Despite obstacles in application process, researchers see benefits that reach beyond the classroom

UC Davis is widely renowned as one of the top public research institutions in the world, offering fields of concentration ranging from food science to religious studies. As a university that conducts research conducted by faculty in all sorts of fields, students are offered unique opportunities to get involved with research — allowing them a chance to delve further into their interests and develop skills that can’t be taught in a classroom setting. 

Undergraduate students typically find positions assisting current graduate students or professors who are involved in their own research, but research positions can vary in the form of internships, fieldwork or even leading their own projects. The research work helps students expand on information from their classes through real-life application of concepts.

Ethan Lindgren, a fourth-year psychology major, works as a research assistant in the vitreoretinal lab at the UC Davis Medical School. He finds that his work at the lab deepens the knowledge he gains through his classes. 

“Research is basically where you can kind of mess around and apply what you’re learning in a more practical sense,” Lindgren said. “For certain science classes, you have a lab where you apply what you learn in those classes, but those labs are kind of narrow and they don’t go into that much depth. Whereas in a research laboratory, you kind of get a more expansive view of what you can learn about school.”

Oftentimes, the work that undergraduate students do as part of the research teams are essential to the project itself. Carlyn Peterson, an animal biology Ph.D candidate who received both her bachelors and masters degrees from UC Davis, says that undergraduate students are a big part of the innovative work she’s done in dairy cattle nutrition and environmental management.

“There’s no way that I could do everything that has to be done in a live animal trial, so they help with all the day-to-day tasks — feeding all the animals, executing the research tasks, monitoring those animals, making sure they’re healthy, helping me enter all the data, helping me look at the data, make graphs, do a literature search, all those sorts of things,” Peterson said.

Some students, however, say contacting and starting a dialogue with individuals on campus spearheading research efforts can be difficult — especially because the application process differs for each research position offered. Lindgren, for example, found his current position with the medical school through Handshake, but his previous attempts at finding a position were not as successful.

“I’ve emailed professors multiple times and they’ve never emailed me back,” Lindgren said. “And I’ve interviewed with professors and not gotten positions, so it was definitely not easy. It’s a big school and it’s pretty competitive, so it’s not particularly easy to get involved.”

These difficulties in finding and applying for research opportunities pose as an obstacle for undergraduates, but Peterson said a lot of undergraduates don’t utilize the potential research network they have right within their grasp: graduate students. 

“Undergrads are generally in contact with grad students, almost everyday, and all of the grad students that they work with will have done research or will have to do research at some point, so the first point of contact is always reaching out to the TAs,” Peterson said. “Maybe their TA isn’t currently doing research, but there are other grad students that I work with that I can get some of those students in contact with those other resources. So it’s all about their network, and they have a huge network that they often don’t look into, which is their TAs that they have currently.”

While many undergraduates fill the research assistant roles of many large-scale projects, they can also show initiative within the project and expand their role for their own personal growth. Ke Huang-Isherwood, who currently works on projects with the Department of Communications after receiving her masters degree from UC Davis last year, recalled one such undergraduate student she had worked with on a study that looked at violence in video games and its impact on game players.

“As students, there’s an opportunity to try to become more engaged,” Huang-Isherwood said. “One of the undergraduate student research assistants took the initiative of participating in the undergraduate research conference. She took the initiative of taking a piece of that study, a piece of the video game and she ended up presenting that technical part of how it worked.”

Hosted annually by the undergraduate research center, the Undergraduate Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities Conference allows 700 students to present their work. The center offers other resources, including a chance for students to have their work published through the school’s multidisciplinary undergraduate research journal, Explorations. The California Aggie reached out to the undergraduate research center for comment, but the center was unavailable due to a lack of staff. 

The potential benefits of research, however, reach far beyond the publication of someone’s work. Peterson, who has been involved with undergraduate education for several years as a TA consultant, views research as a crucial opportunity for undergraduates to explore possible career trajectories.

“Education outside of the classroom is just as important if not more important for students to get while they’re in school and there’s so much opportunity to do that,” Peterson said. “Not only does it tell them what they want to do as a career — maybe they want to go into research — but it could also tell them what they don’t want to do, and what they don’t want as a career, which is just as important for figuring out what you want to do for your life.”

Prior to receiving her masters in communications at UC Davis, Huang-Isherwood received her J.D. at the University of Minnesota, and her perspective highlighted the role of undergraduate research in helping guide students on their career trajectory. 

“When I was an undergrad, I didn’t do much research,” she said. “But I think that if I had done it, I would have realized that I liked research earlier, and then maybe wouldn’t have required me to go through a professional degree to figure it out. Of course, there’s a lot to do as an undergraduate student, and you can’t do everything, but if possible, try to get some research experience while you are still a student and can easily get credit without as much pressure as a graded course.”

While reflecting on his research work as a student, Lindgren described the value of his experience, echoing both Peterson and Huang-Isherwood’s views on the importance of undergraduate research.

“I definitely enjoy it, and it’s not like the classroom, it’s less structured and it’s definitely pretty valuable just because everyday you get to do something new,” Lindgren said. “It’s one of the most valuable parts of my education and my time here at Davis, without a doubt.” 

