Berkeleyan

News Briefs

18 August 2004

CDOP reduces maximum annual benefit

Staff requests for funding of educational opportunities through the Career Development Opportunity Program (CDOP) now exceed the funding for the program, says Assistant Vice Chancellor – Human Resources David Moers. Effective July 28, the maximum cumulative payout was reduced from $5,250 to $3,000 per person per calendar year, “to keep CDOP available to staff and to keep the program solvent,” said Moers. He said 88 percent of individual awards to campus staff have been below this level.

Staff members are urged to read current program guidelines on the CDOP website (hrweb.berkeley.edu/learning/cdop.htm) before submitting an application for CDOP funds. A link on that site will allow staff to check their CDOP balances. For other information, or to submit questions about the spending cap and other CDOP concerns, e-mail CDOP@berkeley.edu.

The money used to support the CDOP program is subject to bargaining, with participation in CDOP by union members dependent on the outcome of contract negotiations with the university. For information about the status of CDOP applications for potentially affected employees, contact labrel@berkeley.edu.

New Student Convocation set for August 23

Berkeley will hold its annual New Student Convocation at Memorial Glade from 4 to 6 p.m. on Monday, August 23. Speakers will include Chancellor Robert M. Berdahl, ASUC President Misha Leybovich, California Alumni Association President Nadesan Permaul, and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Genaro Padilla. The Cal Band will also perform, helping to open and close the ceremony. All campus staff and faculty are invited to attend.

A season to savor?

The Golden Bears appear poised for the most successful campaign in a generation of Cal football. Happily for full-time faculty and staff, season ticket prices for 2004 will be just as hard to beat. Faculty/staff reserved season tickets to the Bears’ five home games — including November’s Big Game against Stanford — are now available for $118 each, a 25-percent discount.

The Bears, who posted a dismal 1-10 record in 2001, have roared back to life under Coach Jeff Tedford. The 2004 squad was picked to finish second in the Pac-10 in a recent media poll — which would be Cal’s best showing since the conference was formed in 1978 — and was ranked 13th nationally in the annual Associated Press poll.

Cal’s season starts on the road Sept. 4, followed by the home opener (against New Mexico State) Sept. 11. For more information or to buy tickets, call (800) GO BEARS or visit calbears.collegesports.com.

Wellman Courtyard project under way

The Wellman Courtyard, bounded by Wellman, Giannini, and Hilgard Halls and the MRI trailer, is undergoing construction that will create a landscaped, multi-use parking court in the courtyard. The area — which will have 42 parking spaces, including 4 disabled spaces, 3 spaces for service vehicles, and a loading-only space — has been designed so that it can also be used for outdoor events. The MRI trailer will remain at the north end of the courtyard.

Work will take place in phases, with demolition of the office trailers scheduled to be finished before classes resume for the fall semester. Construction, scheduled to begin in October, is expected to be completed for the start of the spring 2005 semester.

U.C. Berkeley Extension to open new San Francisco center

New art studios, classrooms, computer labs, and staff offices are among the attractions of a new San Francisco center being designed by UC Berkeley Extension for opening in early 2005. The new space — located at 95 Third St., between Market and Mission — will support a number of Extension’s programs, the education school’s New Learning Clinic, and a variety of classes. Ample public parking is nearby.

The announcement caps an intensive search for a new San Francisco site — an expansion of Extension’s presence in the city to accommodate many of the hundreds of courses it offers there each year. Currently, Extension operates a center at 425 Market St. in addition to its classrooms and offices in Berkeley. Approximately one-half of Extension’s courses are scheduled in San Francisco.

Tien Center funding goal is met

Thanks to a recent $500,000 gift, Berkeley has reached its $42-million fundraising goal to construct the Chang-Lin Tien Center for East Asian Studies/C.V. Starr East Asian Library. The gift was from Berkeley alumnus Lister Chang and his wife, Christina.

The new center, to be located next to Memorial Glade and facing Doe Library, will create a world-class home for the campus’s renowned East Asian Library and, ultimately, for its East Asian studies programs. Pending approval by the UC Regents, construction on the new library building is scheduled to begin next year and be completed in 2007.

Nominations for Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Awards open

The annual Chancellor’s Outstanding Staff Awards program, honoring staff who have made exceptional contributions to the university or community, is now accepting nominations. The award recognizes individuals or teams of staff whose work is above and beyond normal expectations and has had a positive impact on such areas as student services, customer relations, operational effectiveness, mentoring, staff development, or community service.

To be eligible for the award, nominees must have completed at least one year of employment at the university and cannot hold academic or executive-tier titles. Award winners will be honored at a special ceremony in early November.

The nomination deadline is 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 10. For information, contact James Dudek (642-2907 or jdudek@berkeley.edu), Julian Ledesma (642-7224 or jledesma@berkeley.edu), or visit csac.chance.berkeley.edu.

Zelnik memorial scheduled

An August 29 campus memorial for the late Reginald Zelnik is being organized by the Institute of Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies. Zelnik, a longtime member of the history faculty at Berkeley, was killed in a campus accident on May 17. The memorial will be held in Faculty Glade beginning at 11 a.m.

The Reginald Zelnik Memorial Fund has been established in his honor to support graduate training in Russian history. Contributions may be sent to the fund in care of the Department of History, UC Berkeley, 3229 Dwinelle Hall #2250, Berkeley CA 94720-2550, attention Chris Egan.

Search launched for new CITRIS director

Professor Ruzena Bajcsy has decided to step down as director of the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS), effective Nov. 1. She will return to teaching and research in electrical engineering and computer sciences, while continuing to play an active role in CITRIS, one of four California Institutes for Science and Innovation located at UC campuses.

The institutes, first approved by Gov. Gray Davis in 2000, are multidisciplinary, multi-campus efforts that focus public and private resources and expertise on research areas critical to sustaining California’s economic growth and global competitiveness. More than 200 faculty from four UC campuses are involved with CITRIS, working on more than 150 research projects in areas such as disaster preparedness, environmental monitoring, energy management, and health care.

Chancellor Berdahl says that Bajcsy’s successor must be “a strong leader who will bring experience working with government, academia, and industry, and who understands the mission of CITRIS and the role information technology can play in improving lives.” The new director also will play a major role in overseeing construction of the new CITRIS headquarters on the Berkeley campus, scheduled to begin in the fall.

Searches and summaries on campus policies and procedures website

An enhanced website for campuswide policies and procedures is now available at campuspol.chance.berkeley.edu.

The Campuswide Policies and Procedures website project is one of a series of improvements to policy access and coordination implemented in response to the Campus Policy Access Survey distributed last September; more than 1,500 members of the campus community answered the survey.

Enhancements to the website include:

Improved search capability. A keyword search is now available. Users can also search through an A-Z list of policies and a list of keywords.

Policy summaries. One-paragraph descriptions highlight the main points of each policy.

Any user who knows of a policy that should be on the site but is not, or who has any questions or comments regarding the site, should contact Andy Goldblatt at
ucbpolicy@berkeley.edu.

Irvine’s Cicerone nominated to head the National Academy of Sciences

Ralph J. Cicerone, chancellor of UC Irvine since 1998, has been nominated as the next president of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the academy has announced. Cicerone’s nomination, which was unanimously approved by the NAS Council, precedes an election in late 2004. The new president will take office in July 2005.

Cicerone, the third UC affiliate to serve as NAS president, would succeed current president Bruce Alberts, a cellular biologist on the faculty of UCSF. Cicerone will continue to serve as UC Irvine chancellor through the 2004-05 academic year.