Jennifer Stanonis, award-winning [former] local TV meteorologist, is releasing her first ever children’s book focused on the science of weather, and the Hauptman-Woodward Institute (HWI) is proud to be a part of the launch events! Willy and Lilly’s Adventures with Weather will make its international debut on March 19, 2020 — the same day as the Spring Equinox. To celebrate the book release, Stanonis will be at HWI on Friday, March 20th from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm for a book signing and meet and greet (light refreshments provided).
HWI looks forward to seeing everyone who can stop by, meet the author and get a book signed! Thank you for your support!
BNMC Welcomed 450 People at 5th Annual Student Open House!
On Saturday, April 13th, we welcomed more than 450 people to the Campus for our 5thAnnual BNMC Student Open House! Attendees participated in a myriad of hands-on STEM activities, experienced behind-the-scene tours of our state-of-the-art facilities, and learned about career opportunities on the Medial Campus. We are thankful for our partners who participated in the event including, UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences, Hauptman-Woodward Institute, Jacobs Institute, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Oishei Children’s Hospital, Unyts, theCoderSchool Buffalo, UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, and UBMD Physicians’ Group. Several construction industry professionals and trades associations also joined us for the day.
Some of the activities highlighted:
Scrubbing into laparoscopic surgery using the LapSim Virtual Training sustem at Roswell Park’s ATLAS Lab.
Observing the process of preparing a kidney for transplant at Unyts
Touring a new 800 sq. ft. operating room at Oishei Children’s Hospital (bunny suits and all!)
Working alongside lab technicians and medical residents on laparoscopic trainers, orthopedic FAS simulators, and suturing at the UB Jacobs School of Medicine.
Learning about crystals and how they are formed and used to study diseases at Hauptman-Woodward Institute
Trying your skills at bio-art at UB’s NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics & Life Sciences
And so much more! Check out the event photo album on Facebook to see it all.
Healthy Victory: Highlighting our Collaborative Partnership with the Foundry, GroundWork Market Garden, African Heritage Food Co-Op, and YouthBuild of the Service Collaborative of WNY
As year three of BNMC’s Creating Healthy Schools and Communities (CHSC) grant from New York State Department of Health comes to a close this September, the Healthy Communities team celebrates this past year’s successes.
Over the past year, our group has collectively worked on a project that not only increases access to healthy affordable foods for residents in East Buffalo, but does so through a community-driven wp-contentroach that builds neighborhood capacity and social capital.
Identifying the Problem
In BNMC’s work as part of the CHSC grant to increase healthy food access in communities throughout the city of Buffalo, it was wp-contentarent both food consumers and producers in East Buffalo face significant challenges. Residents experience a complex environment of societal, social, and health disparities that are especially amplified among people of color, all while residing in neighborhoods largely void of easily accessible grocery stores with affordable fresh foods. These conditions existed in the context of a food environment where some urban farmers struggled to connect with nearby neighbors, establish a farm stand, and find efficient models for transporting their harvests, on top of all the other challenges farmers already face.
Developing a Solution
BNMC identified a collaborative opportunity to merge both consumer and producer needs: The Farm Stand Project. The Farm Stand Project brings together GroundWork Market Garden, African Heritage Food Co-Op, The Foundry, YouthBuild, and BNMC to build mobile farm stands that bring locally grown fresh foods to residents who need it most.
By partnering with The Foundry and YouthBuild, the farm stands for GroundWork Market Garden and African Heritage Food Co-op were designed and built by community members who come from the neighborhoods the stands will serve. Every Friday morning from 9am-12pm from January 2018 through July 2018, the youth met at The Foundry and worked with professional carpenters and welders to build the farm stands. While the stands are currently undergoing finishing touches, the team aims to start using them as soon as possible for the current 2018 growing season.
The BNMC Healthy Communities Team has two more years (until September 2020) to continue its CHSC work supporting healthier communities throughout the city of Buffalo.
About The Foundry
The Foundry is a nonprofit small business incubator in East Buffalo that includes a makerspace, woodshop, metal shop, tech lab, textile lab, and also offers classes to the public. In addition to their daily operation, they also partner with the Service Collaborative of WNY’s YouthBuild program, which provides at-risk or low-income youth the opportunity to complete their education, earn their GED, and learn in-demand job skills while taking part in community revitalization projects.
Five things to know for BNMC’s Student Open House!
Pre-Register: If you haven’t yet registered your entire group, please do so now at bnmc-old.local/april21.
