ANR Update

Wishing you a safe and restful Thanksgiving

As we take some time to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday, I want to wish you all the best and urge you to follow these recommendations from UC Davis Health to keep yourselves and your friends and families safe in the coming weeks. We've done a great job taking precautions and protecting each other since March; let's keep it up for the next several months until we can get past this.

While we look to Thanksgiving as a time to express gratitude and enjoy family, we need to also take stock of those around us that may need some extra empathy or support. People have lost loved ones, some have lost jobs, and many are fearful of what the future may hold. We also should recognize that those among us with Native heritage may take a different view of Thanksgiving. This is a great time to be kind to each other.

Despite the obstacles 2020 has thrown in our paths, I find myself thankful for many things. In my personal life, I'm very thankful for the many family and friends who love me and enrich my life. Intellectually, I'm thankful that a recent Pew Research study found that 82% of U.S. adults still say government investments in scientific research are worthwhile. Professionally, I love being part of all the amazing work that ANR has accomplished these past several months; I am so proud and thankful to work with colleagues of your caliber.

This week UC President Michael Drake announced plans that will help the UC system confront COVID-19–related financial challenges while protecting jobs. We are grateful that the President gave the leadership at UC ANR and at each UC campus the discretion to determine the appropriate strategy to address our specific budget needs. I'm pleased to report that, due to the proactive cost savings programs we already put in place, including our three-day winter curtailment, UC ANR is on track to achieve $4 million in savings which, for the remainder of this fiscal year, will allow us to avoid additional actions. I'm very thankful for the vision and work of our financial team that enabled this, as well as your support to implement it.

It's been a very difficult year in many ways, and this holiday season will be unlike any other due to the increased risk of COVID-19, as well as the ongoing civil unrest throughout much of the country. I know many of you are caregivers for your families, which can be a heavy burden, or shoulder other responsibilities. It's important to remember to take care of yourselves. You should feel free to use your UC ANR Zoom account to connect with family and friends during this holiday. Mostly though, try to rest and allow yourself time to rejuvenate.

Best wishes and happy Thanksgiving, 

Glenda Humiston
Vice President

 

Surge in COVID-19 Cases Results in Changes to County Risk Tiers and Statewide Limited Curfew

Earlier this week, the Governor and Secretary of Public Health announced urgent changes to the state's county risk tiers. This was in response to a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases - doubling in the past 10 days to more than 10,000 per day - and 60% increase in hospitalizations across the state. In all, 40 counties have been moved to more restrictive tiers, with 30 counties moving back one tier and 10 counties moving back two tiers. These risk tier assignments affect what businesses may remain open or what activities can occur in the county, which can also affect UC ANR operations and programming.

The current tier ratings include 41 counties in the most restrictive Widespread (purple) tier, 11 counties in the Substantial (red) tier, 4 counties in the Moderate (orange) tier, and 2 counties in the Minimal (yellow) tier. This is obviously a major setback in the state's phased reopening, and will result in many UC ANR locations needing to restrict their in-office work and in-person activities in the community. Since our latest modifications to ANR's safety standards were based on the county risk tiers, we do not need to update our statewide guidance at this time, but with 70% of counties in the purple tier, most locations will need to modify their in-person activities.

For Counties that are in Tier 1 (Purple), indoor meetings, classes, workshops, etc. are prohibited. These activities may be carried on via Zoom or outdoors with groups of 10 or fewer. When a location is in Tier 1, supervisors should restrict in-office work as much as feasible. For example, employees should only come to the office for critical work activities, such as:

• Previously approved research and extension activities (such as research, animal care, agricultural operations, critical maintenance, etc.) that were approved during Stage 1.
• Essential business functions needed to support remote work.
• Situations where an employee cannot perform his/her duties or work effectively remotely.
• Short duration visits to pick up or drop off materials needed for work.

In addition to limiting capacity of in-person work activities, please continue to follow ANR's other basic safety protocols, including health screening, physical distancing, use of face coverings, and hygiene/sanitary practices. As always, some counties may have more restrictive health standards and our locations and programs must follow County health orders when they are more restrictive.

