UCD doesn’t stop making news after the dorms are packed and most students return home for the summer. Here’s a sampling of what you missed while you were gone.

Governor signs pact with Chile at UCD

June 23 – On the last day of spring quarter finals, President Michelle Bachelet of Chile and California’s own Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger met at UC Davis to sign an agreement pledging to exchange agricultural information including seed development, grape growing and wine making.

California and Chile have a long history of agricultural cooperation dating back to the 1960s when Chilean students came to UC Davis to study agricultural development and returned to Chile to set up the agricultural export and import system that remains in place today.

California and Chile’s remarkably similar climate and topography make it a logical partnership. President Bachelet expressed Chile’s intent to interact with UC Davis as an equal partner under this new agreement, with Chile contributing an equal share of the cultural and agricultural education.

The two guests took a tour of UC Davis’s vineyard followed by a signing ceremony in Freeborn Hall and a private lunch with Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef at his home.

-Originally reported by Wendy Wang and Patrick McCartney

AFSCME service workers hold five-day strike

July 17 – Contentious contract negotiations between the University of California and its service employees resulted in a statewide five-day strike in mid-July.

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees’ 8,500 service workers striked on all 10 UC campuses and five medical centers for the week of July 14 in an attempt to strengthen their bargaining power in the now almost year-long negotiation process. The union has charged UC with paying its service workers “poverty wages” as low as $10 per hour and is demanding increased pay as well as benefits. The university blames state budget constraints for the difficulty in raising service worker’s minimum wage, but has proposed an increase to between $11.50 and $12.00 per hour depending on the location.

AFSCME service workers announced their intention to strike four days before the start date. In response, UC obtained a temporary restraining order from the San Francisco Superior Court on the grounds that the union did not give adequate notice of planned strike. The union proceeded with the strike, however, despite the court’s decision.

The two parties narrowly avoided a strike by AFSCME’s other bargaining unit – patient care technicians – in early June in favor of returning to the bargaining table, but the union refused to rule out a future strike. No progress has been announced since the negotiations resumed.

-Originally reported by Rita Simerly

Regents consider changes to freshmen admissions requirements

July 28 – The University of California Board of Regents discussed a highly anticipated faculty plan to eliminate the requirement for freshmen applicants to submit two SAT II subject test scores at a July meeting at UC Santa Barbara.

Eliminating the test requirement would allow a pool of otherwise qualified students who didn’t take the tests to at least have their application considered by the campuses to which they apply. Proponents of the plan argue that this would increase the visibility of underprivileged students to UC as well as reduce the number of students denied consideration solely for technical reasons. In fall 2007, 11,000 applicants were considered ineligible, 20 percent of which had GPAs over 3.5. Under the proposed plan, these students would be entitled to a review of their applications.

The regents are expected to further discuss the plan at their meeting in September, but a vote is not expected until November.

-Originally reported by Alysoun Bonde

Centennial celebration starts at California State Fair

Aug. 14 – UC Davis had a considerable presence at the California State Fair this summer as the university kicked off its centennial celebration with a massive 6,000 square foot pavilion.

The exhibit highlighted Davis’ transformation from UC Berkeley’s small farm school into a top public university and premier research institution. Fairgoers enjoyed a variety of attractions including a 3-D tour to the center of the earth, watching a biodigester convert food scraps into energy, a photo display of the University’s 100 years and one of Unitran’s double decker buses.

The Centennial Celebration will continue with the Fall Festival on campus from Oct. 10 to 15.

-Originally reported by Erica Lee

CAMPUS NEWS SUMMER DIGEST was compiled by ALYSOUN BONDE. She can be reached at campus@californiaaggie.com.

Fall 2008 Welcome Week

Fall 2008 Welcome Week

Bike Registration

Today and Friday

8:15 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Hutchison IM Field (in front of TAPS building)

Bikes on campus must be registered with a California Bicycle License. New licenses cost $8 and renewals cost $4. Both are valid through Dec. 31, 2010.

Queer Welcome

Today

11 p.m. to 1 p.m.

Lesbian, Gay, bisexual, Transgender resource center, University annex

LGBTRC welcomes new students and offers information about the resource center.

Tours of Shield’s Library

Today and Friday

Noon to 1 p.m.

Peter J. Shields Library Lobby

Get acquainted with the library and its services.

THE BUZZ

Friday

6 p.m. to 10 p.m.

After Party: 10 p.m. to 1 a.m.

