Fuller Earns CoSIDA Academic All-District Team Honors

Double major Sam Fuller, Biology/History, is also a honors student whose senior project will be very cool (more on that later). Read the full announcement here. From the news release:

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – St. Bonaventure University junior outfielder Sam Fuller has received recognition for his strong work on and off the field by earning a spot on the 2018 Google Cloud Academic All-District Team selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, officials announced Thursday.

Fall ’18 freshman class largest at St. Bonaventure in a decade

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y., May 7, 2018 — Freshman confirmations are running at a 10-year high at St. Bonaventure University, up 22 percent from fall 2017 and more than 44 percent from fall 2015.

As of 10 a.m. today, 537 freshmen had committed to the university for fall 2018.

Bernie Valento, vice president for Enrollment Management, said the university has seen a dramatic spike in freshman enrollment from Buffalo (up 73 percent from fall 2017) and Rochester (up 28 percent), bolstered by out-of-state students who will make up more than 26 percent of the freshman class.

May 1 is the unofficial College Decision Day, but almost all institutions continue enrolling students through the summer.

In response to the state’s new Excelsior Scholarship, unveiled last summer to provide free SUNY and CUNY tuition to students under certain income thresholds, the university increased scholarship levels by as much as $4,000 for the most academically gifted students.

“Yes, we increased our scholarship packages, but the effort was strategic and financially responsible in response to Excelsior,” said Dr. Dennis DePerro, about to complete his first year as university president. “One of the great byproducts of the decision is that the incoming class is one of the most talented academically that we’ve had in some time.”

But more generous aid was only one reason for the significant bump in enrollment, DePerro said.

“This didn’t happen by accident,” said DePerro. “This was a collective and collaborative effort across all divisions of the university, from academics and athletics to enrollment, marketing, ministries and student affairs.”

One of the things that attracted DePerro to seek the presidency was seeing the upward trajectory the university was on thanks to the strategic plan that had just been implemented when he came on board. The plan continues to evolve as demands and needs change, he said.

“Initiatives like new majors in health science and cybersecurity, the School of Health Professions that we’re building, our veterans recruitment program, the addition of men’s lacrosse – all of these things and many more have revitalized our presence in Western New York and the Northeast,” he said.

The university also devoted more resources this year to digital, TV, radio and billboard advertising in Buffalo and Rochester, and reaped the benefits of the best men’s basketball season in 40 years.

“No question, the tremendous exposure we received from the great season the Bonnies had gave us an additional boost,” DePerro said. “But we also had a great season six years ago for both of our basketball teams and we saw no substantial bump in enrollment.

“Exposure like that only helps if students who turn their attention to you during that period of heightened awareness can see that you have exciting programs and offerings that entice them to come here,” he said.

The university has also expanded its online graduate programs in the last three years, attracting students from all over the country.

Between spring 2017 and spring 2018, online graduate enrollment increased 102 percent. New programs added this academic year in school counseling and clinical mental health counseling have added 51 students.

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About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, we believe in the goodness of every person and in the ability of every person to do extraordinary things.  St. Bonaventure University cultivates graduates who are confident and creative communicators, collaborative leaders and team members, and innovative problem solvers who are respectful of themselves, others, and the diverse world around them. Named the #5 best college value in the North by U.S. News and World Report, we are establishing pathways to internships, graduate schools and careers in the context of our renowned liberal arts tradition.

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Assassin's Creed: Black Flag and Pirates

This semester, I taught a course on Piracy in the Americas, 1500-1728. Students were assigned the game Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag to explore the use and usefulness of video games in the study history. Over the past two weeks, students presented their game play and ideas on the historical accuracy of the game and how to employ it as a teaching tool. Below are some links to videos and pictures of students' work.

Hamaad infiltrates one of Havana's heavily guarded forts:  https://youtu.be/cvqcRkdtBg0
Joe walks us through the pirate town of Nassau:  https://youtu.be/ZPM32P5M5pw
Joe explains the historical facts and inaccuracies of seizing a ship in Assassin's Creed: Black Flag:  https://youtu.be/UFXRt6Rvygo

Hamaad analyzes a picture from Assassin's Creed: Black Flag and what we can learn about pirates from it.

William delves into the geographic significance of places in the game, including slave plantations and port cities like Nassau, Kingston, and Havana. 

Joe educates the class on the history of Nassau and why it was the perfect location for the pirates of the Golden Age. 