Be prompt: There are 8 stops on the tour and you won’t get to all of them. Registration opens at 9am – arrive at the Innovation Center at 640 Ellicott then and move quickly to make sure you can get to as many places as possible.
Be prepared: All the stops are listedhere. Review ahead of time so you know where you want to go. If one stop is too crowded, consider going to another one and coming back so you don’t waste too much time.
Ask questions: It takes more than 100 volunteers altogether to make this day a success. We all love to talk about what we do. Please ask questions! Ask what we were interested in at your age, where we went to school, how much training we needed. Ask about the hours we work and what our favorite (and least favorite!) parts of our jobs are.
Dress wp-contentropriately: This is a self-guided walking tour, traveling outdoors from location to location. While we hope it’s 75 degrees and sunny, we know that may not be the case. Dress in layers and wear comfortable shoes. You will definitely get your steps in for the day.
Start your exploration of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus by registering and picking up your program in the Innovation Center lobby, 640 Ellicott St. Free parking is available across the street.
WHAT
This free, half-day event invites students in 7-12th grade, along with an accompanying adult, to tour state-of-the-art Campus facilities and experience hands-on STEM activities at each site.
Attendees will have the opportunity to hear from experts at Buffalo Manufacturing Works, Hauptman-Woodward Institute, the Jacobs Institute, Oishei Children’s Hospital, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, UB Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, UB NYS Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, and Unyts.
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
Test drive the Robotic Surgery Simulator
See an active research laboratory
Try on a pair of Cinemavision googles
See where more than 50 simulation scenarios take place
Watch a pre-recorded surgery
Learn about crystals and how they are formed and used to study diseases
See robotic demonstrations and 3D printers in action
We’re thrilled to bring you the 4th Annual BNMC Student Open House on Saturday, April 21, 2018 from 9am-12pm! Students in 7-12th grade, along with an accompanying adult, are invited to tour Campus facilities and experience hands-on activities at each site. Attendees will hear from experts at our Campus institutions, such as:
The newly opened $270 million John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital was a page turner in the latest chapter of the burgeoning downtown Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.
So was the December opening of the University at Buffalo’s $375 million new home for its Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences.
The completion of the new projects mark a turning point for the 120-acre campus at the epicenter of Buffalo’s renaissance.
In 2002, the campus was in its infancy with just three companies. Now boasting 4.5 million square feet of development and $1.4 billion in investments, the campus has moved beyond just medical institutions. It has taken shape with a diverse mix of health care, life science and technology companies, becoming fertile ground for entrepreneurs and their startups.
There is still more to come.
Campus planners are aiming for BNMC to rival medical campuses in places like Cleveland and Pittsburgh. Among the next steps are strengthening ties with higher education and the private sectors.
“We are so well positioned with all the institutions and assets that are here and now want to embrace the excellent universities and colleges,” said Matthew K. Enstice, CEO and president of the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Inc. “We plan to build out” – meaning renovate – “more space for them to have a location so they can interact and be a part of the entrepreneurial ecosystem that we have here.”
A big part of that vision is twp-contenting into local small and large companies, especially mature ones, and including them in the campus’ vision for its innovation district. “The world is changing so quickly in technology, that we’re putting a structure in place to help multiple, different companies innovate,” Enstice said.
Here’s what’s coming next on the Medical Campus:
• Design work is expected to start for renovation of existing buildings on the former Osmose Holdings site. In 2016, BNMC bought the 4.4-acre parcel, which is located at the northern edge of campus at Ellicott and Best streets and has parking for 200. It is expected to be a magnet for mature private-sector companies, along with universities and colleges, but will not be a second incubator, BNMC officials say.
• Ellicott Development Co. has a $4 million adaptive reuse development project underway at Our Lady of Lourdes Church, just north of the campus at Main and Best streets. To the south, Ellicott is planning a six-story retail and office building at 1091 Main St.
• Along the western edge of the campus, design work will begin for a redo of a critical stretch of Main Street from Goodell toward Canisius College. Meanwhile, a $7.5 million overhaul of Allen Street, including redesigned sidewalks and widened sections of the street, is expected to begin. Work will be done in phases, stretching from the eastern end of Allen toward Wadsworth.
• Workers will put the finishing touches on the exterior of UB’s Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, which opened to students earlier this month at 955 Main St. Final terra cotta panels are being installed on the Washington Street side of the building by spring. Most of the university’s labs are being moved in from mid-January through mid-March. With the medical school fully operational, 2,000 faculty, staff and students will be there daily.