The Quad

UC Davis Campus Unions and the Department of Campus Recreation is sponsoring The Buzz – featuring a live entertainment stage, a carnival, make and take crafts, health education, Clinique makeovers, food, movies and more.

Reentry Fall Potluck

Saturday

4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Community Park, Shade Arbor

Meet other reentry students and members of the transfer/reentry Resource Network while enjoying a day of barbecue, fun and games for kids. Bring a dish to share. RSVP to reentry@ucdavis.edu.

Campus Recreation Day on the Quad

Tuesday, Sept. 30

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The Quad

Go out to the Quad to learn about the programs Campus Recreation has to offer. Representatives from the ARC, Aquatics, Craft Center, Equestrian Center, Fitness and Wellness, Intramural Sports, Outdoor Adventures, Sports Clubs and Youth programs will be there to answer your questions.

Cultural Café

Tuesday, Sept. 30

11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Cross Cultural Center (CCC)

This open house will introduce students to the CCC, an advocate for social justice and a multicultural community. Enjoy games, entertainment and café style food.

Join Aggie Ambassadors!

Tuesday, Sept. 30

Noon to 1 p.m.

Plant and Environmental Sciences Building, Room 3001

Aggie Ambassadors develops leaders through promoting the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences to potential students, peers, the campus community and society. Visit the Facebook group “Aggie Ambassadors” or call 752-4939 for more information.

Volunteer at the Women’s Center

Tuesday, Sept. 30

4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

North Hall, First Floor

Learn more about volunteering at the Women’s center at this meet and greet.

Health Education Promotion Love Lab

Wednesday, Oct. 1

11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Memorial Union Patio

The Love Lab, a mobile cart containing free safe sex products, will be out in the MU. Join the Love Lab Facebook group for more information about the services.

Student Alumni Association Fall Kickoff

Wednesday, Oct. 1

6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Memorial Union, Games Area

Get to know what SAA is all about with an evening of free pizza and bowling.

College of Engineering Ice Cream Social

Thursday, October 2

2:30 to 4 p.m.

Kemper Hall Courtyard

Your chance to meet other students, check-out the various Engineering clubs on campus and enjoy some cool treats. Advisers will also be available.

Meet and Greet with the Department of Environmental Science and Policy

Thursday. Oct. 2

3 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Wickson Hall, Room 2124

Join the deparment’s faculty and advising staff for an ice cream party, and learn about the new Environmental Science and Management major.

Cooking Club Fall Welcome

Friday, Oct. 3

5 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Memorial Union, Garrison Room

Come to the Cooking Club’s first meeting of the year and learn what it’s all about.

The Aggie Scrapbook: A Glimpse of Students Life – The Last 100 Years

Wednesday Oct. 6 through Friday Oct. 17

7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Memorial Union Art Lounge

Campus Unions is sponsoring a photo exhibit featuring 100 years of student life in celebration of the UC Davis Centennial.

Editor’s note: Here are some of the people who keep the wheels turning at UC Davis and around town.

The Campus

Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef

Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef joined the UC Davis community in 1984 as executive vice chancellor and provost. The native mid-westerner took office as UC Davis’s fifth chancellor in 1994 and is one of the nation’s-longest serving university leaders.

“I’ve sometimes described my campus role as representing UC Davis to the outside world, and putting in place the campus’s leadership team and helping ensure their success,” Vanderhoef said.

After nearly a quarter-century at UC Davis, Vanderhoef announced his intent to step down as chancellor at the end of this centennial year. After a year-long sabbatical, he will return to campus as a professor of plant biology and chancellor emeritus. Vanderhoef says he is looking forward to the centennial.

“The coming centennial year, in spite of our budgetary dilemma in Sacramento, will be fun, pure and simple,” he said. “We’ll be recalling all of those events and people that add up to the great university that we are today. And we’ll look at the challenges of the next 100 years, many of which we’re already working on.”

ASUCD President, Ivan Carrillo

Fifth-year senior sociology major Ivan Carrillo of Sacramento became an ASUCD senator in Feb. 2007 after attending UC Davis as a transfer student for just five months.

“I was trying to navigate campus and thinking about what I wanted to get involved in,” Carrillo said. “A friend who was a senator told me all about it and encouraged me to get involved.”

Carrillo’s involvement expanded last year when he made a successful bid for ASUCD president in the Winter 2008 elections as a member of the L.E.A.D. slate.

“The role of ASUCD president is to make students’ time here as enjoyable as possible, one where they can be as successful as possible and to ensure they’re getting support from the administration, from the city and from the student leaders,” he said.

