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Fierro to speak at HSL event
Marcella Fierro, M.D. '66, chief medical examiner for the Commonwealth of Virginia and the model for mystery writer Patricia Cornwell's protagonist Kay Scarpetta, will speak at the 31st annual meeting of the Friends of the Health Sciences Library, to be held June 2 in the Health Sciences Library (HSL), Abbott Hall, South Campus.
The meeting will begin with a wine-and-cheese reception at 6 p.m. in the Robert L. Brown History of Medicine Collection and first floor lobby area of the library.
Fierro, co-director of the Virginia Institute of Forensic Science and Medicine, will deliver the 15th annual C.K. Huang Lecture at 7:30 p.m. in the Austin Flint Main Reading Room. She will discuss the future of forensic medicine.
A coffee-and-dessert reception for Fierro will be held immediately after her presentation.
The cost for the evening is $15 for members of the Friends of the Health Sciences Library and $18 for nonmembers. Those attending should R.S.V.P. by May 21.
The Friends of the Health Sciences Library, founded in 1975, support the collections and services of HSL, with a primary focus on the History of Medicine Collection.
For further information, contact Linda Lohr at 829-3900, ext. 136 or lalohr@buffalo.edu.
Creative Craft Center to close
After 44 years of sponsoring classes and programs at UB, the Creative Craft Center in Harriman Hall, South Campus, will close June 1 and is donating its craft-related assets to community organizations.
Andrea Costantino, director of student life, says the center is closing due to several factors: the retirement of its director, James Puglisi; a decrease in interest in the center's classes; and the university's pressing need for space.
"Jim Puglisi made the Creative Craft Center what it was," Costantino says. "We are so thankful for his leadership of the center. As much as it pains us to close this center, student and community interest isn't what it once was. This, combined with Jim's impending retirement and our pressing need for space, brought us to the decision to close," she says.
"We are always working on new programs to support the UB community."
The space occupied by the center will be reallocated to support UB's strategic initiatives and growth.
The center will donate its craft-related assets, including materials for embroidery, jewelry making, painting, knitting and crocheting, and photography, to recognized community not-for-profit organizations.
Organizations wishing to request craft materials should contact Puglisi at jpuglisi@buffalo.edu by May 21.
Butler receives CMA award
Mary Jo Butler, assistant manager at Putnam's Food Court, has received the 2007 Didaskalos Award presented by Campus Ministries Association (CMA).
Didaskalos, a Greek word meaning teacher or mentor, is awarded annually to a UB faculty or staff member who goes above and beyond the call of duty to help campus ministries and their students. Butler, who has been an employee of Campus Dining and Shops for the past three years, coordinates the weekly meetings for the Lutheran Campus Ministry and was recognized for her positive and helpful attitude.
The Campus Ministries Association is an organization of religious groups and their leaders with concern for and a working relationship with UB. CMA serves the university's students, faculty and staff.
Borst to speak in PSS diversity series
Randall Borst, director of the Office of Disability Services, will speak on "Disability as an Element of Diversity" from noon to 1:30 p.m. May 24 in 145B Student Union, North Campus.
The presentation is part of the Professional Staff Senate's Diversity Speaker Series. Participants are encouraged to bring their lunch.
Borst will discuss world and national views of disability and how mainstream and disability cultures interact. He also will address "disability etiquette."
The presentation is open to all members of the professional staff.
For more information, call the PSS office at 645-2003.
Life transitions workshop offered
The Division of Continuing and Professional Studies at UB will present a seminar entitled "Life Transitions: Building Your Future, Transforming Your Life" from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. June 9 in the Center for Children and Families, 106 Diefendorf Hall, South Campus.
The seminar program will teach participants to take action, plan for their futures and successfully market themselves in today's world. Attendees also will hear a panel discussion on taking charge of one's transition and will have the opportunity to explore courses offered by UB that can assist in making the life transition an opportunity to learn, grow and excel.
The cost of the seminar is $25 and includes a continental breakfast and course materials.
Those wishing to attend can register by calling 829-3131 or emailing mfcadmin@buffalo.edu.
Nisengard elected president of dental alumni
Russell J. Nisengard, a 1966 graduate of the School of Dental Medicine, has been elected president of the UB Dental Alumni Association.
Nisengard is SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Department of Periodontics and Endodontics, and associate dean for research and advanced education in the UB dental school.
Other officers are Joshua P. Grant, D.D.S. '00, president-elect; Joseph L. Rumfola, D.D.S. '02, secretary; and Kevin J. Hanley, D.D.S. '78, treasurer.
Conference to honor Colin Drury
A conference featuring international experts in the field of human factors and aviation safety will be held today and tomorrow to honor Colin G. Drury, SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering who is stepping down from his teaching and administrative duties in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS).
The conference, which will feature presentations and a poster session, will be held in the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center in downtown Buffalo.
It will be sponsored by the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and SEAS, as well as private donors.
