INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR STUDIES IN CREATIVITY

Chase Hall 244(716) 878-6223creativity.buffalostate.edu/

The International Center for Studies in Creativity is aninternationally recognized unit within Buffalo State. Centerfaculty conduct research, teach and work with a variety ofgroups and organizations to improve the understanding ofcreativity and creative problem-solving.

The history and development of the center are tied to thework of Alex F. Osborn, developer of the brainstormingtechnique and the creative problem solving (CPS) process.Osborn, director of the New York City–based advertisingagency Batten, Barton, Durstine, and Osborn, used his workto encourage innovative thinking among his associates and,later, among young people. His successor, Sidney J. Parnes(professor emeritus), founded the center at Buffalo State in1967.

The center’s programs have a tradition of more than 40years of research, development, and teaching in the fieldof creativity studies. Documentation of the program’seffectiveness shows a positive impact on students’ personaland professional growth. The educational program consists ofcourses that can lead to an undergraduate minor or a masterof science degree in creative studies or a graduate certificatein creativity and change leadership. Courses help studentsto become better thinkers and problem solvers, and to workmore effectively with groups. Skills developed in creativestudies courses help improve performance in other classesand provide a competitive edge in the job market. Our alumniwork in business and industry, education (all levels), the socialsciences, technology, and the arts. Companies or organizationsinterested in change or change management find creativestudies skills to be particularly useful.

In conjunction with E. H. Butler Library, the CreativeStudies Special Collection comprises the largest collection ofmaterials on creativity in the world. The collection includesprint and nonprint resources, including books, curricularmaterials, software programs, dissertations, research projects,and theses on creative thinking and its cultivation. TheCreativity-Based Information Resources (CBIR) database,maintained by the center, includes annotations of periodicalliterature, chapters, software, assessments, and other resourcesrelating to the study of creativity, invention, and innovation.For more information, visit http://library.buffalostate.edu/creativity .

The center’s academic program is enhanced by the Alex F.Osborn Visiting Professorship, which has attracted to campus

some of the most important minds in creativity research todate.

International Center for Studies in Creativity 1