back down. We will keep fighting for diversity, we will keep fighting for equality, and we will keep moving forward. We’ve got your back.”

SUNY Student Assembly Charts Progressive Path at Record-Breaking Conference

Immediate Release: Nov. 16, 2016
Contact: Tyler McNeil, Tyler.McNeil@sunysa.org

ALBANY — Over 350 student leaders gathered in the state capital to chart out a new path forward for higher education in New York State.

This event, the largest Student Assembly conference on record, was focused on strengthening diversity, equity, and inclusion in the system, along with advocating for a comprehensive legislative agenda which passed with an overwhelming majority.

“I am feeling an immense amount of hope and pride following the conclusion of our Fall Conference,” Student Assembly Vice President Bridget Doyle said. “We passed progressive initiatives, participated in the SUNY’s Got Your Back campaign which allowed us to fill 10,000 bags for interpersonal violence survivors, and engaged in critical conversations.”

“It is so important that we stand together in solidarity as one comprehensive system of public higher education, and I believe this conference helped us unify more than ever before,” she said.

The voting delegation of the Student Assembly passed the most comprehensive legislative agenda in recent history. The resolution was first approved by the executive committee over a month ago at SUNY Old Westbury.

The agenda touches upon issues such as rational state reinvestment, textbook affordability, support for campus child-care centers, mental health resources, food security, disability access and sustainability measures across the SUNY system.

“We walked into this Fall Conference hoping to inspire students,” said Marc J. Cohen, Student Assembly president and SUNY trustee. “As tends to happen, however, they inspired us.”

“We passed the largest and most comprehensive legislative agenda in the history of our organization,” Cohen said. “And most importantly we came together and vowed to act as a system of student governments to create lasting and meaningful change in higher education.”

During the conference, student leaders passed several resolutions including support for same-day voter registration and a SUNY-wide day off on Election Day.

Among new platforms, student delegates called for stronger student input in campus affairs by calling for greater student representation in presidential search committees and shared governance. Students called for the legalization of marijuana in the state in the spirit that 30% of all revenue be reinvested into the State University of New York.

Beyond the business meeting, student leaders helped advocate for change throughout the two-day event.

Working with SUNY’s Got Your Back, student leaders helped support victims of domestic and sexual violence with 10,000 comfort bags.

Fighting against sexual violence, the Student Assembly also inched closer to getting every SGA leader across the system to take the It’s On Us pledge.

The Graduate School is currently looking for volunteers to serve on the UB Advisory Board for CIRTL (Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning, https://www.buffalo.edu/ubcirtl.html), which serves UB to prepare future STEM faculty and contribute to a network of education professionals dedicated to advancing excellence and innovation in STEM teaching. This is a great opportunity for anybody in STEM-identified fields who is interested in higher education and wants to get actively involved in policy issues at UB. If you would like to be nominated as a graduate student representative, please email gsa-president@buffalo.edu by November 18th.