Before his term ends in March, Carrillo has a full agenda of projects and goals to work on including developing a student resource manual, increasing the number of one and two-unit seminars offered, and looking into bringing a Zipcar rental service to campus that would allow students to easily rent cars by the hour.

“Our time [in ASUCD] in this position is short, but I’m confident that we can get everything done,” he said.

ASUCD Vice President, Molly Fluet

Molly Fluet became interested in ASUCD when she was asked to help a sorority sister with her campaign for senate.

“It sort of snowballed from there,” Fluet said.

The fourth year history major from Pasadena was elected vice president on the L.E.A.D. slate in the Winter 2008 election. As vice president, she presides over weekly senate meetings, deals with the administration of day-to-day ASUCD activities, checks that senators attend their weekly commission meetings and serves as a liaison to the administration with President Carrillo.

“The office of VP is really there to serve as a utility for students,” she said. “I hope that when people have a question they feel free to email me.”

During her remaining time in office, Fluet plans to focus on improving ASUCD’s relationship with the Academic Senate as well as creating seminars to help sophomores, juniors and seniors develop a closer connection with their professors.

ASUCD Controller, Paul Harms

As ASUCD’s money man, fourth year managerial economics major Paul Harms is responsible for overseeing the association’s $10.7 million annual budget. The controller is tasked with developing and implementing the budget for all ASUCD units including Unitrans, the Coffee House, Classical Notes and Tipsy Taxi. The paid appointed position also serves as the chief financial advisor to the ASUCD president and senate.

“There’s a lot the controller has to take into account both on the political side in the senate and the business side in making sure the budget is accurate and serves the most students as possible with the little funds we have,” Harms said.

Like most of his predecessors, Harms worked his way into the position by interning for the previous two controllers. The Fremont native is now looking for his own proteges this fall in preparation for his departure from the position at the end of winter quarter when he graduates.

“As outgoing controller, part of the job is to choose a possible successor so that whoever takes the job won’t have to reinvent the wheel,” he said.

City of Davis

Davis Mayor Ruth Asmundson

Ruth Yu Asmundson came to Davis from the Philippines in the late 1960’s as a Fulbright scholar to get her Ph.D. in chemistry from UC Davis. She has served on the city council since 2002, with her second term as mayor beginning over this past summer.

The mother of six was married to former Davis mayor Vigfus Asmundson who passed away in 2003. She credits her husband’s passion for local politics for sparking her interest in Davis issues. Before running for city council in 2002, she was involved in various education policy programs including the Yolo County School Boards Association and the California STAR testing program.

A political moderate, Asmundson leans slightly toward the pro-growth side on the issue of city expansion – a contentious debate in Davis politics. She has said a community must grow to remain healthy.

One of Asmundson’s pet projects is developing and nurturing relationships with Davis’ sister cities, especially the two from her native Philippines that she helped bring into the fold.

Asmundson previously served as mayor between 2002 to 2004. Her current term ends in 2010.

State Assembly Member Lois Wolk

Lois Wolk, a longtime Davis resident and politician, is a Democratic candidate for the California State Senate and currently serves as a representative for Davis in the California State Assembly. She also represents several other communities in Yolo and Solano counties that make up the Eighth Assembly District.

Wolk is the chair of the Water, Parks and Wildlife Committee in the Assembly, and she has authored a number of laws on environmental issues, winning her the Planning and Conservation League’s 2007 Legislator of the Year award.

She has authored over 50 new laws in the five years she has been in office, according to her Assembly website.

Though she was elected to the Assembly in 2002, Wolk has a long history of public service in Davis.

She was elected to the Davis City Council in 1990 and served as mayor for four out of her eight years as a councilmember. In 1998 she was elected to the Yolo County Board of Supervisors, where she served until 2002.

U.S. Representative Mike Thompson

Mike Thompson is the U.S. Representative for the First District of California, which includes Davis. He was first elected in 1998.

Thompson is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of moderate and conservative Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives. He serves as the chair of the House Subcommittee on Terrorism, Human Intelligence, Analysis and Counterintelligence. He is also a member of the Ways and Means committee and the Committee on Intelligence.

Thompson is a Vietnam veteran. He received a Purple Heart for his service as a staff sergeant and platoon leader during combat, according to his congressional website. He later became the first Vietnam veteran to win election to the California State Senate, where he served from 1990 to 1998.

Thompson faces re-election in November.

Davis Police Chief Landy Black

As the head of one of the Davis Police Department, one of the city’s most important departments, Landy Black oversees 60 sworn police officers and another 45 professional staff members. He is also in charge of a budget of $13.5 million.

