Jan. 6, 2026

Students pet a curly brown labradoodle therapy dog at the Center for Student Wellness & Health Promotion De-Stress Fest. (Photo by Steve Zylius / UC Irvine)

UC IRVINE NEWS

UCI Chamber Singers honored

UCI Chamber Singers, the premier choral ensemble of Claire Trevor School of the Arts, has been awarded The American Prize in Choral Performance – college/university division for 2025. “We are honored and grateful to receive this national award,” said professor Irene Messoloras, director of choral activities. “It shines a meaningful light on the heart, dedication and spirit our students bring to every rehearsal and performance. It also affirms the vibrant connection, creativity and community that make UC Irvine so special.”

UCI Health – Irvine embraces nature's bounty

Stretching alongside UCI Health – Irvine and visible from most areas around the hospital is the living, breathing San Joaquin Marsh Reserve. Viewed as a vital companion to the new acute care hospital and the entire 1.2 million-square-foot medical campus, the wildlife sanctuary and its protection became a critical design and patient experience goal. “It's important for patients to be able to experience a nice, spacious room for an extended period of time, but you still want to get outside,” said Dr. Alpesh Amin, professor and associate dean for clinical transformation for UCI Health and the UC Irvine School of Medicine. “If you can walk around, it's also good for exercise. The marsh also becomes another space to engage with family and loved ones, which is important.”

Eye-opening research

Scientists have long suspected the Greenland shark to be functionally blind. Now, new research from Dorota Skowronska-Krawczyk, associate professor of physiology and biophysics, finds a DNA repair mechanism enabling these sharks to maintain vision over centuries. For Skowronska-Krawczyk, the findings “open the door to discovering new approaches to avoiding age-related vision loss and eradicating eye diseases such as macular degeneration and glaucoma – and to more questions about how vision evolves, the mechanisms that help keep tissues alive and healthy for many years, and how to apply this knowledge to humans.” Her research is supported by the National Eye Institute. #SpeakUp4Science

UC NEWS

SpeechMatters podcast: The Illusion of University Neutrality

In this episode of the SpeechMatters podcast, UC Davis law professor Brian Soucek shares his thoughts on the idea of institutional neutrality in higher education and why neutrality may be a myth.

#IamUCI

Cancer Research Institute names new deputy director

Claudia Benavente, associate professor of pharmaceutical sciences, has been appointed as the deputy director of the Cancer Research Institute – an organized research unit that brings together faculty from throughout the university to study cancer and develop new therapies and treatments. “I am committed to helping our faculty and trainees advance their groundbreaking research, foster collaboration, and translate scientific discoveries into improved cancer care, in accordance with the mission and strategic goals of the Chao Family Comprehensive Cancer Center and UC Irvine,” she said.

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