UCLA Today: UCLA Today

Provost Scott Waugh outlines next budget steps for UCLA

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 13:50:55 GMT

Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Scott Waugh sent this letter addressing the budget crisis on July 2. Dear Colleagues: As a result of the dramatic fall in state funding for the University of California, we must restructure UCLA’s academic...

UCLA’s head football coach visits U.S. troops

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 17:15:25 GMT

College football coaches are used to giving pep talks. It’s part of their job, and they do it well. UCLA’s Coach Rick Neuheisel (right) and Air Force Academy’s Coach Troy Calhoun talk while riding inside the cockpit of an Air Force C-17 Globemaster...

Staff leap into action as Jackson creates campus' biggest media surge in memory

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:44:36 GMT

When Michael Jackson's ambulance arrived at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center on Thursday, June 25, the star was soon followed by hordes of paparazzi, TV reporters, fans and more. The crowd only grew from there. News crews swarmed outside the...

Chancellor Block addresses scope of budget crisis, plans and priorities

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 10:10:18 GMT

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block sent this letter to the campus community on June 30. Dear Colleagues, I know that all of you have been following the increasingly complex and worsening financial situation facing California and its impact on present...

Egyptologist pulls together threads woven through ancient civilizations

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 13:35:49 GMT

In 2560 BC, the ancient Egyptians built the Giza Pyramid. Nearly 2,700 years later and some 7,700 miles away, the Aztecs erected a similarly imposing pyramid. A coincidence? Or the result of secret contact between two disparate cultures? Evidence,...

Children leave legacy, thanks to famed muralist, UCLA students

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:37:44 GMT

Scott C. Smith’s students at UCLA Lab School have proven that age is no standard by which to judge an artist's merit. Each year, the graduating sixth grade class gives a gift to the school. This year, students, parents and teachers decided that their...

Support Mattel Children's Hospital at Ralph's

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:04:49 GMT

Here's an easy way to support Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA. Next time you're at your neighborhood Ralphs supermarket, toss your spare change into the collection canister at the checkout stand. Mattel Children's Hospital UCLA is one of six children's...

New answers to big questions in Chinese history

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 09:53:05 GMT

For 30 years Lothar von Falkenhausen has observed changes in China over two very different time scales — one of them measured in millennia. Professor of art history and archaeology at UCLA and acting director of the Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, he...

Cotsen Institute names new assistant director

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 16:35:52 GMT

Shauna MecarteaShauna Mecartea, director of publications and communications for the UCLA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, has been named acting assistant director of the institute until July 1, when she will assume the role of assistant director....

UCLA leaders to ask Yudof to consider changes to pay-cut options

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:29:25 GMT

An estimated 2,500 UCLA employees gathered in Pauley Pavilion on June 24 for a Q&A about a proposed UC-wide pay cut/furlough plan, where Chancellor Gene Block and other campus officials said they are asking UC's Office of the President (UCOP) to...

Senate vice chair wins Gold Shield Faculty Prize

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:39:22 GMT

Faculty members who attended the Academic Senate’s Legislative Assembly meeting on June 11 weren’t surprised to see Robin Garrell, professor of chemistry and biochemistry, sitting at the front of the room next to the Senate’s current chair, Michael Goldstein....

Budget Town Hall transcript

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:17:16 GMT

Staff Assembly sponsored a Budget Town Hall on June 24 at Pauley Pavilion. Making remarks and responding to questions were Chancellor Gene Block, Vice Chancellor Steve Olsen, and Associate Vice Chancellor Lubbe Levin. Following is a transcript....

UCLA's biggest summer session gives departments a cash boost

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:12:08 GMT

Studying keeps happening during the summer at UCLA. Photo by Stephanie Diani.While recession woes force some California colleges to cut back on summer classes — Cal Poly Pomona even canceled summer session altogether — UCLA is looking ahead to its...

Go green and save money with Green IT

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:48:01 GMT

Learn how to use office technology to go green and save money this Thursday afternoon, June 25, at the Green IT campus meeting. A group of campus support coordinators (CSC) have researched the best ways to turn IT to cost-effective green use....

Weight Watching

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 13:32:23 GMT

Illustration by Juliette Borda. Summer is a time when we break away from routines and break out the bathing suits — a potentially lethal combination for the many among us who wage a constant war struggling to shed those excess pounds. "Two...

Free at the Fowler

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:44:02 GMT

While the shaky economy has many thinking twice about spending hard-earned cash on entertainment, the Fowler Museum at UCLA presents a most affordable option: free concerts, performances and films running in conjunction this summer with two current exhibitions...

Teaching literacy in the city benefits learners, tutors

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 08:54:52 GMT

The mostly immigrant adults attending Centro Latino for Literacy in downtown Los Angeles usually speak only Spanish. They come to learn to read and write their language, motivated by a panoply of hard-luck tales that they share with the UCLA interns...