He was hired in 2007 after a series of racially-charged controversies led to the resignation of the previous chief in June 2006. Prior to coming to Davis, Black was a precinct captain in Seattle, Wash., where he worked in a culturally diverse neighborhood – something that strongly appealed to community members when he was hired.

“It has been mentioned that there is a need for respect for all citizens, and that is something that I am committed to,” Black said in a Davis Enterprise article after he was hired.

The Davis Police Department is responsible for law enforcement inside city limits. This does not include anything on campus, which is under the jurisdiction of the UC Davis Police Department, a separate law enforcement entity.

Davis Blogger David Greenwald

If there’s scandal, injustice, or anything else “the man” might not want you to know about, you can bet David Greenwald has written about it.

Greenwald is Davis’ most influential blogger. His website, formally known as The People’s Vanguard of Davis, is a place dedicated to exposing “the dark underbelly” of town politics and government.

The site has gained popularity from its in-depth reports on alleged past misconduct in the Davis Police Department, alleged financial mismanagement in the Davis Joint Unified School District and the high salaries of some city workers.

Greenwald says he sees himself as a watchdog who reports on issues that are not being covered in the newspapers.

And people listen. The site gets anywhere from 6,000 to 20,000 hits per week, Greenwald said.

“I think if you go down the list of people who are leaders in the city of Davis and the community as a whole, a lot of them read the site to keep informed about what is going on,” he said.

Some leaders also use the site to communicate with the public. Davis city councilmember Sue Greenwald (no relation to David) frequently posts her thoughts and clarifies her positions in the comments section of the site.

ALYSOUN BONDE and JEREMY OGUL can be reached at campus@californiaaggie.com.

The first year of college brings new friends, new classes – and the worry of upgrading to a larger pant size.

This dramatic increase in weight during freshman year, commonly referred to as the “Freshman 15,” has been proven to be an exaggeration, but the idea mirrors a real trend.

“There has been some research that was done at Cornell in their division of nutrition science,” said Charles Hess, head of the nutrition department. “They found that the average gain in the first semester … was about 4 pounds.”

“It’s nowhere near 15 pounds,” said Linda Adams, the registered dietician for the Sodexo-operated dining commons. “15 pounds adds to the drama.”

Changes in lifestyle are noted as the primary causes of this weight gain, as first-years are often living on their own for the first time.

“This is a very stressful time of life, when students are moving out of the house,” Adams said. “Now they’ve got to worry about eating on their own, they’ve got to worry about school that’s costing a lot of money [and] they’re living in a strange place.”

The quantity of food available in the dining commons as well as the ability to overindulge in unhealthy options are both believed to also contribute to weight gain.

“The weight gain is due to the ‘all you care to eat’ dining option,” said Nancy Hudson, assistant program director for dietetics in the nutrition department in an e-mail interview.

Students want to try everything and then consume more food than needed, she said.

Lack of exercise is another factor attributed to weight gain in first-years.

“If students have a heavy course load and so forth they aren’t participating in exercise as much as they may have prior to coming to college,” Hess said.

There are methods, however, to prevent weight fluctuation and develop a healthy lifestyle, including managing nutrition, physical activity and sleep.

“[Students] need to think about the whole wellness aspect – getting enough sleep, eating right [and] maintaining an active lifestyle,” Adams said.

UC Davis offers a variety of resources to assist students in developing healthy lifestyles within the college environment.

“I am available to do nutrition consulting with any student that is interested in learning how to eat healthy,” Adams said.

Healthy food choices are not limited to the types of food selected, but also the quantity of food consumed.

“The dining commons does a really good job of showing portion sizes with the foods that they do serve,” said Laura Rubin, a health educator from the Health Education and Promotion program. “There are mechanisms in place that could support you in eating an appropriate amount of food.”

In addition to providing the opportunity to make nutritious choices, UC Davis also has many ways for students to be physically active.

Taking advantage of the ARC, the bicycle-friendly campus and the intramural sports program are also ways to remain active, Hess said.

Adams suggests adding exercise into your daily activities, such as taking the stairs instead of elevators, and walking downtown to study.

Stress management is also a crucial component for weight and health management.

Recognizing how your eating habits and physical activity patterns are influenced by stress can help you alter your behavior to emulate a more healthy lifestyle, Rubin said.

While developing healthy habits is beneficial in the short-term, the habits developed during college can also influence future well-being.

