2021  Prospective Student News

Impacts of rainy weather on coronavirus outbreaks reveal economic benefits from earlier social distancing

Economists at UC Santa Cruz used rainy weather as a natural experiment to understand how communities across the U.S. that started some form of social distancing slightly earlier may have experienced significant economic benefits.

Hollywood trailblazer: Ally Walker

Oakes College alumna Ally Walker's career went from sequencing genomes to solving crimes on television

New study shows plants struggle to keep pace with climate change in human-dominated landscapes

A new global-scale analysis found a mismatch between plant phenology and rising temperatures that was more pronounced in the most human-dominated landscapes, especially crop lands.

Holiday gifts that challenge gender stereotypes can support children’s development

Distinguished Professor of Psychology Campbell Leaper explains the issues with gender stereotypes in children’s toys and shares gift-giving tips that may help counteract the effects.

Karen Tei Yamashita receives 2021 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters

Yamashita used her acceptance speech, in part, to emphasize the significance of this medal being awarded to an Asian-American writer “especially this year, post-pandemic, having weathered the Twitter absurdity, corruption, and mendacity; the brutality of racial profiling; and the provocation of anti-immigrant, anti-refugee, anti-Muslim, [and] anti-Asian hatred.” 

UC Santa Cruz ranked No. 3 green college 

Princeton Review evaluates schools based on institutional data as well as a 10-question student survey.

Uncovering the politics behind a pandemic

The latest paper from Politics Professor and Global & Community Health Executive Director Matt Sparke argues that the coronavirus pandemic has exposed, exploited, and exacerbated the vulnerabilities of neoliberal societies around the world.

UC Santa Cruz campus voting skyrocketed in 2020

A nationwide study shows student voting at UC Santa Cruz increased dramatically in last year’s presidential election, and these gains came at roughly double the average rate of increase across more than 1,000 college campuses around the country.

Jazz virtuoso Charles Tolliver to reimagine Coltrane’s iconic ‘Africa/Brass’ on 60th anniversary

UC Santa Cruz will celebrate the 60th anniversary of John Coltrane’s iconic 'Africa/Brass' with jazz virtuoso Charles Tolliver joining the UC Santa Cruz Jazz Orchestra and Jazz Choir in a reimagining of the work.

$8.8 million federal grant to help teens succeed in college

GEAR UP is designed to increase the number of low-income students who are prepared to enter and succeed in postsecondary education.

National award recognizes economics professor’s research for revealing outsized pandemic impacts on minority-owned businesses

Economics Professor Robert Fairlie recently received the Bradford-Osborne Research Award for a paper he released in August 2020 that showed minority-owned businesses were affected by pandemic-related closures at higher rates.

UC Santa Cruz advances commitment to social justice with College 10 naming in honor of John R. Lewis

College Ten—an undergraduate residential learning community founded on principles of social justice and community—will be named in honor of the late congressman and civil rights icon John R. Lewis.

College Ten to be named for civil rights icon John R. Lewis

Today is a momentous day for UC Santa Cruz and for our extended campus community. I am thrilled and honored to announce that College Ten will be named John R. Lewis College.

Reclaiming Coast Miwok history through Indigenous interpretations of archaeology

Assistant Professor of Anthropology Tsim Schneider's latest book gathers and interprets archival and archaeological evidence in new ways that combat the erasure of Indigenous peoples from historical narratives.

CASFS will become the UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology

The Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS) will get a new name, logo, and look and feel through a rebranding project that affirms the center’s commitment to advancing agroecology and equitable food systems.

New book shares lessons from history on the case for Senate reform

In his new book, Professor of Politics Daniel Wirls uses historical research and modern-day analysis to argue that features of the Senate undermine effective democratic governance and have contributed to the maintenance of white supremacy.

‘Manatee Man' Jamal Galves wins scholarship to study coastal science and policy

Reimagining our economy for the benefit of all

Faculty members at UC Santa Cruz and the University of Southern California released a new book that offers a road map and conceptual framework for equity-driven economic reform in the United States.

Ensuring student success in both the short and long term

This wide-ranging effort will increase financial support for our undergraduate and graduate students, and advance their access to the guidance and experiences fundamental to their education and ultimately future success.

Mellon Foundation award to support UC Santa Cruz’s ‘Visualizing Abolition’ initiative

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded a $1,977,000 grant to support 'Visualizing Abolition,' the nation’s most ambitious and sustained art and prison abolition initiative.

