Berkeleyan
News Briefs
08 December 2005
Berkeleyan holiday publishing schedule
This is the last issue of the Berkeleyan for the fall semester. We resume publication on Jan. 12, 2006. For campus news during our non-publishing weeks, visit the NewsCenter, newscenter.berkeley.edu.
UC reaches tentative agreement with CWA
University of California officials announced on Tuesday, Dec. 6, that they have reached a tentative agreement with Communications Workers of America Local 9119 on a new contract for UC's research-support professionals and technical employees through June 30, 2008.
Under the agreement, UC's research support professionals and technical employees will receive wage increases comparable to other staff employees over the next three years upon ratification of the contract.
The union is expected to complete a contract-ratification vote among its members by Dec. 16. Once ratified, the 2005-06 wage increases will be implemented retroactive to Oct. 1, 2005, when other UC employees received their increases.
UC has agreed to keep the details of the agreement confidential during the union's ratification process. Once the contract is ratified, UC will make details of the agreement available.
Meet Berkeley's newest faculty members
The new-faculty website produced by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research (research.chance.berkeley.edu/page.cfm?id=130) offers academic profiles of the campus's 66 new faculty members for the 2005-06 academic year - each with a summary of the scholar's academic expertise and educational background.
New deadline for Haas Int'l Award nominations
Nominations are being accepted through Thursday, Dec. 15, for the Elise and Walter A. Haas International Award. The annual award honors a Berkeley alumnus who is a native, citizen, and resident of a nation other than the U.S., and who has a distinguished record of service to his or her country. The service may be in any field of endeavor, including but not limited to the arts, sciences, classical professions, education, business, or government.
Each recipient receives a cash prize of $15,000, an engraved medallion, and travel expenses to attend the presentation ceremony. To make a nomination or for information, see www.urel.berkeley.edu/haas or call 643-6493.
Dec. 8 memorial to honor Col. Charles Travers
A memorial service will be held Thursday, Dec. 8, for Col. Charles T. Travers, a longtime supporter of the campus and namesake of the political-science department. Travers died Nov. 6 at his home in Greenbrae of natural causes. The 1932 Berkeley alumnus was 95 years old.
The political-science department was renamed the Charles and Louise Travers Department of Political Science last May in honor of Travers and his late wife. Travers committed $12 million to endow the department with funds supporting undergraduate scholarships, graduate-student fellowships, and faculty recruitment and retention efforts. An ardent fan of Cal football who attended more than 80 Cal-Stanford Big Games, Travers also donated more than $5.5 million during his lifetime to the football program.
The service will take place at 3 p.m. at Memorial Stadium's Louise Travers Memorial Club Room. Scheduled speakers include campus administrators, athletics officials, and members of the Travers family.
Poetry anthology to be celebrated Dec. 13
A publication party for The Face of Poetry, a new anthology of U.S. poetry featuring the work of several campus poets, will be held at 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 13, at A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books in San Francisco. Poets Margaretta Mitchell, Robert Hass, Brenda Hillman, and Robert Thomas will be featured, along with the book's editor, former campus staffer Zack Rogow.
Alcohol ban lifted for Greek chapters
A ban on alcohol at fraternity and sorority events has been lifted for the vast majority of Greek organizations on campus, paving the way for alcohol consumption at approved social events as early as Friday, Dec. 9. The decision follows successful efforts by leaders of the Interfraternity Council (IFC) and of the College Panhellenic Association, a sorority council, in completing the terms of an agreement made with campus leaders in August.
The IFC and Panhellenic council represent 46 of the campus's approximately 70 fraternities and sororities and about 2,000 of the campus's 2,500 students affiliated with a Greek chapter. Approximately 20 chapters not affiliated with the councils remain under the ban, which was imposed in early May, prompted by growing concerns about alcohol-related problems including fighting, hazing, and poorly managed parties.
Rec Sports' holiday hours
Campus swimming pools and recreation facilities are subject to scheduling changes for winter break and the energy-curtailment period. For a complete listing of Rec Sports facility hours, including pools, see calbears.berkeley.edu/facilities.
Consortium offers e-gateway to California plant collections
The Consortium of California Herbaria is a new database gateway to information on California vascular-plant specimens housed in herbaria throughout the state. Supported by the California Digital Library, it now includes information on more than 463,000 specimens from eight collections, searchable through a single interface (ucjeps.berkeley.edu/chc_open.html).
New director takes reins at Summer Sessions
Richard Russo became the new director of the campus's Summer Sessions program on Dec. 5. The former executive director of administration for Boston University's Division of Extended Education, Russo takes the reins from Judah Rosenwald and Dan Himelstein, who have been acting co-directors since Gary Penders' retirement last spring.
For the record . . .
In our Nov. 10 issue, the name of one of the campus's "everyday heroes" was misspelled. He is Fabrizio Mejia, an academic coordinator/counselor in Student Life Advising Services.
In last week's profile of public-health researcher Eva Harris, we neglected to note her recent promotion; she is now an associate professor of infectious diseases in the School of Public Health.