The website https://covid19.ca.gov/safer-economy/ provides an interactive map to find the current status for each county and additional details. ANR locations whose status is unchanged or are in less restrictive tiers should continue to apply the guidance applicable to their county risk tier. However, because the situation is rapidly changing, please maintain awareness of the risk rating for your location and modify activities when necessary.

Additionally, on Thursday, the state Department of Public Health announced a Limited Stay At Home Order or “Curfew.” This order requires people to stay home and not gather with others between the hours of 10pm and 5am. There are exceptions for essential activities and critical infrastructure. During the announcement of this curfew order, it was stated that, “People may go and come from work with no difficulty.” It is understood that some ANR locations may engage in late night or early morning harvest or other agricultural work – these activities are considered critical infrastructure under the category of Food and Agriculture. To alleviate any concerns that employees may have about being out during the curfew hours to come to work, we are providing County and REC Directors with a template letter that can be used to identify UC ANR employees as essential workers under the terms of this Public Health Order.

If you have questions about what work activities are allowed or safety procedures for your work location, please consult with your supervisor or unit Director and refer to the safety plan for your location. You can also review UC ANR's COVID-19 webpage http://ucanr.edu/covid19 and webpage for standards for resuming in-person activity http://ucanr.edu/resume.

Celebration Corner 
Six scientists affiliated with UC ANR have received grants from the California Bureau of Cannabis Control: Justin Brashares, Van Butsic, Christy Getz, Ted Grantham, Jennifer Sowerwine, and Daniel Sumner. Learn more about their research projects here. Congratulations to all!

West Side farmer John Diener partnered with West Side REC to grow over 70,000 pounds of butternut squash and donate them to the Central California Food Bank, which provides food to more than 280,000 people each month.

UC ANR hosted its first virtual tour for state legislators and their staff members this morning. UC ANR presenters and guest speakers shared engaging images, videos, information and testimonials about our work. Participants were mailed “learning boxes” with hands-on items to add to the tour experience, from a shot hole borer identification kit to almonds to moringa powder and more. Additional tours are planned for the UC Regents and President Drake in December, and the tour will be made available to all of UC ANR shortly thereafter. Thank you to all the presenters and to Kathy Eftekhari, Anne Megaro and the IGIS and NOS teams for all your hard work on this successful project!

Glenda Humiston 
Vice President

President Drake extends COVID-19-related paid administrative leave time frame

President Drake extended the time frame to use these hours to June 30, 2021. His order does not increase the number of EPAL hours, but critically allows employees to continue the use of the allotted time as the impacts of the pandemic continue. 

Eligible employees may use EPAL hours if an employee or family member becomes ill with COVID-19; an employee is caring for their children when schools or daycare facilities are closed; or an employee has been directed not to come to their worksite and/or their unit has moved to remote operations, and it is not operationally feasible for the employee to work remotely.

For more information please visit the UC ANR Leave Management site or contact humanresources@ucanr.edu.

Presidential policy on gender recognition and lived name; County Director recruitment deadline approaching

New policy: Presidential policy on gender recognition and lived name 
A new Presidential Policy ensures that all University-issued identification documents display personal identification information that recognizes individuals' accurate gender identity and lived name. In brief, the policy stipulates that the University must provide the minimum three equally recognized gender options in university information systems — woman, man, and nonbinary — and an efficient process for current students, employees, and UC alumni and affiliates to retroactively amend their gender designations and lived names in information systems and on university-issued documents, including eligible academic documents.

This policy is effective as of November 6, 2020 with full implementation of the policy and procedures to be completed no later than December 31, 2023. This policy has undergone the full systemwide review process and will be posted online at http://policy.ucop.edu/.

You can also view the Letter from the President, the new Presidential Policy and Appendix I here: https://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/Administration/Business_Operations/Controller/Administrative_Policies_-_Business_Contracts/Policy_and_administrative_handbooks/ANR_Administrative_Handbook/Recent_Updates/

 

Riverside County Director recruitment deadline approaching 
UC ANR leadership has opened an internal call for those interested in assuming the role of County Director (CD) for Riverside County beginning January 2, 2021. This call is open to all UCANR employees regardless of staff or academic status. Employees will be expected to take on this role as a partial appointment in addition to their current role, and will be compensated accordingly.

