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News and Notes: Crucial Conversations, Campus Climate Survey

February 20, 2018

‘Crucial Conversations’ About Cultural Spaces 

UC Merced is hosting a series of activities to improve the inclusion, equity and comfort of everyone at the campus. The efforts are part of “Crucial Conversations: Cultural Spaces @ UC Merced.” 

Focus groups were held for undergraduate students, graduate students, staff and faculty this week. The sessions were confidential and feedback received – only what was said, not who said it – will result in a report and group recommendations that will submitted at the end of the spring semester. In addition, all focus group minutes will be posted publicly on the Dean of Students’s website.  

Individual meetings are available by appointment with Dean of Students Jonathan Grady and Onor Primitivo. Kamyar Nekoui, intern for Grady, can be reached in KL 113 from 8 to 10 a.m. Mondays and Fridays, and 9 to 10 a.m. Wednesdays or by email.  

Along with the focus groups, campus community members will be invited to take an online survey between March 1 and April 6. The survey will be hosted on the Dean of Students’s website and announced via Happenings.  

On April 17, a town hall meeting on cultural spaces will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in Room 105 of Classroom and Office Building 1.  

Time’s Running Out to Take the Campus Climate Survey 

If you haven’t yet taken the Staff Climate Survey (SCS), there’s still time to do so before it closes Feb. 28. 

The survey, developed by UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute (HERI), takes about 20 to 25 minutes to complete. The anonymous survey doesn’t collect any identifying information to assure confidentiality. 

Results will be combined with those from other institutions in the United States as part of HERI’s national research on campus working environments. 

Take the survey by following the link in the email invitation from Kevin Eagan, UCLA director of the Staff Climate Survey at HERI. Staff members who have not received the link can contact De Acker, director of the Office of Campus Climate.  

Diversity, Equity Grants Due March 5

The Office of Campus Climate's Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Grant Program aims to strengthen UC Merced’s campus climate and cultivate an environment where all students, staff and faculty members feel respected, included and valued. The program is now accepting proposals for projects that help UC Merced cultivate an inclusive and equitable community.

Successful proposals should inspire collaborative, high-impact, experimental and sustainable ideas. Selected grants could receive funding up to $5,000 for one year.

Details regarding UC Merced’s diversity grant program are available on the Office of Campus Climate website under the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion tab. The deadline to submit grant applications is 5 p.m. Monday, March 5.

De Acker, meanwhile, is available to answer questions about the proposal process. Contact her by email, call 209-228-2598 or send inquiries to equityinclusiondiversity@ucmerced.edu.

Black Family Day, Energy Symposium 

UC Merced teemed with activity recently with a host of events for the students, faculty, staff and community members. 

On Feb. 10, the campus held its third annual Black Family Day event as part of Black History Month festivities. Organized by Afrikans for Retention and Outreach (AFRO), participants were treated to an afternoon of fun with bounce houses for the kids, games, music, dancing and other activities in the Carol Tomlinson-Keasey Quad in the heart of campus. Community groups that included the Merced NAACP and All Dads Matter were also on hand to share information about their organizations.  

Energize Merced also organized a daylong event Feb. 10 at campus. Students and professionals gathered to collaborate and form new partnerships, develop professional and technical skills and learn about developments in renewable energy. Students attended speaker sessions, workshops, poster sessions and had networking opportunities with both academic and industrial representatives. Energize Merced is targeted toward undergraduate students, but welcomes all professionals, students and interested people. The group strives to educate people about the energy and empower participants to be a part of creating a world run by renewable energy sources. 

 

Tax Donations Help Fund UC Cancer Research 

University of California President Janet Napolitano recently reminded employees that they can help UC researchers in the fight against cancer while filing their 2017 taxes. 

UC administers two cancer programs on behalf of the State of California. These programs, supported in part by donations from taxpayers, focus on prevention, treatment and the survivability of all types of cancer. 

All donations, no matter the size, make a difference, and 95 percent of contributions go directly to research and education efforts. If you’d like to support this important work, you can do so when you fill out California’s 540 Income Tax Return form. It includes a section that lists funds to which taxpayers may contribute: 

Line 405 supports the California Breast Cancer Research Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund. Since its inception, the program has awarded more than $279 million toward breast cancer research. A recent grant, for example, focused on the health impact some of the chemical compounds found in commonly used shampoos, cosmetics and other beauty products may have on teen girls. 

Line 413 supports the California Cancer Research Voluntary Tax Contribution Fund. Donations are used to advance prevention and biomedical research for all kinds of cancer, such as the cutting-edge work underway to harness the human immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells.

James Andrew Marshall is sworn in by UC Merced by Police Chief Chou Her as Marshall's 3-year-old daughter looks on.
James Andrew Marshall is the newest officer to join the UC Merced family. Chief of Police Chou Her, with the assistance of Marshall’s 3-year-old daughter, led the swearing in ceremony on Feb. 20.”