by Jennifer Lodi-Smith | Sep 20, 2023 | Faculty
We invite all members of our campus community to join in caring for our common home through our Canisius Laudato Si’ initiative.
In the interest of maximizing accessibility to everyone in our campus community, we will rotate the location of Laudato Si’ meetings around campus this semester. We are also trying to meet in visible, public places on campus so that folks can see and hear what we are up to and maybe get involved! Here are the specific dates and locations for our monthly meetings:
- Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2:00 p.m., main floor of the library – preliminary agenda: action plan & migration-friendly actions
- Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2:00 p.m., first floor lobby area of Health Science – preliminary agenda: how can you implement action plan actions & makerspace
- Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2:00 p.m., Science Hall café – preliminary agenda: spring 2024 planning & winter sowing
All are welcome! To learn more about our campus Laudato Si’, please visit https://sites.google.com/my.canisius.edu/canisiuslaudatosi/home and make sure to check out Genevieve Fontana’s CEEP project to share out the great things our campus is doing and celebrate the people doing sustainability work via the following resources:
Submitted by: Jennifer Lodi-Smith, AVPAA & Professor, Psychology
by Jennifer Lodi-Smith | Jun 14, 2023 | Faculty
Shana M. Richardson ’06, MS ’19 joins the Canisius community on June 20, 2023 as director of the New Buffalo Institute (NBI).
In this role, Richardson will lead programs to actively engage Canisius in the local community. She will oversee aligning the institution’s educational, service and research efforts in furtherance of its Jesuit mission in Buffalo, with a special emphasis on the East Side of Buffalo. Her leadership will guide organizing, focusing, and prioritizing the college’s existing connections and activities in the community while developing new initiatives to support community needs and priorities. She will work closely with public and private partners on initiatives that advance mutually established goals aimed at stimulating the economy of the region, revitalizing neighborhoods, and improving the quality of life for residents in four strategic areas of focus:
- Urban Education Initiatives
- Neighborhood Development and Revitalization
- Entrepreneurship and Economic Development
- Community-Based Learning and Community Service
Richardson is a proud Buffalo native, born and raised on the city’s East side. From an early age, Canisius College has been a part of her story.
Shana grew up within walking distance of the KAC, and walked there every summer for 5 consecutive years to participate in the National Youth Sports Program, housed on the Canisius College campus. It was this early exposure to the institution that led Shana to choose Canisius to pursue her undergraduate degree in English. Shana received the Urban Leadership and Learning Community (ULLC) scholarship, known at that time as the McGowan Scholarship, a full 4-year scholarship, to attend Canisius, and her time was greatly enriched by her participation in this community of scholars.
Shana went on to earn her BA in English from Canisius in 2006, and her MA in English from the University at Buffalo in 2008. She returned home to Canisius upon completion of her graduate degree as an adjunct in the English department, while also teaching at Bryant & Stratton College and Medaille College.
In 2013, Shana accepted the position of Coordinator for Academic Support Services for the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) at Canisius College, and proudly served in that role until July 2019. During her time in HEOP, Shana earned an additional graduate degree in the Higher Education Student Affairs Administration program in May 2019. In July 2019, Shana was granted directorship of Medaille College’s HEOP, as the first Director of the inaugural program. She has also served as the Director of Student Support Services for the Buffalo Educational Opportunity Center, which serves historically marginalized adult students.
Throughout her professional career, one thing that continued to stay with her was the ULLC’s call to pour into local youth so that one day its graduates would do the same for their Buffalo community. It was this call that led her to her current role as the Director of the New Buffalo Institute here at Canisius, and that has also kept her closely connected to the institution over the years. In addition to this new role, Shana continues to serve as an adjunct instructor in the HESAA program and is also an active member of the ULLC Alumni Council. She is excited to take over the work of the New Buffalo Institute!
Shana resides in the historic Hamlin park area with her husband, Marques, and their 3 children, Micah, 11, and Zoey and Zaryah, both 7.
Enjoy welcoming Shana Richardson to her new role with our Canisius family!
Submitted by: Jennifer Lodi-Smith, AVPAA & Cece Gotham, Chief of Staff
by Jennifer Lodi-Smith | May 1, 2023 | Faculty
Please join Jenn Lodi-Smith, PhD, on Friday, May 5, from 12:00 -1:00 p.m., for a discussion about The Spark Bird Project, hosted virtually by the Roger Tory Peterson Institute. She will be joined by artists featured in the current exhibition, “Hope is the Thing with Feathers: Contemporary Women Nature Artists.”
This program is free to all but registration is required. Call 716-665-2473 or
click here to register.
The Spark Bird Project is designed to help better understand who birders are and who potential birders may be. Learn more and participate at
www.spark-bird.org.Submitted by: Jennifer Lodi-Smith, AVPAA & Professor, Psychology
by Jennifer Lodi-Smith | Mar 10, 2023 | Faculty
Everyone is welcome to join with our spring 2023 Laudato Si’ campus sustainability initiative!
This semester we will identify short-term, mid-range and long-term actions for a three-year plan of coordinated activity around two pillars – resource use (plastics, energy, food, paper) and nature-friendly initiatives (birds, pollinators, plants) both within the focus of our campus and local community.
Our meetings will take place in Old Main 108 on:
- Tuesday, March 14 at 4:00 p.m.
- Monday, April 24 at 4:00 p.m.
Feel free to bring an interested friend or two and lots of ideas!
Submitted by: Jennifer Lodi-Smith, AVPAA & Professor, Psychology
by Jennifer Lodi-Smith | Feb 8, 2023 | Faculty
Everyone is welcome to join with our spring 2023 Laudato Si’ campus sustainability initiative!
This semester we will identify short-term, mid-range, and long-term actions for a three-year plan of coordinated activity around two pillars – resource use (plastics, energy, food, paper) and nature-friendly initiatives (birds, pollinators, plants) both within the focus of our campus and local community.
All of our meetings will take place in Old Main 108 on:
- Friday, February 17 at 3pm
- Tuesday, March 14 at 4pm
- Monday, April 24 at 4pm
Feel free to bring an interested friend or two and lots of ideas!
Submitted by: Jennifer Lodi-Smith, AVPAA & Professor, Psychology