“It’s good to monitor your weight because we’re really facing a health crisis in terms of obesity,” Hess said. “If a student begins to gain even 4 or 5 pounds a quarter and that continues, that could lead then to serious problems [later in life].”

SARA JOHNSON can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

Ever seen a dachshund race or been to a bonfire rally? Well, now you can. Welcome to UC Davis.

With 100 years of history, UC Davis holds many traditions passed down from student to student over the decades. Many survive. Others don’t.

Picnic Day

One of the oldest UC Davis traditions, Picnic Day is the campus’ annual spring open house.

“The event started [in 1909] as an actual picnic with faculty and students on campus,” said Christine Pham, 2009 Picnic Day chair. “It’s evolved into a campus open house – a chance to celebrate what’s great about UC Davis.”

Today, UC Davis departments put on exhibits showcasing their achievements, and various events help introduce prospective students to the campus.

Annual highlights include a parade to kick off the festivities, the aforementioned dachshund race, which is sponsored by the Veterinary School of Medicine, and a chemistry magic show put on by the UC Davis Chemistry Club.

Picnic Day is a favorite of UC Davis Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef.

“The best thing about Picnic Day is not the parade or the dachshund races or the battle of the bands. It’s that Picnic Day was invented by the students in the early 1900s, and is, to this day, run by the students,” said Vanderhoef in an e-mail interview. “It’s the best campus ‘open house’ in the country.”

Homecoming Week

In addition to the big Homecoming football game (this year the Aggies will take on Southern Utah on Oct. 11), there are many other festivities and sporting events planned for the week, spanning from Oct. 6 to 11.

One age-old ritual during Homecoming Week is the Pajamarino, currently hosted by the Student Alumni Association (SAA).

The tradition began over 90 years ago when pajama-clad undergraduates snuck out of their dorm rooms to parade to the Davis train station and greet returning alumni, according to SAA’s website.

In recent years, most students wear street clothes to the event, but the premise remains the same: Give alumni a rousing welcome back. The students are accompanied by the California Aggie Marching Band-uh! and the UC Davis Spirit Squad.

Interested in participating? Meet at the Davis Train Station at 7 p.m. on Oct. 10 and plan on returning to campus with the group to attend the Homecoming Bonfire Rally, hosted by the Aggie Pack.

The bonfire, deeply rooted in UC Davis’ history, started in the 1920s but was disbanded in the 1960s because it lacked support on campus, said Scott Brayton, assistant athletics director in marketing at UC Davis.

“It was brought back in the eighties … [and has] been going strong ever since,” he said.

“It’s the largest bonfire of the West,” said Greg Ortiz, director of promotions for intercollegiate athletics at UC Davis. “It’s a rah-rah event to get fired up for the game the next day.”

“The football players get out there with the dance team and cheer team and do some combined routines, and then Coach [Bob] Biggs speaks,” he said.

Whole Earth Festival

This school year marks the 40th anniversary of the three-day Whole Earth Festival, scheduled for May 8 to 10.

Started in 1969 by artist and teacher Jose Arguelles and a group of his students as a way to showcase art and provide an alternative to the time period’s typical forms of education, the festival has evolved into amultifaceted event.

Booths, workshops and speakers are abundant at Whole Earth, along with crafts, music, dancers and refreshments.

A big part of Whole Earth is stressing the importance of sustainability. More than 97 percent of the festival’s waste was composted last year, diverting it from landfill, said Ari Reisman, the festival’s 2009 co-director.

All booths are hand-produced, and food booths have reusable dish programs.

The Cal Aggie Marching Band-uh!

Started in 1929 as a small pep band, the band has evolved into a full-fledged marching ensemble with a roster of about 225.

You may recognize the band in its informal uniforms – more casual and loose fitting – performing around campus as the “Maverick Band.” This alter ego of the formal band was formed in 1963 to play for basketball games; they now also perform at a variety of campus and community events.

“The informal band has done a lot to really create what we are,” drum major Dave Jones said.

The band does get decked out in full regalia for football games and various other events throughout the year.

“One of the favorite traditions … is that we haven’t missed a football game – home or away – in a couple of decades,” Jones said.

The band is also very active during Picnic Day. In addition to marching in the parade twice – once in formal and once in informal dress – the band plays in Battle of the Bands in the afternoon.

Now-defunct Aggie traditions

Not everything stands the test of time.

A popular custom that originated after World War II was the on-campus “Hello Aggie” greeting. The idea was to promote a friendly and comfortable environment, said Brent Laabs, 2007-2008’s ASUCD Historian.