Lesson from New York City: Let principals lead, teachers teach

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 08:44:42 GMT

Ouchi is the Sanford and Betty Sigoloff Distinguished Professor at the UCLA Anderson School of Management in Los Angeles. His book, "The Secret of TSL," will be published in the fall. This op-ed was originally run in the New York Daily News on June 7....

Staff Applause — Staff Assembly Scholarships

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 19:07:33 GMT

Each year UCLA Staff Assembly offers scholarships for career enhancement and professional growth. This year’s recipients, who were announced at a June 17 awards reception at the Faculty Center, will receive up to $500 toward career development activities...

On a quest for breakthroughs in treating brain injuries

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:20:03 GMT

Actress Natasha Richardson’s death this past March from a brain injury — the result of a skiing accident — was not, unfortunately, an uncommon event. Nor was the UCLA student sent into a coma on June 17 after a punch to the face during a music concert...

Staff excellence recognized with awards and scholarships

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 17:48:29 GMT

UCLA staff members were recognized for their outstanding contributions and encouraged in their career aspirations during a festive celebration June 17 at the Faculty Center. The awards were presented by UCLA Staff Assembly and the Administrative Management...

Workers rush in to turn dorms into conference digs for summer

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:24:54 GMT

When the last commencement banner comes down and the 2009 graduation scene fades into a warm memory, a sense of quiet envelops the campus that only days before reverberated with the jabber of thousands of happy conversations and jubilant cell phone calls....

Campus leaders to hold Staff Town Hall on budget

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:23:54 GMT

Staff will have an opportunity to learn the most up-to-date information on the state of the UC and UCLA budgets at a Town Hall meeting set for Wednesday, June 24, from noon to 1 p.m. at Pauley Pavilion. Chancellor Gene Block and Vice Chancellor for...

Building's green makeover wins high score UC-wide

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:03:13 GMT

Behind-the-scenes changes are making a big difference in UCLA's Public Affairs Building. By finding out when everyone leaves the building for the day, Facilities Management has calculated down to the minute when they can turn off air-conditioning or...

Options for systemwide salary reductions, furloughs

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 16:31:42 GMT

To deal with unprecedented budget cuts, UC President Mark G. Yudof outlines three optional plans for salary reductions and/or furloughs that are under study. The Office of the President (OP) wants employees' feedback on these plans. To do that,...

All-Staff Picnic is cancelled due to budget

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 11:03:05 GMT

This year's All-Staff Picnic has been cancelled due to budget constraints, announced Kyrie Bass, president of UCLA Staff Assembly, co-hosts the picnic with the Office of the Chancellor. "After serious consideration, Staff Assembly has...

Two make priceless gift to strangers, setting off two kidney transplant chains

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 10:20:46 GMT

How much can the power of love accomplish? Just ask Harry Damon or Nicole Lanstrum. Damon is a Michigan firefighter who lost his 24-year-old son in a tragic snowmobile accident, and Lanstrum is an Air Force technical sergeant from Iowa who specializes...

Curtain rises on L.A. Film Festival in Westwood

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 09:23:19 GMT

Get your popcorn buttered and put on your walking shoes – the Los Angeles Film Festival returns to Westwood June 18-28 with films and events taking place at 12 venues in Westwood and four at other Los Angeles locations. The Hammer...

Worsening state budget crisis prompts campus leaders' call to action

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 15:04:20 GMT

Although the State Legislature is still at odds over how to slash the state budget to deal with a $24 billion deficit, it is very likely that the governor's proposed $619 million cut to UC's budget for 2009-10 will stand, UCLA's budget chief told the...

Graduation celebrations

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:34:10 GMT

Chancellor Gene Block spoke to graduates of the College of Letters and Science. Photo by Don Liebig. Celebrations were in full swing this past weekend for more than 10,000 graduates receiving bachelor's, master's, doctoral and professional...

UC libraries plead with publishers for a price break

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 11:21:04 GMT

Facing cuts in their acquisitions budgets that may climb as high as 20% next year, the UC Libraries are asking publishers from whom they jointly license electronic content — journals and other scholarly publications — for a break. A letter went out...

Academic Senate schedules Town Hall on budget

Mon, 15 Jun 2009 09:13:36 GMT

Campus leaders are scheduled Tuesday to brief faculty and take questions on the budget crisis facing UCLA and the University of California system. The Town Hall sponsored by the Academic Senate is set for noon-1:30 p.m. in the Charles E. Young Grand...

Man who illegally profited from Willed Body Program sentenced to 10 years

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:44:39 GMT

Ernest Nelson, who was found guilty of illegally selling cadavers or body parts that had been donated to UCLA’s Willed Body Program for medical research and education, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on June 11. Los Angeles Superior Court...

Why Israelis are cool on the Obama speech

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:23:56 GMT

Judea Pearl is a professor of computer science and president of the Daniel Pearl Foundation, founded in memory of his son to promote cross-cultural understanding. This op-ed was originally published by the Wall Street Journal on June 12. A...

