UC Davis observes Global Accessibility Awareness Day this Thursday (May 19) with workshops, a roundtable discussion and a drop-in lab dealing with electronic accessibility — that is, creating websites and digital documents so everyone can use them, regardless of disabilities affecting how people learn or interact with technology.

“If our courses, websites and materials are not accessible, these members of the UC Davis community are left behind,” members of the campus’s E-Access Committee said in promoting the GAAD conference.

“If you work with students or instructors, maintain a website or distribute materials, please join us to learn more about electronic accessibility and what you can do to reach everyone.”

The conference will be held in various rooms in the Student Community Center. The drop-in accessibility lab will be from 9 a.m.-noon, and a general information session, “Accessibility Resources for Everyone” is scheduled from 10 to 11 a.m.

The rest of the program:

• Workshop for faculty and graduate student instructors, presented twice, 9-10 a.m. and 11 a.m.-noon
• Workshop for programmers, developers, computer science students and anyone with Web content responsibilities, 2-3:30 p.m.
• “The Future of Critical Disability Studies and Disability Access at UC Davis,” roundtable, 2:10-1:40 p.m., for undergraduates, graduate students and faculty

‘Egghead’ Maintenance

What’s under an Egghead’s shell? Passers-by can get a glimpse when foundry workers apply fresh coatings in a project that started today (May 17) and is expected to take five days — one for each Egghead installation.

The popular bald heads, created by longtime faculty member Robert Arneson and installed starting in 1991, are bronze with a special paint that gives them their signature egg-shell look. The Walla Walla Foundry of Walla Walla, Washington, which cast the iconic sculptures, is doing the maintenance, removing the wax that covers the paint, sanding the Eggheads, then adding two layers of new paint and a fresh coat of wax.

The Eggheads are recoated about every 10 years, but this maintenance is ahead of schedule, owing to the repeated cleanings the pieces have undergone to rid them of graffiti in recent months. With every cleaning, an Egghead loses some of its coating.

The Eggheads and all other public art on campus are cared for by the Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art, and the work will ensure the seven eggs look their best in time for the museum’s Nov. 13 opening.

Come hear what we ‘envisioned’

We played the online game, “Envision UC Davis,” for 36 hours straight back in February, and now it’s time for a final report on what we envisioned.

Rachel Hatch, research director for Institute for the Future, which ran the game, will present the report during a public meeting from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 24, in 203 Mrak Hall. She’ll talk about top trends, participation and other key aspects of the game.

She also will detail what she describes as “Opportunity Spaces,” which represent potential areas of focus for UC Davis to consider in the future, and the “top things” the campus could do immediately to plan for the future.

The meeting will include a question-and-answer session. And, last but not least, the meeting will serve as the venue for the announcement of the game winners — people whose individual posts garnered the most followers. 

For more information, contact Gary Sandy, project manager, Office of the Chancellor, by email.

‘Let’s Talk About Mental Health’

NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) at UC Davis invites students, staff and faculty to a workshop on campus resources and developing the communications skill set needed to effectively serve as an advocate for early intervention and prevention.

“Let’s Talk About Mental Health: An Introduction to Resources and Communications Skills to Effectively Listen, Engage and Refer" is scheduled from 9 to 11 a.m. Friday (May 20) in Ballroom A at the Conference Center.

The organizers said they hope people come away from the conference with a better understanding of mental health and stigma. Student, staff and faculty perspectives will be offered in a moderated panel, with questions welcome.

The program lists Beth Cohen as the keynote speaker. She’s a psychologist with UC Davis Occupational Health Services and an educator-organizational consultant with UC Davis Extension’s Center for Human Services.

Other participants include Renee Lopez, coordinator of consultation, outreach and peer education programs, Student Health and Counseling Services; and Ruben Valencia, psychologist and director, Academic and Staff Assistance Program.

Call for nominations for 2017-18 book project

Recently we told you about Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System, our next Campus Community Book Project.

Now the campus is inviting your suggestions for the book that will follow Stuffed and Starved in the Campus Community Book Project.

Stuffed and Starved is the book project for 2016-17, as announced last month, selected from nominations on the topic of “poverty/hunger/food security.”

The topic for 2017-18, as selected by the Campus Council on Community and Diversity, is “intersection of racial and LGBTQIA (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual) identities.” Nominations are due by July 1, after which the selection committee will have the summer months to consider the nominated volumes.

Here are the general criteria for nominations:

• Compelling and thought-provoking to engage us in dialogue about contemporary controversial issues and to raise questions that have many possible answers.
• Well-written, accessible and engaging to a general audience.
• Short enough to be read within the timeframe usually allotted for coursework.
• Provocative and intriguing to as many members of the community as possible, to invite diverse participation and integration into discussion groups and courses across the sciences, social sciences, and humanities.
• In print in paperback (by spring of the year before the project) and affordable.
• Written by an author who is still living and who is an engaging public speaker, available to give an author’s talk during the span of the project, and who would be a campus guest.

Nominations are welcome from anyone in the campus community. Please include title, author and a short description of the book, plus an explanation of why it complements the topic and represents a worthy selection.

Have a nomination or would you like to volunteer for the selection committee? Send an email to Mikael Villalobos, coordinator of the Campus Community Book Project.

Lunchtime Listening Session with Lawlor

The next Lunchtime Listening Session with Lawlor is scheduled for this Thursday (May 19). Dave Lawlor, vice chancellor-chief financial officer, is holding listening sessions regularly this quarter, all on human resources topics. HR is part of Lawlor's Office of the VC-CFO, and he invites all employees to come discuss various HR topics with him.

This week’s session, on the topic of job performance, is from noon to 1 p.m. in the DeCarli Room, Memorial Union (second floor). Lunch will be served. RSVPs are requested, by email to Michele Hassett.

Community Survival Strategies workshop

Act fast and you can claim one of the handful of remaining spots in the campus’s next presentation of the workshop Community Survival Strategies for Active-Shooter Incident, 1 to 2:30 p.m. next Tuesday, May 24.

Workshop leaders are Mary Macias, safety officer for Student Health and Counseling Services, and volunteer coordinator for the campus Police Department; and police officer Ray Holguin.

Macias said the workshop covers three steps to follow to increase your chance of surviving an active-shooter incident: run, hide, fight (last resort). The program’s scenarios incorporate demonstrations on how to attack a shooter and take away a handgun. Other topics include: the will to survive, weapon identification and identifying police capabilities.

The workshop will be held in the Hamilton Room at the Heitman Staff Learning Center. Sign up online via the UC Learning System (search for the course by its title).

Kerberos log-in screen changes May 19

Reminder: UC Davis’ Central Authentication Service, or CAS, log-in screen — where you enter your Kerberos passphrase — gets a makeover this Thursday (May 19) as part of a software upgrade.

Version 4.2, which is being installed, also includes several new security features and performance improvements.

Read more about CAS in the Service Catalog, and contact the IT Express Service Desk if you have any questions or concerns.

Free access to IT research library

If you’re looking for data, trends or analysis on subjects that involve technology, you now have free access to one of the best IT research libraries around: Gartner.

As a benefit of the contract relationship between Gartner and the campus and UC Davis Health System IT departments, all UC Davis faculty, staff and students have gained access at no charge to Gartner Research Service. Via the portal, you can read or view Gartner research, white papers, webinars and more on an array of complex IT issues, emerging technologies and industry trends. Get started here, in the IT Service Catalog.

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