During this period of rapid campus expansion and enrollment growth, “Hello Aggie” helped retain a small college atmosphere, Laabs explained.

Laabs added that the tradition died sometime in the mid-1960s – the school was expanding too fast to keep up, and the growing counter-culture of the time ended the custom.

One old tradition that, for first-year students, is thankfully long gone is the freshman tank rush, which started in the mid 1910s and was stopped in the 1930s when more women started arriving on campus, Laabs said.

“There were a bunch of tanks for animals to drink from. Freshmen got thrown in there or in the creek – basically anywhere with water,” Laabs said.

Another old UC Davis tradition, if it can be called that, is the throwing of tortillas at commencement ceremonies.

Although it had about a 10-year run a few years ago, “I don’t think it ever reached the status of ‘tradition,'” Vanderhoef said.

“Tortillas flew around like Frisbees and were fun in a goofy kind of way,” he said.

The tortilla-tossing began when two other commonly thrown items – graduation caps and inflatable beach balls – were being discouraged.

“I think that what really put an end to it, though, was when we started to collect tortillas at the door in barrels. When [people] saw how much food was being wasted, whether thrown or collected, it just stopped.” Vanderhoef said.

ANNA OPALKA can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

FRIDAY

Fast-for-a-Day

7 p.m.

646 A St.

The Muslim Student Association and Islamic Center of Davis are sponsoring the Eighth Annual Fast-For-A-Day. The organizations encourage those interested to fast from both food and drink from 5:30 a.m. until 7 p.m. After the fast, food and educational talks will be offered.

Graduate student and international scholars welcome night

7 p.m.

Cabernet Room, Silo Union

Koinonia at Davis Graduate Division sponsors this free dinner and education session. The group welcomes Christians looking for Bible study as well as those simply interested in Christianity. Please call 902-4441 for more information, or e-mail kdgrad@ucdavis.edu.

Large group bible study

7 p.m.

1001 Giedt

Koinonia at Davis will have its first large group bible study of the school year. After discussion, snacks are provided. For more information, visit koinoniadavis.org.

SATURDAY

Yoga Aid Challenge

6:30 a.m.

Discovery Park, Sacramento

This free event is the first Yoga Aid Challenge in America. The first Challenge, in Australia, raised over $140,000 for an orphanage in Cambodia. This Challenge will try to raise funds for the same orphanage. For more information, email alicia.yogaaid@gmail.com or go to yogaaid.com.

MONDAY

Adult bereavement support group

1 to 3 p.m.

Woodland

If you have lost a loved one over three months ago, this support group may help you work through grief and bereavement. Prescreening is required, so please call Yolo Hospice Bereavement Services at 758-5566 for more information.

To receive placement in the AGGIE DAILY CALENDAR, e-mail dailycal@californiaaggie.com or stop by 25 Lower Freeborn by noon the day prior to your event. Due to space constraints, all event descriptions are subject to editing, and priority will be given to events that are free of charge and geared toward the campus community. 

Yolo County grand jury releases final report

July 7 – Davis Fire Department personnel were at the center of an investigation by the Yolo County Grand Jury, which released its final report for the year at the end of June.

This year’s grand jury received 43 complaints from the public, and undertook 10 investigations which resulted in five final reports.

Among them was an investigation of the Davis Fire Department in response to allegations of misuse of facilities by off-duty employees and a difficult work environment stemming from the close relationship between the fire chief and the local union – the Davis Professional Firefighters Local 3494.

The grand jury also discovered that off-duty firefighters misuse fire department facilities after drinking at the bars in downtown Davis by sleeping at the firehouse rather than going home.

The city of Davis released an initial response to the report in which city manager Bill Emlen thanked the jurors for their dedication but criticized their findings as either inaccurate or not detailed enough for the city to investigate fully.

“We believe the Grand Jury Report includes several statements that are factually incorrect,” wrote Emlen in his response. “Taken together, they contribute to a less than accurate picture of the Davis Fire Department.”

-Originally reported by Alysoun Bonde

Nader presidential campaign stops in Davis

Aug. 4 – Ralph Nader and running mate Matt Gonzalez came to Varsity Theatre to speak at a campaign rally, where they focused on their campaign goals and challenges.

Just hours before his visit to Davis, the California Peace and Freedom Party announced that Nader, an Independent, would be the party’s presidential candidate on the California ballot in November, a major step for his campaign.

Gonzalez, a San Francisco politician, took the stage first, opening and closing with a heated message responding to demands that Nader apologize to people who believe his campaign took away votes from Democratic Party candidate John Kerry in 2004.