Professor’s TED talk on body ideals warns against ‘conflation of appearance with health’

UC Santa Cruz professor and medical anthropologist Nancy Chen gave a popular TED Salon talk that has been viewed more than 780,000 times online.

Mellon Foundation grant will support national initiative in Latinx studies

Through a three-year, $5 million grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, UC Santa Cruz will be part of a national initiative in Latinx studies called “Crossing Latinidades: Emerging Scholars and New Comparative Directions.”

With AAU, HSI distinctions, UC Santa Cruz to join in discussion on serving, supporting Latinx students

UC Santa Cruz—one of only four universities that is both a Hispanic-Serving Institution and a member of the Association of American Universities—will be represented in a panel discussion, “A Critical Dialogue on Leading Innovation, Scholarship, and Solutions Centered on Servingness.”

Pairing research excellence and status as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, UC Santa Cruz launching new programs to advance educational equity

Committed to creating educational equity that will help lead to real, transformative change, UC Santa Cruz will launch an array of new programs to support the success of Latinx, low-income, first-generation, and underrepresented students and prepare them for rewarding careers once they graduate.

The writing on the wall: exploring the cultural value of graffiti and street art

Doctoral candidate’s research interprets graffiti’s deeper meaning among Latinx and Black urban subcultures in Los Angeles.

Celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month

September provides our campus with two platforms to recognize the achievements and contributions of Hispanic and Latinx Americans and share with the public the important role UC Santa Cruz and other universities play in creating educational equity.

Breaking barriers, helping others up

UC Santa Cruz chemistry associate professor Laura Sanchez reflects on what helped her succeed and how she has tried to help others do the same.

UC Santa Cruz course tutorial wins national online learning award

Three UC Santa Cruz staff members have been honored for creating an online instruction tutorial last year after the campus shut down and suspended in-person teaching because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Psychologist shares tips for studying smarter this school year

Assistant Professor of Psychology Hannah Hausman and colleagues translated findings from more than 100 research papers to offer students and teachers a guiding framework and practical tips for making the most of study time.

Fundraising push seeks to bring Afghan thought leaders to safety on UCSC campus

UC Santa Cruz has launched an Afghanistan Visiting Scholars Emergency Support Fund, which aims to raise $100,000 before midnight, Sept. 3. as part of an effort place at least two at-risk Afghans into visiting scholar appointments.

Experts weigh in on the future of drought management

UC Santa Cruz experts share insights on how technological innovations and long-term policy vision could help protect water supply.

The legacy is in the soil

Acclaimed chef/farmer and CASFS apprenticeship graduate Matthew Raiford will share his heritage-based approach to food and farming during an August 25 event on campus.

Preserving the caring, compassion that helped us through the CZU wildfire

Watching the wildfires now burning throughout California takes me back to the anxious, uncertain days one year ago when the CZU Lightning Complex wildfire was burning through our county.

Doctoral candidate’s award-winning research documents experiences of Latina girls growing up in rural California

UC Santa Cruz graduate student Roxanna Villalobos recently won a national dissertation scholarship award from Sociologists for Women in Society that will support her research with Latina girls in rural California.

COVID-19 information forum set for Aug. 13

The next UC Santa Cruz COVID-19 Information Forum is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 13 from 9:30 a.m. — 11 a.m.

Switzer Fellowship will help graduate student engage communities in climate planning

Coastal Science and Policy Program master’s student Diana Fu won a Switzer Foundation fellowship to support her work advancing environmental justice through climate change adaptation.

Climate change poses threat to ‘tuna dependent’ Pacific Islands economies

Shifting distributions of key tuna species could have serious economic impacts for island nations in the Western and Central Pacific, according to a new paper coauthored by Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Katherine Seto.

Oakes Founding Provost J. Herman Blake receives lifetime achievement award

Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Founding Provost of Oakes College J. Herman Blake is being recognized by the American Sociology Association for his distinguished career spent advancing access and equity in education.

Racial and colonial histories offer insights on refugee crisis in ‘The Black Mediterranean’

Assistant Professor of Sociology and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies Camilla Hawthorne coedited a first-of-its-kind new book called "The Black Mediterranean," which examines the African diaspora within the region.

Blazing a Slug trail to the Olympics

Rhythmic gymnast Izzy Connor will be the first UC Santa Cruz student to compete in the Olympics—the result of years of both personal struggle and success.

