Jan. 10, 2023

UCI Minute: Should children receive the COVID-19 bivalent booster?

Dr. Coleen Cunningham, professor and chair of pediatrics at UCI Health and pediatrician in chief at Children’s Hospital of Orange County, answers questions about children and the COVID-19 bivalent booster.

Storm safety

As winter storms continue over the following days and weeks, please be aware of potential impacts to the UCI campus. These storms may bring heavy rain, wind, flooding and other hazards to our region. Currently, the campus is maintaining normal operations. If there is any change to campus operations or access, emails and/or zotALERTs may be issued. 

New executive leadership program to develop chief medical officers

The Paul Merage School of Business is launching the Chief Medical Officer Program to equip senior physician leaders with the skills and tools required to step into a C-suite role that encompasses clinical operations and business management. Enrollment is open for a March 2023 start.

Infant language acquisition

Language science assistant professor Connor Mayer received a grant to study infant language acquisition. “This project is about determining when English- and Spanish-learning infants become sensitive to the sequencing of consonants and vowels in their native language,” says Mayer. “For example, English words can begin with ‘st’ – as in ‘state’ or ‘stamp’ – while Spanish words cannot.”

Green comet will appear for first time in 50,000 years

A recently discovered comet will soon appear for the first time in 50,000 years. Discovered last March by astronomers using the Zwicky Transient Facility’s wide-field survey camera at the Palomar Observatory, the comet will make its closest approach to the sun this Thursday, according to NASA. 

Calls pour into 6-month-old 988 mental health hotline

The 988 mental health helpline has quickly expanded its reach in the six months since it launched — with over 2 million calls, texts and chat messages. The number of centers answering calls in Spanish grew from three to seven last year. A pilot line dedicated to LGBTQ youth started taking calls in September. And plans are underway to keep the momentum going, with the federal government adding Spanish language chat and text options later this year and aiming to expand to a 24/7 operation for the LGBTQ line.

CBDC: A bridge to inclusion or a deeper digital divide?
Thursday, 7 a.m. (sponsored by School of Social Sciences)

Living Simply: Simplify Your Life
Thursday, noon (sponsored by HR Wellness)

Computational Poetics: Language and Technology
Thursday, 2 p.m. (sponsored by UCI Illuminations: The Chancellor’s Arts & Culture Initiative)

Movie screening and panel discussion: “The Feminist on Cellblock Y”
Thursday, 5 p.m. (sponsored by UCI Underground Scholars Program)

Visit today.uci.edu to see and submit event listings. Events of general interest will be shared in UCI Digest two days before they occur.

UCI Pathfinder

Senior psychology and sociology major Kayla Atkinson is getting a taste of what it might be like to work as a mental health professional by working for the Pathfinder Peer Educator Program through UCI’s Student Outreach and Retention Center. “I want to break barriers and transcend spaces where Black people aren’t usually represented, so that others can follow,” she says.

#UCIconnected spotlights student, alumni, faculty and staff photos, essays, shoutouts, hobbies, artwork, unusual office decorations, activities and more. Send submissions via email or post on social media with the #UCIconnected hashtag.

Upload your vaccine and booster records

Daily COVID-19 Symptom check

By coming to campus each day, students and employees are attesting they are free of COVID-19 symptoms and are not COVID-19 positive. If you currently have symptoms of COVID-19 or recently tested positive, do not come to campus, or if you currently live on campus stay in your residence, and follow instructions for reporting your case or assessing symptoms on the UCI Forward page. Close contacts to a COVID-19 case are not required to stay home or quarantine, but should follow guidance for close contact instructions for masking and testing on the UCI Forward page.

Potential workplace exposure

UCI provides this notification of a potential workplace COVID-19 exposure. Employees and subcontractors who were in these locations on the dates listed may have been exposed to the coronavirus. You may be entitled to various benefits under applicable federal and state laws and University-specific policies and agreements. The full notification is available on the UCI Forward site. If you have been identified as a close contact to a COVID-19 case, the UCI Contact Tracing Program will contact you and provide additional direction.

UCI Forward – information on campus status and operational updates

Monkeypox information - Information and resources on monkeypox

UCI Health COVID-19 Updates – important information related to UCI Health

UCI Coronavirus Response Center – available at covid19@uci.edu or 949-824-9918

Contact Tracing and Vaccine Navigation Services – assistance with vaccines and vaccine uploads or to report a case, available at contacttracing@uci.edu or 949-824-2300

For questions specific to your personal health situation, please contact your doctor or healthcare provider.