Written by: Lei Otsuka — features@theaggie.org

Gathering brings up current social issues, including Blue Lives Matter movement, impact of social media, more

The Davis community was rocked by a terrible tragedy last year, on Jan. 10, 2019: the death of Natalie Corona, a 22-year-old rookie police officer. Corona was fatally shot in the line of duty while responding to a car accident in Downtown Davis. To honor the life of the department’s “rising star,” community members gathered in front of the Davis Police Department earlier this month, on Jan. 10, to show their support and keep her memory alive.

The rally was organized by the group LEO: Law Enforcement Officer supporters. One of the founding members of the organization, John Freer, expanded on the efforts that were made to support Officer Corona. 

“Last Friday marked the one year anniversary of the tragic passing of Officer Natalie Corona,” Freer said. “We wanted to organize a rally to show support for the family and the Davis PD and to let them know that there are people out there that are on their side.”

During the rally, Corona’s former fellow officers unveiled a new park bench and plaque outside the department to honor her legacy. The plaque sits alongside a plaque of Officer Douglas Cantrill, who was killed in the line of duty in 1959.  

In addition to the new memorials added to the police department, a company by the name of Frisard’s Trucking Co. Inc. showed their support for Corona. Freer noted that the company has a strong attachment to law enforcement officers and, as a result, created a truck that has the names of all the fallen heroes from police departments across the country in 2019, which they drove from Louisiana in support of Corona. 

It was pointed out by the LEO organization that, over recent years, a disproportionate number of police officers have been killed in the line of duty. 

“It’s only the beginning of January and we have already lost ten officers across the country,” Freer said. “These people are human, just like you and me, and every year there are so many more police officers getting shot at. It’s ridiculous.”

Corona’s death sparked controversy at the UC Davis campus, when the ASUCD Senate attempted to pass a piece of legislation to honor her life and efforts. The ASUCD Ethnic and Cultural Affairs Commission responded to this proposal with a statement of their own, calling the Blue Lives Matter movement “anti-Black and disrespectful.” 

Freer touched on this sentiment, saying the dangers associated with being a police officer have become even more grave because of the negative portrayal police officers often have in the media.  

“Times have changed, and a simple traffic stop can be their last stop,” Freer said. “There are brave men and women that put their lives on the line to protect outs and I think that there are times that it is taken for granted. If you are sitting in the comfort of your home and something goes wrong, you can always call 911 and they are going to be there. Being an officer is a dangerous job and we want them to know that they have people supporting them.”

Freer expressed the need for community members to “protect the people that protect us,” and that joining organizations like LEO and the Sacramento Valley Backs the Blue is a good place to start. 

“It’s really tragic to see a beautiful 22-year old officer taken for no reason,” Freer said. “We just hope that the community continues to heal and that the family of Officer Corona knows that she will never be forgotten for the brave sacrifice that she made.” 

Written by: Sneha Ramachandran — features@theaggie.org

From collecting signatures to protecting the delta, these roles would allow for greater student voice, representation within government

With its proximity to the state capitol, UC Davis is often a top choice for students who want to pursue a career in politics. Two students are already starting to take their political aspirations off-campus and are making runs for local and state positions in 2020. 

Francois Kaeppelin, a third-year political science major, is running to be a member of the Yolo County Democratic Central Committee (DCC) and Sophia Racke, a fourth-year international relations major, is running for the California State Assembly.

Kaeppelin has actually occupied this position since March 2019, ever since he sought it out and was appointed to the position. Kaeppelin noticed that the committee had a vacant spot, and is now running for reelection. He saw this role as an opportunity to bring a new voice to the DCC.

“I have speaking privileges during meetings, and I can take votes on resolutions,” Kaeppelin said. “It pretty much gives me a place at the table, and the students’ voice was desperately missing at the time.”

In addition to having the much-needed power to bring attention to pertinent issues that affect students, Kaeppelin also puts a lot of his focus on housing and security in the community and has been able to completely revamp the DCC’s online presence. When he began working for the committee, the website’s domain had expired, making it almost impossible for people to stay up-to-date on the committee’s proceedings. Kaeppelin said having adequate technology is imperative for the success of the committee — and the Democratic party — in the upcoming elections.

“The biggest thing for me is technology,” Kaeppelin said. “I designed the website and made sure that everybody is on the same page when it comes to technology. I’ve basically been setting up the infrastructure to make sure that a Democrat gets elected in 2020. Just setting up the infrastructure is crucial.”

Even though he is currently running for reelection, Kaeppelin is going through the campaign process for the first time, which provides him with a unique perspective. The most difficult part of the process so far, according to Kaeppelin, has been collecting 40 signatures from registered voters in California’s 4th district, which he needs just to appear on the ballot. Though 40 signatures may not seem overly challenging to some, many Davis residents — especially students — are ineligible to sign his papers because they are registered to vote in their home counties.

Racke encountered an issue quite similar to Kaeppelin’s. 

“I had to collect 40 signatures in one week, and it was finals week at Davis,” Racke said. “My campaign manager and I reached out to everyone we knew, […] but they had to be registered to vote in the 4th district.”