Statistical analysis quantifies how chemistry undergraduates benefit from graduate student diversity

A study of chemistry lab courses at UC Santa Cruz suggests that diversity among graduate student teaching assistants may be among the most essential factors in retaining underrepresented minority undergraduates in STEM courses.

‘Precarity & Belonging’ captures insights from global discussion of citizenship, migration, socioeconomic mobility

A new book from an interdisciplinary group of UC Santa Cruz scholars culminates more than five years of collaborative research and discussion that positioned the university as a convener of global thought leaders.

Unusual currents explain mysterious red crab strandings

New findings suggest that abnormal ocean currents cause the occasional appearance of pelagic red crabs outside their native range.

Quantitative ecologist Kai Zhu wins NSF funding for climate change research and education

Associate Professor of Environmental Studies Kai Zhu won an NSF CAREER award to support research and education focused on the interconnections between climate change and plant phenology.

New research on aquaculture feed will test alternative ingredients to help minimize water pollution

A new grant will support UC Santa Cruz’s ecological aquaculture lab in their efforts to increase the variety and quality of low-polluting aquaculture feed options available to fish farmers.

Tracking data show how the quiet of pandemic-era lockdowns allowed pumas to venture closer to urban areas

During regional shelter-in-place orders, declining levels of human mobility emboldened local pumas to use habitats they would normally avoid out of fear of humans.

New study shows how loss of drought-sensitive species could affect health of California grasslands

At a grassland site near San Jose, scientists studied experimental research plots to determine what might happen if the plants that ecologists expect to be hit hardest by drought actually disappeared.

Hydrologist Margaret Zimmer wins NSF CAREER Award

Margaret Zimmer, assistant professor of Earth and planetary sciences, has received an award from the National Science Foundation to support her research on the role of Earth’s subsurface in regulating the water cycle.

Dialogues, collaborations, and the success of 'slow science'

With funding from the Henry Luce Foundation, the new Southeast Asian Coastal Interactions Initiative takes a methodical approach to worldwide social and environmental challenges

Pulitzer Prize-winning UCSC alumnus Jeffrey Stewart gives keynote address at Humanities Spring Awards

UC Santa Cruz alumnus Jeffrey Stewart (Cowell College ’71, philosophy) delivered the keynote address at the annual event celebrating the achievements of students, faculty, and alumni of the Humanities Division.

Doctoral student wins Ford Foundation fellowship for work on gender, race, and policing

Uriel Serrano recently won a Ford Foundation Dissertation Fellowship to support his research on how gender ideologies are formed in relation to carceral violence.

Research partnership will highlight STEM learning in local community garden

A grant from the Spencer Foundation will help UC Santa Cruz researchers document the many types of STEM learning taking place in a Latinx immigrant-led community garden in Watsonville.

Axions could be the fossil of the universe researchers have been waiting for

A new study suggests finding the hypothetical particles known as axions could mean finding out for the first time what happened in the universe a second after the Big Bang.

Snowflake morays can feed on land, swallow prey without water

While most fish need water to feed, the unique anatomy of moray eels gives snowflake morays the ability to grab and swallow prey on land.

Feminist studies Ph.D. student receives Institute for Citizens & Scholars fellowship

Claire Urbanski, a Ph.D. candidate in feminist studies, has been named a Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellow by the Institute for Citizens & Scholars (formerly the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation).

Social Sciences Division celebrates outstanding students

The Social Sciences Division is recognizing 21 students for excellence in scholarship and research.

Professor Karen Holl wins MacArthur Foundation endowed chair to support work on natural climate solutions

Environmental Studies Professor Karen Holl has been awarded the MacArthur Foundation Chair at UC Santa Cruz for her work to increase the effectiveness of forest restoration efforts in combating climate change.

Visualizing global representation for Indigenous nations

A new book by Professor of Sociology and Legal Studies Hiroshi Fukurai shows how Indigenous “original nations” around the world are fighting for sovereignty and the ecological preservation of their ancestral homelands.

Somalia’s fight for God-given rights

The latest book from Politics and Legal Studies Professor Mark Fathi Massoud challenges Western notions of Islam and secular law-making by revealing how Somali Muslims have embraced Sharia as a force for progress and liberation.

Growing heritage and healing through traditional Asian vegetables

Faculty, staff, and alumni are drawing upon and strengthening their cultural heritage and connection to Asian foodways to cultivate traditional vegetables.