• The Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority’s newly renovated Allen Medical Campus Station has been integrated into the medical school. The station features “Gut Flora,” a colorful public art sculpture by Shasti O’Leary Soudant, and a newsstand opens this month. A one-block tunnel that serves as a pedestrian passageway to Washington Street will open beneath the medical school.
• The campus’ ninth pedestrian skybridge will be designed and constructed later in the year. It will span High Street, linking the Conventus medical office building to the UB Medical School. The new $1.5 million connector comes after three other skybridges just opened in November: one from Conventus to Oishei Children’s Hospital, another from Children’s Hospital to Buffalo General Medical Center/Gates Vascular Institute, and a third leading out the back of Children’s Hospital to a new parking ramp at 854 Ellicott St.
• By late May, the $40 million, 1,825-space parking ramp behind Oishei Children’s Hospital at 854 Ellicott will be completed. The top half of the eight-story ramp has been under construction since late 2017. The bottom half of the eight-story ramp opened Nov. 10 with Oishei Children’s Hospital.
• The 128,000-square-foot Thomas R. Beecher Innovation Center at 640 Ellicott St. will be completely full by the end of March.
STEM Video Challenge for Students in grades 5 – 12!
How will advances in technology lead to a better future for Western New York?
This video challenge, powered by AT&T, is an opportunity for students in grades 5-12 to create a video to show how they predict technology will lead to a better future for Western New Yorkers. It can be anything you can imagine, as long as it’s improving the future of our community. Utilize technology (mobile devices, drones, animation, special effects) to make your video as impactful as possible – just make sure it’s wp-contentropriate for all ages and less than 60 seconds long.
Ideas include technology that:
Improves the health of our community;
Advances our school systems;
Provides better connectivity among neighbors;
Improves transportation options;
Any technology advancements that you think will create a better Western New York.
Eligibility
Must be in grades 5-12 and under 18 years of age
Middle school contest is for students in grades 5-8
High school contest is for students in grades 9 – 12
Entries accepted in both the individual and group categories
Must be a resident of Erie & Niagara County
Timeline
September 11, 2017 – Challenge Opens
October 6, 2017 – Deadline for video submission
October 17, 2017 – Finalists announced
October 24, 2017 – winners announced
Prizes
Individual winners in middle & high school (1st, 2nd & 3rd places)
Group winners in middle and high school (1st, 2nd & 3rd places)
Cash prizes of up to $500 for all finalists.
Competition Guidelines:
There will be two categories of video competition: Individual and Group for both middle & high school
There is no limit to the number of members of a group in the group video category, however all participants must be supervised by their school teacher, principal, or club leader
Video should be wp-contentrox. 45 seconds in length, no more than 60. Any video exceeding 60 seconds will be disqualified.
Students should use the video to showcase their creativity. There are no restrictions on video content however video should not contain any nudity, vulgarity, or other offensive language or images.
Criteria for Judging
The video must explore how technology advancements will improve the Western New York in the future. The video must demonstrate an idea and its impact. For example, the video may look at how autonomous vehicles may reduce the need for the number of parking spaces currently available in the city, and offer ideas for what that space could be used for instead.
Videos will be evaluated based on the following areas:
Creativity
Originality
Technical skills used to create & edit video (meaning, how difficult was it to make)
Clear message that sticks to the theme
Videos will be judged by a panel of judges to be announced soon.
Email accompanying the video should include:
Student’s name/s
Parent or legal guardian names
Supervising teacher/adult name
School name and contact information including address, phone number and email address
Grade level of student/s
Each entry must be the original work of the student(s).
By submitting a video, each student confirms that he/she has received all relevant and wp-contentropriate permissions from all individuals who wp-contentear in the video, and their parent/ guardian, and that he/she has obtained all necessary permissions to use all material such as images, text, voice, music, and any other content.
Video Submission Requirements:
Complete the submission formand upload your video. This wp-contentlication is required for all submissions. Please fill out the form with a parent, legal guardian or school representative – they will need to accept the terms and conditions.
Must be in grades 5-12 and under 18 years of age.
Open to youth in grades 5-12 in Erie or Niagara Counties.
Middle School contest is students in grades 5-8; High School contest for students in grades 9-12
Entries accepted in both individual and group categories
The deadline for submissions is on or before October 6, 2017
Finalists will be announced October 17, 2017 and winners will be announced on October 24th at the TCO Finals at the BNMC.