“The only way you can make your vote relevant is to vote for who you want and not be scared,” Gonzalez said. “It’s hard out there, and it’s important that the people who support us defend us.”

Nader spoke about his belief in a single-payer national health care service. He also discussed the environment and the need to get air pollution under control, the need to harness solar energy, to decrease the “bloated military budget” and to have a livable minimum wage.

-Originally reported by Ali Edney

County needle exchange gets one more year

Aug. 18 – Yolo County’s needle exchange program, active for one year, has generated some controversy this summer because of reports that used syringes were showing up in public parks.

Despite the concerns, the Yolo County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 earlier this month to allow the needle exchange to continue into its second year at a cost of $100,000.

The needle exchange program is designed to give sterile needles to injection drug users in exchange for their old and used syringes. The goal of the program is to reduce the spread of blood- and bone-transmitted diseases such as Hepatitis C and HIV, said Bette Hinton, Yolo County health director.

The program works on a “one-to-one plus 10” syringe exchange system, meaning that the program will give 10 syringes to a new participant in the program and then exchange one new, sterile syringe for every old, used one brought back.

“This program has only had a year’s worth of time to grow,” said supervisor Mariko Yamada, who represents part of Davis. “We need to give the program time to sort out the problems.”

Others say the problems are too great for the program to continue.

“My primary concern … is that there are 11,253 unaccounted-for needles out there and 150 people in the program,” said supervisor Matt Rexroad to the board. “The average user is responsible for 75 needles that are unaccounted for rolling around out there.”

-Originally reported by Ali Edney

City begins charging for parking downtown

Aug. 28 – The Davis City Council voted in April to implement a paid parking system in the E Street Plaza, and parking pay stations were installed at the beginning of September.

Visitors now have to pay a dollar an hour to park in the lot, up to a maximum of four hours at a time. Parking can also be purchased in smaller increments, at 25 cents for every 15 minutes.

Parking will still be free after 6 p.m. and on Sundays. Parking in most other downtown parking lots remains free, up to two hours at a time.

“It stems from many, many requests we’ve had from downtown patrons who want to be able to park for longer downtown,” said Downtown Davis Business Association administrator Joy Cohan. “They do not want to have to move their car if they want to eat and shop, or go to a movie.”

Cohan said converting the lot to a fee-based system will open up more spaces for people who really need them and are willing to pay.

“With paid parking, they know they have a place they can park, and we think that’s going to bring more visitors,” she said.

-Originally reported by Jeremy Ogul

CITY NEWS SUMMER DIGEST was compiled by JEREMY OGUL. He can be reached at city@californiaaggie.com.

This school year marks the 100th birthday of the farm that grew into one of the world’s leading universities. What began as a small agricultural adjunct to UC Berkeley in 1908 has grown from its initial class of just over 100 to contain over 30,000 students and cover more land than any other school in the University of California system. The year will feature a number of events to mark the occasion, which has required the constant effort of a centennial team.

“We’ve been working in earnest for about a year now,” said Assistant Vice Chancellor Robert Segar, the man in charge of organizing Centennial events.

Some of the events, such as a 6,000 square foot exhibit at the State Fair this year, have already occurred, while others, such as the Fall Festival, are on the way. Fall Festival takes place from Friday, Oct. 10 to Wednesday, Oct. 15 and includes celebrations such as Pajamarino, a tradition started at UC Davis in 1915. Students at the time would sneak out of their dorms and hold a late-night, pajama-clad rally at the Davis train station to welcome alumni back for homecoming weekend.

Although the tradition of Pajamarino began in 1915, UC Davis had existed several years prior, although at this time it was known as the University Farm School. UC Davis’s roots go all the way back into the late 1800s and early 1900s when California experienced the advent of agriculture education initiatives.

In 1905, the state legislature authorized the UC Regents to locate a site and establish a University Farm School. A site was found for the school in 1906, and in 1907 construction began. The first classes, however, were offered in 1908, making the centennial anniversary this year.

The location found for the school was Davisville, California.

“It was a very small town. Obviously the university is going to be the big game in town,” said university archivist John Skarstad.

Davisville would become Davis, and the Farm School would become the University of California, Davis, in 1959.

“It was the very edge of the baby boom. [Baby boomers] were going to be coming in numbers that everyone saw would be overwhelming. Big changes had to happen,” Skarstad said.

Changes like making a University Farm School into a fully-fledged university. University planners, said Skarstad, turned out to be right in their predictions.