UCLA takes leadership with new Volunteer Center

Thu, 11 Jun 2009 09:49:29 GMT

UCLA volunteers at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank A new volunteer center at UCLA will open on Sept. 21, stepping up UCLA’s commitment to public service and positioning the university as a national leader in volunteerism. The online UCLA...

Staff Applause — New water polo coaches

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 15:57:10 GMT

Adam Wright (left) and Brandon Brooks.Adam Wright has been named head men’s water polo coach at UCLA, and Brandon Brooks has been named head women’s water polo coach. Wright and Brooks replace Adam Krikorian, who was named head coach of the U.S....

When the student becomes the teacher

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 10:35:21 GMT

Senior Pallavi Reddy, 22, sits at the head of the classroom, facing about a dozen other UCLA students. Students who are taking her class, that is. "So, did you all get a chance to watch the video clips of Anthony Bourdain and Rachael Ray?"...

He carves career from studying lives of immigrant workers

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:37:25 GMT

Whenever Abel Valenzuela Jr. gets his car washed, he puts on what he calls his “thinking cap” and observes how car washers, usually Latin American immigrants, go about their back-breaking work. He avoids talking to the workers, lest they get into trouble...

Campus leaders cut budget by 5% as more potential reductions loom

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:14:07 GMT

Vice chancellors and deans, following the planning process put in place by UCLA's senior leaders, are now taking steps to cut 5 percent from their general fund budgets, knowing that there is a likelihood of more cuts to come as state leaders grapple...

UCLA Live debuts 2009-2010 season

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:04:31 GMT

Annette Bening in "Medea."Actress Annette Bening will appear in a world premiere of “Medea” on Sept. 23, kicking off UCLA Live’s sweeping, star-studded 2009-10 season of theater, music, dance and spoken word. David Sefton, artistic and executive director...

A tribute to leadership in the name of Wooden

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 11:04:29 GMT

From the left, Kenneth Chenault, chairman and CEO of American Express, holds the leadership award he won. With him are Anderson Dean Judy Olian and John Wooden, for whom the award is named.As fans and friends of UCLA’s legendary basketball coach all...

Crime Alert — June 4, 2009

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:20:17 GMT

A sexual assault occurred on the 1200 block of Veteran Avenue on May 25, according to a community alert from the The Los Angeles Police Department. The female victim parked her vehicle in the underground parking structure of her apartment building. After...

Human trafficking escalates as world economy plunges

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 14:36:57 GMT

Drug smuggling may top the list of the world’s most profitable and headline-grabbing illegal activities, but second to that —in a close tie with the illegal arms trade — is human trafficking, the recruitment or coercion of people who are held captive...

A 'one-stop shop' for greening your office

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 11:07:01 GMT

In a mock-infomercial presentation to campus leaders in late May, five UCLA staffers hailed their development of the university's first comprehensive guide to greening your office. "It can be yours for just three low payments of zero dollars!"...

Staff Applause: 2009-10 Staff Assembly executive board members

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 09:48:17 GMT

Maureen Wadleigh Staff Assembly's new executive board members have been announced following a campuswide election. For the term 2009-10, beginning July 1, Maureen Wadleigh, associate director of business operations for UCLA Recreation (previously...

Survivor of Tiananmen Square reaches her goal — a Ph.D.

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 08:41:36 GMT

Ten days changed the life of Chaohua Wang forever and shaped her legacy. For 10 days, the 36-year-old graduate student in literature refused to leave Tiananmen Square in Beijing except for brief negotiations with top government officials and an overnight...

Applause -- June 2, 2009

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 14:44:45 GMT

Each year, the David Geffen School of Medicine honors exceptional educators with the Awards for Excellence in Education and the Serge and Yvette Dadone Clinical Teaching Award in honor of Dr. Saleh Salehmoghaddam. The winners of the Award for Excellence...

Prof reveals artistic side of renowned architect

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 11:32:14 GMT

Richard Neutra is widely recognized as one of modernism's most important architects. Now a new exhibition of his sketches and drawings from the Department of Special Collections at the Charles E. Young Research Library casts him in a different light...

Experts bring Africa alive for young students

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 10:34:15 GMT

Carlos De Loera, a seventh grader from St. John the Baptist School in Baldwin Park, didn't know that French was the official language of the Republic of Benin, a country in West Africa. On Saturday, May 30, however, he learned this fact from no less...

Yudof warns legislators of stark consequences if budget is cut as planned

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 07:47:00 GMT

Testifying before the state’s Joint Legislative Conference Committee on Budget on Monday, June 1, UC President Mark Yudof described the devastating consequences of the proposed state budget cuts for the university, its students and the services it provides...

Yudof to testify today in Sacramento on budget cuts

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 11:50:44 GMT

UC President Mark G. Yudof will be testifying before a Sacramento conference committee on the budget this afternoon, outlining immediate and long-term consequences of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's latest budget proposal. The hearing at which Yudof,...