Summer camp offers students pathway to BNMC
By GROVE POTTER
PublishedAugust 11, 2017
The people at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus (BNMC) realize that to continue thriving, they need to make sure there is an educational pathway local students can follow onto the campus. Teaching young people about the range of jobs on the campus is part of that mission, as is stimulating their interest in science, technology, engineering and math classes.
And simply getting them on the medical campus helps, too.
During the BNMC ACES camp this week and next, students are being exposed to a range of things on the campus, including touring and speaking with leaders from most of the participating institutions. A group of ninth-graders toured Buffalo General Medical Center, the Jacobs Institute and Buffalo Manufacturing Works at the beginning of the first week of camp.
“So far, I like cardiology and anything about that,” said Danya Flood, a student at the Research Laboratory Program for Bioinformatics and Life Sciences, a new high school located inside Bennett High School. Flood spent many nights at a hospital visiting her uncle when he was being treated for heart disease.
For Sean Gavin from Bishop Timon – St. Jude High School, building bottle launchers using PVC pipes and grill igniters topped the early list of camp activities. The campers, led by Mark Swihart, UB Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering and executive director of the New York State Center of Excellence in Materials Informatics, gathered in a small park and learned how powerful alcohol vapors can be. The plastic bottles, filled with vapors, blasted into the air when sparked.
“It’s scientific alcohol,” Swihart told the students. “If you drink it, you’ll go blind.”
The camp is a component of UB’s Center of Excellence in Bioinformatics and Life Sciences’ (CBLS) partnership with the Research Laboratory Program. The new high school, beginning its second year, welcomes students from anywhere in Buffalo and offers a rigorous program in life sciences.
The school was started after students were brought to the medical campus for Genome Day, and school administrators saw the need for educational programs for those students interested in science.
More than half of the students in the summer camp are from the Research Laboratory Program, and attend class in the morning before camp begins.
The summer camp is a collaborative program with CBLS, Buffalo Manufacturing Works, The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, 43North, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Jacobs Institute, Kaleida Health and UNYTS. The students spend an afternoon at each of the institutions.
Sandra Small, science education manager at the CBLS and UB’s GEM Community of Excellence, said the students will complete a capstone project of making 3-D printed hands for kids in need of hands. As part of the preparation, they will go to the Buffalo Museum of Science to focus on hands, looking at bone structures and discussing structure and function of different animals’ wp-contentendages.
On the final day, they will present their hands and the career posters they are making.
“That’s really the focus of the camp: to make them aware of all the careers that exist here,” Small said. “We say it’s the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, but everything we have done up through the third day of the camp has been engineering-related. Engineering is so heavily involved in medicine now, that’s one of the points we want to make sure they understand. There’s a variety of careers that exist.”
Earlier this month our Healthy Communities Director, Jonathan McNeice attended Career Explorations, a three-day event held on the Cornell University campus facilitated by Cornell’s 4-H Program. Local teens and members of our HYPE (Healthy Youth Positive Energy) youth group gained exposure to academic fields and career exploration, developed leadership skills, and learned about what it’s like to be on a college campus. Teens chose a specific program area (i.e. animal science, food science, physics, horticulture, human services and natural resources to name a few) and explored that area with college students and experts in the field.
Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus to Host Internship Fair for Undergraduate and Graduate Students
WHAT: The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. (BNMC) will host an Internship Fair to connect companies on the Medical Campus with undergraduate and graduate students for spring and summer internships.
WHEN: Thursday, March 2, 2017 from 4:00 PM – 6:00 PM EST
WHERE: dig at the Innovation Center, 640 Ellicott Street, Buffalo, NY 14203
WHO: Nearly 30 companies in a variety of fields will be on hand to meet with local students for potential internship positions in areas including: technology, laboratory, engineering, business development, marketing, and much more.
JMS Technical Solutions is sponsoring the Internship Fair.
The event is free and open to all current undergraduate and graduate level students. To register, go to https://bnmc-old.local/events/bnmc-internship-fair/
ABOUT: The Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. (BNMC Inc.) is a self-sustaining social enterprise successfully combining innovation, job creation, and urban revitalization. It serves as the umbrella organization of the anchor institutions that make up the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus located within the 120-acre campus bordering Allentown, the Fruit Belt and Downtown. The BNMC Inc. fosters conversation and collaboration among its member institutions, its partners and the community to address critical issues impacting them, including entrepreneurship, energy, access and transportation, workforce and procurement, neighborhoods, and healthy communities, with the goal of increasing economic development and building a strong community. www.bnmc-old.local.
