Abel Fink, professor emeritus of educational foundations, will sign copies of his new book, Students Speak: Reactions to Class Experiences at Buffalo State College, Thursday, December 16, from noon to 2:00 p.m. in E. H. Butler Library 134.

Students Speak is a handsome, 174-page book published jointly by Buffalo State's E. H. Butler Library and the Monroe Fordham Regional History Center. The book contains student papers collected by Fink during his four decades at the college.

“This book contains pure gold,” Fink says. “When you encourage students to write from the heart and write about what really matters to them, they respond in ways you couldn’t have imagined. Students Speak is evidence of that. On a personal level, this book is the story of my professional life.”

Fink (pictured), who began his tenure at Buffalo State in 1956 after earning degrees in human development and group dynamics, was known for his innovative teaching style. Never one to repeat the same lesson twice, he decided that the traditional teacher-centered model of education wasn’t for him. Instead, he asked his students to drive the discussion, while he acted as a facilitator.

In addition to student writing, Students Speak includes original photographs by Sophie Hodorowicz Knab and cover art by Ralph Sirianni, ’78, ’92, both former students of Fink. Selected sections of Fink’s classes were videotaped over the years and are available for viewing at the archives and special collections department at E. H. Butler Library.

The library and the Monroe Fordham Regional History Center cooperatively publish books, brochures, and pamphlets of local interest. Last year, they released One Long, Wild Conversation: Selected Letters Between a Buffalo State Professor and His Student, a Writer, an insightful compilation of correspondence between noted social critic/writer Hank Nuwer, ’68, and retired English professor Fraser Drew.