Elizabeth applies her training in education to demonstrating the usefulness of Assassin's Creed as an educational tool. Here is a link to her presentation: http://prezi.com/smimbryq0a0s/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy 

Arts and Sciences Exposition

Students showed off their good work today at the Arts and Sciences Exposition.  There were many cool and impressive projects on display.

 Among the students were these familiar faces from digital history.

Digital History Class Winds Down

We're winding down Digital History and Archival Practices.  We're pulling together our projects for the Arts & Sciences Exposition 2018, where we will display the nearly finished map of the St. Bonaventure Cemetery and unveil the apps and the wiki we have been working on.  We started the semester with no experience in app design and now we have functioning apps.  the apps are in beta, so more work to be done, but we're excited to see what people have to say.

Why Double-Majors Might Beat You Out of a Job

This article from Higher Ed Jobs, Why Double-Majors Beat You Out of a Job, has some interesting insights.  It's worth a read.  Students who double major are more innovative, which is something that employers look for.

WNY Cybersecurity Research Center to open April 24 at St. Bonaventure

For Immediate Release:

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y., April 13, 2018 — St. Bonaventure University will unveil the Western New York Cybersecurity Research Center on Tuesday, April 24.

More than 150 people, including politicians, business leaders and educators, are expected for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, which begins with a program at 9 a.m. and concludes with a networking reception at 11 a.m.

Scientists will gather on campus Monday, April 23, for a workshop to explore research opportunities the center can offer.

The center is located in the former Records and Registrar offices in Doyle Hall.

The WNY Cybersecurity Research Center is a collaboration between St. Bonaventure, National ICT Japan, Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity and New Zealand Cybersecurity Center.

The center will engage in cybersecurity research using various state-of-the-art technologies including machine learning, data mining and opinion mining.

The center will do monitoring, alerting and forecasting to help make Western New York safer from cyberattacks, said Dr. Hossein Sarrafzadeh, director of St. Bonaventure’s cybersecurity program.

The university partnered two years ago with Hilbert College to begin offering a Bachelor of Science degree in cybersecurity. Sarrafzadeh was the founder and co-director of New Zealand’s first Cybersecurity Research Center.

Sarrafzadeh joined the university in June 2017 and immediately began envisioning what a research center focused on cybersecurity could mean for St. Bonaventure.

“What Dr. Sarrafzadeh has accomplished in his short time here is truly remarkable,” said Dr. Dennis DePerro, president of St. Bonaventure. “His conviction that this center could be a critical step in developing our cybersecurity program has driven this project. This will have a tremendous impact not only on our students, but on businesses and organizations that can benefit from the services the center provides.”

The center will have two functions: as a center for faculty and students to perform research, and as a Security Operations Center (SOC) to provide monitoring services to external clients. The SOC is scheduled to open in the fall.

The SOC will be operated in partnership with Buffalo-based Silo City IT, a managed security service provider and solutions architecture firm specializing in artificial intelligence-based solutions. Jeff Rathmann, SBU Class of 2007, is president and CEO of Silo City.

The SOC will provide 365/24/7 continuous monitoring and defense, email defense, managed endpoint security, managed email defense, threat hunting and intelligence, incident response, managed security automation and customer support.

The SOC will give students the opportunity to gain real-life work experience while they study, Sarrafzadeh said. Students will be screened and trained rigorously before working in the SOC.

“The center will become a Western New York success story in cybersecurity,” Sarrafzadeh said. “The center will help raise the awareness of cybersecurity risks in local communities and businesses.”

Demand for cybersecurity professionals is expected to rise to 6 million globally by 2019, with a projected shortfall of 1.5 million, said Michael Brown, CEO at Symantec, the world’s largest security software vendor.

U.S. News & World Report ranked “information security analyst” third among the best technology jobs, eighth among the top 100 professions and 15th among the highest-paying jobs.

“The center will provide advanced and up-to-date training and education for those wanting to pursue a career in cybersecurity or those wishing to retrain and take advantage of the highly paid jobs in this field,” Sarrafzadeh said. “It will also strengthen the university as a leading provider of industry training.”

Students will also have opportunities to travel to Japan, Canada and New Zealand and work on cutting-edge equipment, he said.

The center also plans in the future to offer short courses and seminars for the public to combat cybersecurity risks.

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About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, we believe in the goodness of every person and in the ability of every person to do extraordinary things.  St. Bonaventure University cultivates graduates who are confident and creative communicators, collaborative leaders and team members, and innovative problem solvers who are respectful of themselves, others, and the diverse world around them. Named the #5 best college value in the North by U.S. News and World Report, we are establishing pathways to internships, graduate schools and careers in the context of our renowned liberal arts tradition.