UC collaboration launches first online course in the Punjabi language

The first online Punjabi language course for University of California students that launched earlier this year is a collaboration of several UC campuses, centered on UC Santa Cruz and UC Davis.

Study shows which North American mammals live most successfully alongside people

Researchers analyzed camera trap data from across the continent to better understand how particular species of mammals respond to different types of human disturbance.

Climate change sends tropical species racing to higher elevations while temperate counterparts lag behind

A new paper shows that, in mountain habitats, species' responses to rising temperatures vary by latitude, but researchers fear there may be no clear winners among these strategies.

Virtual reality warps your sense of time

Psychology research demonstrates the unique "time compression" effect of virtual reality.

UCSC achieves fair-trade status through the work of students

UC Santa Cruz passed a fair trade resolution that reflects its commitment to join the efforts of the Fair Trade Colleges & Universities, a division of Fair Trade Campaigns.

Strauss Foundation award recognizes student’s work with families affected by incarceration

Legal studies undergraduate Matt Sioson recently won $15,000 in funding from the Donald A. Strauss Public Service Scholarship Foundation.

Preserving the legacy of Watsonville’s first Filipino immigrants

In partnership with the university, the community-led Tobera Project will develop an oral history archive and digital exhibition to be housed at McHenry Library.

Enrollment opens for UCSC Summer Session Remote

UC Santa Cruz Summer Session enrollment is underway. Anyone can take a wide range of remote courses offered across multiple departments.

Fellowship win supports doctoral candidate’s research on national security policy

Cesar Estrella, a Ph.D. candidate in Latin American and Latino studies, won an American Council of Learned Societies fellowship to support his study of the ideologies that drive U.S. national security policy.

Faculty experts share pandemic-era lessons for the future of K-12 education

UC Santa Cruz researchers who have studied the pandemic’s impact on K-12 education share lessons they hope will be remembered for the future.

Professor Anne Kapuscinski will speak at upcoming Nobel Prize Summit

Environmental Studies Professor Anne Kapuscinski, director of the UC Santa Cruz Coastal Science and Policy program, will present recommendations on strengthening sustainability education during the “Our Planet, Our Future” Nobel Prize Summit next week.

UC Santa Cruz and United Way partner to empower youth through research in local communities

A research partnership between UC Santa Cruz and United Way of Santa Cruz County will offer local youth and UCSC undergraduates new leadership platforms and support college-readiness and success.

Alumna Terri McCullough, chief of staff to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, will make a virtual campus visit for Alumni Week

This year’s Alumni Week will feature a virtual fireside chat with Terri McCullough, an Oakes '91 politics alumna who is now chief of staff to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Study of U.S. tuna fisheries explores nexus of climate change, sustainable seafood

A new study by researchers at UC Santa Cruz and NOAA examines traditional aspects of seafood sustainability alongside greenhouse gas emissions to better understand the carbon footprint of U.S. tuna fisheries.

UC Santa Cruz to launch new support center to advance the university’s innovation, industry engagement

UC Santa Cruz is launching a new support center to advance innovation, entrepreneurship and business engagement that will leverage the campus’s innovative spirit and be guided by its deep commitment to environmental and social justice.

Marco Rolandi appointed faculty director of UCSC Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development

UC Santa Cruz has appointed Marco Rolandi, professor and chair of the department of electrical and computer engineering, to serve as faculty director of the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development (CIED).

Teens describe their gender and sexuality in diverse new ways, but some are being left behind

Psychology Professor Phil Hammack’s latest research shows how regional differences and other social factors can either hinder or support expression of diversity in sexual and gender identity among teens and young adults.

UC Santa Cruz faculty recognized for excellence in ecology

The Ecological Society of America announced its 2021 Fellow and Early Career Fellow awards, and UC Santa Cruz’s faculty were the most decorated of any university on this year’s list.

Three decades of connections, encouragement, and programs

UCSC's African American Resource and Cultural Center, this year celebrating its 30th anniversary, has created meaningful change for students of color and become a key part of the university community.

UC Santa Cruz joins new consortium to ensure future of SlaveVoyages database

UC Santa Cruz has joined a newly formed consortium of institutions to ensure the preservation, stability, and future development of what has become the single most widely used online resource for anyone interested in slavery across the Atlantic world. 

UCSC professor contributes to new study showing how parts of the US will ‘tropicalize’ as climate changes

Environmental Studies Professor Michael Loik is a coauthor on a new paper describing how warming winters are allowing some tropical plants and animals to replace temperate communities in southern portions of the country.