Racke decided to enter the race while studying abroad in London, leaving her with just one week between the time she returned from her program and the deadline to turn in her petition papers, requiring 40 signatures. After having only one day to find her final 10 supporters, she secured 11 — bringing her total signature count to 41 and securing her place on the ballot.

Racke’s decision to run is a direct product of her time in London. While studying at the London School of Economics, she became involved in conversations regarding United Kingdom students’ concerns about  Brexit. The more she talked to these students, however, the more she realized that many of them were uneducated on the details of the issue.

Racke began to examine her friends’ opinions on politics back in the U.S. and found that they were similarly passionate about certain federal issues, but at a loss regarding how to get educated and involved. Racke explained that this sparked her interest in having a more expansive role in California’s politics.

“[My friends and I] thought that we could get attention through [the California State Assembly] and get more people involved in local politics and get people to realize that you can make a difference no matter your age or background if you have the passion and desire to do so,” Racke said.

She put together a campaign team, partly composed of friends she met in London, all of whom are featured on her campaign’s instagram, @sophia.racke. They began to brainstorm what issues they felt most passionate about, and Racke and her team came up with five specific policy goals going into 2020.

“One of them is protection of the delta and its wildlife,” Racke said. “Another one of them is investment in wildfire prevention. Awareness, intervention and prevention of sexual assault, especially on our campuses. Awareness, intervention and prevention of elderly abuse, and the […] reorganization of political finance and regulations.”

Racke now needs to pass the primary elections on Mar. 3, 2020. If she does so, her name will appear on the ballot for the general elections in November. Her message to students? Get involved in local politics, whether that be here in the 4th district or in your hometowns.

“Local politics have policies that affect your life every day,” Racke said. “It can be as simple as your housing — as students [at UC Davis] we have a housing issue. Young people have a unique voice, and they should use it.”

Written by: Katie DeBenedetti — features@theaggie.org

Circulators encourage students to get involved in politics

“It pertains to everything,” explained Mark Thomas, a 51-year-old petition circulator, about the sign hanging on his table. “Everything is too damn high.”

Outside the Peter J. Shields Library and the MU on the UC Davis campus, one or two individuals can sometimes be spotted sitting behind a small table, urging students to sign petitions. These individuals, associated with the Department of Elections, are paid petition circulators. They are paid to collect signatures from voters, all while briefly educating them on the cause. 

“The whole point is to try to get […] a million and a half signatures,” Thomas said. “There’s people all over California doing it.”

From consumer privacy to supporting stem cell research, the circulators are promoting a handful of measures that could appear on the 2020 elections ballot. According to Thomas, the Department of Elections trains petition circulators on each issue before they’re sent off to collect signatures. Nevertheless, it is still up to each circulator to study the ballots on their own.

“We read on them and keep up on them,” Thomas said. “We’re constantly trained on this stuff.”

According to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), there’s a variety of petition circulators, and different approaches to regulating them. Circulators have specific age and residency requirements, and they can be paid or volunteer.

A handful of states, such as Arizona and Florida, have banned the payment per signature model. In California, however, paid circulators are common and relied upon by most campaigns. The NCSL website explains that campaigns that can adequately fund petition circulators are more likely to qualify for the ballot.

Although petition circulators are usually paid between $1 and $3 per signature, Thomas said he doesn’t focus too much on that detail. He doesn’t like to count signatures, instead he observes the signed stacks at the end of each day.

For students wondering if UC Davis invited these circulators to campus, the answer is no. Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Life, Campus Community and Retention Services, Dr. Sheri Atkinson, noted that these petition circulators are exercising their First Amendment rights.

“UC Davis is a public campus that allows freedom of expression within proper time, place and manner regulations,” Atkinson said. “In public forums such as the Quad, the university may not regulate the content of speech.”

Although many students have noted that the circulators seem to be harmless, Atkinson added that students who feel uncomfortable about or concerned over the circulators or any outside party have the ability to reference the UC Davis Student Expression support page for services and support.  

Yolo County doesn’t have jurisdiction over petition circulators either, explained Armando Salud, program manager of Yolo County’s Assessor/Clerk-Recorder/Elections (ACE) department.

“We do not employ them, nor do we know who they are,” Salud said. “Our office serves as the signature verification technicians and will only verify that information if and when the proponent or their representative turns it in to our office and meets certain requirements.”

Salud’s and ACE’s responsibility is verifying petition signatures, not sending out petition circulators.

Thomas says those who turn away usually end up coming back — enthusiastic and eager to help make a change.

“There’s people that came and walk right past us before,” Thomas said. “And then they said, ‘Man, I’d been passing this up, but I didn’t know what this was all about.’”

Thomas says circulators enjoy tabling at college campuses because they appreciate college students’ concerns for issues like the ones included on the measures. He also made sure to point out that he and the other petition circulators come in peace. College campuses, he said, are filled with bright, young people who care. 

As a student signed the petitions and repeatedly thanked Thomas and his circulation partner for their presence, Thomas said one more thing. 

“Look around,” Thomas said. “You see all these kids walking? They are our future.”

Written by: Alana Wikkeling — features@theaggie.org