If you are interested in being considered for this County Director position, please address your letter and position questions to Vice Provost Mark Lagrimini at mlagrimini@ucanr.edu. Please indicate your motivation to serve in this capacity; the key strengths you will bring to this position; and your approach to balancing the demands of this appointment with your current responsibilities. Submit your letter of interest to Pam Tise at pdtise@ucanr.edu by November 23, 2020.

The County Director is responsible for the coordination and overall operation of Cooperative Extension programs in Riverside County.  Responsibilities include leadership and oversight of all CE extension and research programs including effective management and supervision of all staff and academic personnel including oversight, evaluation (annual evaluations, merit and promotions), mentoring, coaching and discipline. Additionally, the incumbent will be responsible for maintaining effective collaboration and communication between the University of California and the administrative officers of Riverside County.  Maintaining and enhancing Riverside County CE budgets, serving as an advocate for CE and all its programs, and developing and maintaining good working relationships with public and private agencies in Riverside County is paramount to the success of the CD role. 

The County Director is expected to:

• Provide vision, inspire, and motivate others with attitude and actions; set a high standard for excellence; innovate and foster positive change; model and support a good team working environment; and encourage and is open to exploring new ideas and innovative changes, and provide active, ongoing advocacy and support for UC ANR programs.
• Understand and uniformly apply UC and County Administrative policies; provide useful and timely feedback; take timely disciplinary action within UC and County procedures, if necessary; and work with staff in advance of deadlines for required records and reports.
• Successfully secure county resources, as well as other sources of support; effectively manage and equitably allocate resources among programs and established priorities; monitor the use of resources and complies with all relevant policies; and maintain effective working relationships with internal and external partners to form strong support networks for UCCE.
• Be an effective listener and communicator; take responsibility for his/her own actions; motivate others; keep commitments; and cultivate political and industry support for UC ANR.
• Demonstrate concern for all staff; effectively manage all personnel supervision, oversight, annual evaluations, merits and promotions, and take appropriate disciplinary actions; make effective use of staff expertise to strengthen the team; and invest in improving all staff expertise and supports professional development.

The add-on appointment will be for a two-year term, and is subject to renewal, renegotiation, or termination.  As with all administrative appointments, County Director appointments are at the discretion of the Vice President and may be terminated at any time.

Winter curtailment

This is to confirm the 2020-21 winter holiday curtailment (closure) schedule. 

Similar to previous years, ANR units – including, Research and Extension Centers, UCCE county offices and the Second Street Building in Davis – will be closed from Dec. 24, 2020 through Jan. 1, 2021, except for essential services. ANR offices will reopen on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021. The curtailment (closure) schedule will be the same for ANR employees at UCOP.

Winter closure schedule: 
December 24, 2020 – Holiday 
December 25, 2020 – Holiday 
December 28, 2020 – Curtailment (closure) 
December 29, 2020 – Curtailment (closure) 
December 30, 2020 – Curtailment (closure) 
December 31, 2020 – Holiday 
January 1, 2021 – Holiday

During the curtailment (closure) days above, employees will be given the option of using accrued vacation, compensatory time off (CTO), or leave without pay for the curtailment days. In the event an employee has not accumulated a sufficient amount of vacation time before December to cover the three days, arrangements can be made to allow those individuals to borrow against future vacation time. 

Some UCCE County Offices and Research and Extension Centers may need to adjust the closure schedule to accommodate local needs; this is at the discretion of the director and approval by ANR leadership. If you have a question about your local office schedule, please contact your director.

As you may have seen, UC Systemwide has been discussing a separate Curtailment Plan to be implemented at a later date. As soon as we receive further direction from the President we will confirm our implementation strategies. Please contact humanresources@ucanr.edu for additional information. 

 

Celebration corner 
Livestock and Natural Resource Advisor Tracy Schohr was acknowledged in a Capital Press story for mobilizing her network to help save cattle threatened in the wildfires near Quincy. “I'm sure Tracy (Schohr) gives the credit to the farmers — as she should — but she's a hero, too, for organizing the rescues,” said Katie Roberti, spokeswoman for the California Cattlemen's Association.

 

Glenda Humiston 
Vice President

 

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