New analysis shows potential for ‘solar canals’ in California

UC Santa Cruz researchers and their partners published a new study that suggests covering California’s water delivery canals with solar panels could be an economically viable means of advancing renewable energy and water conservation.

Campus holds first Sexual Violence Sexual Harassment Research Symposium

UC Santa Cruz will hold its first-ever research symposium — and a first for a UC campus — highlighting research by campus scholars on issues of sexual violence and sexual harassment Friday, April 2.

Disrupting harmful food systems to prevent future pandemics

Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies Maywa Montenegro de Wit is exploring how lessons from the abolition movement could help agroecology combat the agro-industrial complex to prevent future pandemics.

Girl activists are more visible than ever. Is this progress?

In the past decade, there’s been an explosion in media coverage of girl activists. Professor Jessica Taft, a leading expert in youth activism, sees opportunity in this visibility, but her research has also identified many troubling trends in how girl activists are portrayed.

Massive debris flow swamps Big Creek Reserve as heavy rains follow summer wildfire

Boulders the size of vehicles and decades-old redwoods were ripped from the banks of the Big Creek drainage when an atmospheric river inundated the Landels-Hill Big Creek Natural Reserve on the Big Sur coast in late January.

Forest monitoring efforts contribute to new understanding of climate change impacts

Data collected by student interns at UC Santa Cruz’s Forest Ecology Research Plot recently contributed to a breakthrough in understanding how climate change affects forests.

Listening and bringing change

Aaron Jones, interim Educational Opportunity Programs director, founded the orientation program Black Academy, which has dramatically increased African Black Caribbean students' retention rate at UCSC.

Student Affairs and Success launches new podcast

After nearly a full year of operating remotely due to the impacts of Covid-19, it's easy to feel disconnected from our campus culture, as well as from each other.

Three UCSC film alumni recognized by International Documentary Association

Three alumni from UCSC’s Film and Digital Media Department received nominations for this year's prestigious International Documentary Association Awards (IDA).

Rob Fairlie testifies before Congress on inequality in pandemic economic impacts

Rob Fairlie testified before the House Committee on Small Business to share his latest research on the economic impacts of the coronavirus pandemic, including the disproportionate hardships faced by minority-owned businesses.

Seawater intake replacement, bike path improvement projects win public works awards

A $1.1 million project to replace the seawater intake structure at the UC Santa Cruz Long Marine Lab was selected as environmental project of the year by the Monterey Bay chapter of the American Public Works Association.

Green New Deal architect Rhiana Gunn-Wright will make a virtual campus visit

Gunn-Wright previewed some of the insights she'll share on climate policy and environmental justice during her February 10th event with the Institute for Social Transformation.

Sociology researcher seeks solutions for Public Safety Power Shutoffs

Sociology researcher Les Guliasi’s most recent paper shows how “microgrid” technologies could reduce the impact of outages, if regulatory challenges can be resolved.

Digital NEST founder to serve as external adviser to chancellor

Jacob Martinez is bringing his insight on economic opportunity, community empowerment and digital innovation to UC Santa Cruz as an external special adviser to Chancellor Cindy Larive.

Energy spent avoiding humans linked to smaller home ranges for male pumas

New research shows that fear of humans causes mountain lions to increase their energy expenditures as they move through the landscape, and this can ultimately limit the size of the home ranges they’re able to maintain.

Italian newspaper ranks sociology professor among top women of the year

Camilla Hawthorne is being recognized for shedding light on emergent Afro-Italian identities and activism during a time of racial reckoning in Italy and beyond.

Grant funding will advance aquaculture research in UCSC’s new state-of-the-art facility

Researchers won a USDA grant in support of their efforts to develop ocean-friendly feed formulas for farm-raised rainbow trout. This work will take place in the team's new aquaculture facility at the UCSC Farm.

Professor recognized among the art world’s top influencers for 2020

Anthropology professor Anna Tsing won international acclaim for an interdisciplinary project that documents drivers of the Anthropocene in creative new ways.

Uncovering the social factors lurking within diabetes risk

Assistant professor of sociology James Doucet-Battle's new book challenges assumptions about race within diabetes research and delves into the issue through the lens of African American experience.

Shedding light on one of environmental policy’s most under-the-radar strategies

Associate professor of environmental studies Sikina Jinnah studies the environmental provisions contained within trade agreements and wants to help policymakers better navigate this space.