“In terms of students, the numbers skyrocket in the 60’s,” he said.

In 1960, there were 2,157 undergraduate students at UC Davis. By the end of the decade there were 9,641. The university was growing in other ways, too. In 1951 the university library had approximately 18,000 volumes. By 1974 there were 1 million books.

“[The numbers] speak to a campus not growing in a linear fashion, but growing in a geometric fashion. It’s like a dandelion; there’s a little stalk and then poom! Explosion. Just amazing,” Skarstad said.

Professor Charles Goldman, who has taught at the university for 50 years, remembers some of the early days of UC Davis.

“I rolled into town in September 1958 straight from finishing my Ph.D. on Alaskan lakes from the University of Michigan, with my wife Shirley and two children Christopher and Margaret [with] all our possessions in the Chevy station wagon and in a canoe on top of the car,” Goldman said in an e-mail interview, recalling his first encounter with Davis.

“There was a blackout when we arrived that night. Not a single light in the whole town. Dust, tumbleweed and newspapers were blowing down Main Street. I thought I had arrived in the Wild West,” said Goldman, a member of the environmental science and policy department.

When he arrived, the school was less than a tenth of its current size.

“There were only 2,500 UC [Davis] students when I joined the zoology department as [an] instructor step one and it was very much an agricultural college. Emil Mrak was chancellor. I immediately loved the small college atmosphere of the smallest campus at the world’s greatest university,” he said.

Perhaps one of the biggest changes to UC Davis since that time is the growth of the university, both in size and stature, Goldman attested.

“Fifty years ago Davis was really the farm. Almost no one east of the Rockies even knew it existed. Now we are a world class campus and Berkeley, UCLA and other campuses as well as Stanford and Scripps share the limelight with UCD. In many ways it is still the world’s greatest university with a bit of the small college atmosphere still intact,” he said.

UC Davis Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef had similar thoughts, expressing amazement at the university’s growth in 100 years.

“When one looks at our origins – a farm school with fewer than 20 students – and where we are now – one of the top universities in the country by every objective measure – it seems to be nothing less than miraculous,” he said. “Great universities are rare, and I’m always amazed at how humble we are about such a significant accomplishment.”

Vanderhoef has been at UC Davis since 1983 and chancellor since 1993. He will step down at the end of this year.

“I did not plan my life around the Centennial year, but I love the fact that it turned out that way,” he said. “Our UC Davis Centennial year will be my 25th year at UC Davis, and my 15th year as Chancellor. Clearly the stars were talking to me.”

The centennial events and occasions, such as the refurbishing of the walkway that bisects the quad, should not cost students anything extra.

“For the most part the Centennial events were things we were going to do anyway,” Vanderhoef said. “We just gave them a Centennial twist or spin. When we did need money, such as in the very special UC Davis exhibit, we used non-state, non-student dollars.”

The centennial year for UC Davis is a milestone that administration officials hope bodes well for the future.

“The Centennial Year is a time to enjoy the then and now – to appreciate where we’ve been and where we’ve come,” Vanderhoef said. “It gives us better focus on what we’ve accomplished and, more importantly, why. It all gives us a good start on a vision for the next 100 years.”

RICHARD PROCTER can be reached at features@californiaaggie.com.

Centennial events – editor’s picks

Homecoming Game – Aggies vs. Southern Utah

Oct. 11, 6 p.m.

Aggie Stadium

The
centennial homecoming football game! Under the new lights at Aggie
Stadium! With a pregame BBQ at the Rec Pool Lodge! What’s not to like?

Celebrate UC Davis!

Oct. 12, noon to 4 p.m.

Third Street, downtown Davis

The Davis Chamber of Commerce and the city of Davis are throwing the university a birthday party! Spoilers: 100 birthday cakes.

Sale of the Century

Oct. 15, 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

UC Davis Bookstore

Twenty-five percent off clothing and gifts! Twenty percent off general books! Cover yourself in all kinds of agricultural pride.

Jeffrey Toobin – One Hundred Years: A look inside the Supreme Court

Oct. 10, 8 to 10:30 p.m.

Jackson Hall, Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts

CNN
senior legal analyst and staff writer for the New Yorker will be coming
to UC Davis and talking about the Supreme Court. Interspersed in his
presentations will be key moments in UC Davis history.

Picnic Day

Apr. 18, 2009

Davis

The
centennial Picnic Day should be an event worth remembering, I’m sure.
Combined with seeing the centennial homecoming game, attendees will be
the toast of alumni parties.

-Richard Procter