Jan. 20, 2023

UCI professor honored for urban planning contributions

Michael Méndez, assistant professor of urban planning and public policy, has won Cal Poly Pomona’s 2023 William R. and June Dale Scholar Prize, which honors scholars in the field of environmental justice. Last year, Méndez was named an Andrew Carnegie Fellow, receiving $200,000 for a research sabbatical that focuses on climate change-related natural disasters and social vulnerability. In 2021, California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Méndez to the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board. 

UCI scientists – guided by seals – use robot to map underwater Antarctic land mass

A detailed story in today’s Washington Post describes how a team of researchers led by UCI’s Eric Rignot, an Earth systems scientist, has made “striking” discoveries involving land elevations beneath the Antarctic ice sheet, including an abyss equal in depth to two Grand Canyons.

Friday fun fact

Student development: UC undergraduates report the greatest gains in understanding racial and ethnic and then social class and economic differences or issues compared to when they started.  

UC's benefit plans offer emergency assistance

If you need extra assistance during a natural disaster or another emergency, please contact your plan directly. Customer service representatives will do their best to offer the help you need as quickly as possible with everything from seeking medical and mental health care to replacing lost prescriptions and accessing retirement savings for emergency expenses.

UC’s Travel Council seeks survey input

UC’s Travel Council is seeking participants for a brief 5-minute survey that will allow it to manage ongoing relationships with major airlines, hotels and car rental companies. Responses will be anonymous (categorized only by role and campus), compiled and analyzed, with major results reported to campus leadership and to UC's Travel Council. If someone else made your travel arrangements for you, or if you know of others in your division who may be interested in this survey, please forward the survey link to them.

From Idea to Business
Tuesday, 5 p.m. (sponsored by New Venture Competition/Merage School of Business)

Community Lecture Series
Tuesday, 7 p.m. (sponsored by UCI Health)

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 rings in the Lunar New Year with a Dragon Dance, Feeding of the Lions and Taiko Drummers

@UCIrvine tweeted: Wishing the Anteater community health, luck and prosperity throughout the year!

#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.