Speakers will include Ram Bishu, professor of industrial engineering at the University of Nebraska; Tim Gallwey, professor of manufacturing and operations engineering at the University of Limerick, Ireland; Patrick Dempsey, director of experimental investigations, Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety; Mark Karwan, UB professor of industrial and systems engineering and former dean of SEAS; Shrawan Kumar, professor of physical therapy, University of Alberta; William Johnson, scientific technical advisor for human factors in maintenance, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA); Mao-Jiun Wang, Department of Industrial Engineering and Engineering Management, National Tsing Hua University; and Christopher Wickens, professor of mechanical science and engineering, University of Illinois.
Drury, who will continue his research at UB, is known internationally for combining research into human factors, such as ergonomics, fatigue and training, with studies of human error and quality control to pioneer innovations designed to reduce human errors in numerous industries and sectors ranging from aviation and consumer products to chemical demilitarization.
In aviation, he has worked with security screeners at airports to determine the best ways to do X-ray inspections for weapons and developed staffing models for airports, using industrial engineering principles to determine the optimal levels for keeping passengers flowing through airports efficiently without compromising security.
Drury directs UB's Research Institute for Safety and Security in Transportation (RISST), funded by the Transportation Security Administration, which studies how human factors contribute to errors and inefficiencies in security systems, such as those used to inspect baggage and screen passengers in airports.
Drury, who holds a private pilot's license, is applying techniques he developed during more than 30 years of aircraft-inspection research to the study of transportation security systems.
Data from RISST studies will be compiled in a database and made available to researchers nationwide working on projects to advance public safety. The institute also will apply its resources and findings to improve safety and security outside of airports and in and around other potential terror targets.
Drury is a member of TSA's Scientific Advisory Panel and serves on the National Research Council's Panel on Assessment of Technologies Deployed to Improve Aviation Security. As a member of these panels, he has reviewed security systems in airports around the world.
Current RISST research is focusing on how to reduce language-related errors in aviation maintenance and inspection. RISST also is studying how the long working hours and shift work of inspectors contribute to increased error rates in aviation maintenance and how changes in work hours and conditions can reduce these errors.
Drury also has studied extensively ergonomics and work-related musculoskeletal disorders. In 1998, he co-chaired a National Academy of Sciences/National Research Council steering committee that found a strong biological connection between such disorders and a high level of exposure to physical stressors in the workplace.
The FAA recognized Drury's broad contributions to the fields of aviation safety and human factors when it presented to him its 2005 Excellence in Aviation Research Award.
The same year, the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society selected Drury to receive the A.R. Lauer Safety Award to honor his contributions not only to traditional areas of safety, but to consumer products, medical systems, chemical weapons destruction and transportation.
This month, he received the Kenneth Andrew Roe Award from the American Association of Engineering Societies, which honors leadership and dedication to unity within the engineering community.
A UB faculty member since 1972, Drury is a former chair of the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering and the founding executive director of the Center for Industrial Effectiveness, which works with regional industries to improve competitiveness.
Stewart appointed to CASE commission
Graham G. Stewart, associate vice president for alumni relations, has been named to a three-year term on the Commission on Alumni Relations of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).
He will join 20 other alumni relations executives who represent colleges and universities from across the U.S., Europe and Asia. CASE is the professional organization for advancement professionals at all levels who work in alumni relations, communications and development at colleges, universities and independent schools. Its Commission on Alumni Relations frames and directs research to examine and evaluate professional practices and to ensure that they reflect current knowledge, emerging issues and trends, and the highest ethical and professional standards.
Stewart has been recognized five times as a CASE "faculty star." He is a faculty member and former chair for the Workshop for Newcomers in Alumni Relations, and has led conference sessions on strategic marketing, collaboration with student affairs and negotiation. He is a member of the Council of Alumni Association Executives and a former member of the Association of Private College and University Alumni Directors.
Before joining UB last October, he was director of alumni relations at Ithaca College for seven years. Prior to that, he was director of admissions for Ithaca College's School of Music, director of marketing and public relations for Cornell University's performing arts center, and marketing manager for Time Warner cable television.
He holds a bachelor's degree in vocal performance and a master's degree in organizational communication, learning and design, both from Ithaca College.
UB seeks members for Corporate Challenge team
Show your UB pride by joining faculty, staff and students at this year's JP Morgan Chase Corporate Challenge, to be held June 7 in Delaware Park.
The 3.5-mile race will begin at 6:45 p.m. Proceeds will benefit the Olmsted Parks Conservancy.
After the race, join your UB colleagues for a tent party. The theme this year is Mardi Gras.
The $30 fee includes race entry, a special UB Corporate Challenge T-shirt and the tent party.
To register for the UB team, go to http: //www.buffalo.edu/ubcares/challenge/index.html. When registering, select UB as your team and click "my captain will pay for me."
Checks made payable to the Faculty Student Association must be sent to Student Life, 150 Student Union, attention Jennifer Wantz/Corporate Challenge, with the participant's name on the "for" line of the check. Checks must be received by May 30.