- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Join us on Tuesday, Nov. 30, for GivingTuesday, a global day of giving that harnesses the collective power of individuals to celebrate generosity worldwide. UC ANR programs can invite donors to help address important issues impacting all Californians.
In 2020, UC ANR raised nearly $200,000 in online donations benefiting participating programs, research and endowments across the state.
To make it easy to participate, Emily Delk, director of annual giving and donor stewardship, created a Campaign-In-A-Box: https://ucdavis.box.com/s/p0vkjla36js7lxmgycez8phs6f08nsot. The graphic images have been formatted to fit each of the major social media platforms. You are welcome to brand local photos with logos as part of the campaign.
All participating UC ANR groups are eligible to compete for prize challenges.
UC ANR prize challenges
Donor Challenge: The 20 funds that have the greatest number of unique donors for GivingTuesday will be awarded a $500 prize.
Donation Challenge: The first 10 funds that secure an individual $500+ donation on GivingTuesday will receive a $500 prize.
In-It-To-Win-It Challenge: The 10 funds that raise the most money on GivingTuesday will win $500 prizes
California 4-H Foundation matching funds
Starting at 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 30, gifts to California 4-H will be matched dollar for dollar. Thanks to the California 4-H Foundation, any gift will be matched on a first-give, first-get basis until matching funds are depleted. 4-H has a match pool of $20,000 so get your gifts in early to double the impact!
If you have questions about GivingTuesday, contact Delk at eddelk@ucanr.edu.
- Author: Mike Hsu
When agricultural advisors came to the Cochiti Pueblo in New Mexico during the 1940s, they lined the irrigation ditches with concrete, in the name of boosting efficiency and productivity. But in single-mindedly focusing on water delivery, they neglected to consider how the previously inefficient seepage sustained nearby fruit trees.
Their actions, as well-intentioned as they might have been, disrupted the local ecosystem and killed the trees that had fed many generations, according to A-dae Romero-Briones, who identifies as Cochiti and as a member of the Kiowa Tribe.
“In my language, we call the extension agents ‘the people who kill the fruit trees,'” said Romero-Briones, director of the Food and Agriculture Program for the First Nations Development Institute, a nonprofit that serves Tribal communities across the mainland, Alaska and Hawaii.
The historically tense relationship between Indigenous peoples and government-affiliated programs is one of the many complex dynamics discussed in a six-part webinar series, “Racial Equity in Extension,” facilitated by UC Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Program.
Making communities of color in the agricultural sector more visible is a priority for Victor Hernandez, a sociologist and outreach coordinator for the USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service. Hernandez, who has organized “Growing Together” conferences for Latino and Black farmers, is trying to get more farmers of color to participate in the upcoming 2022 Agricultural Census.
“If we cannot quantify the demographic, we cannot justify the need,” emphasized Hernandez, explaining that his office uses the data to direct resources that advance equity in service, program delivery and distribution of funds.
A legacy of mistrust
At the same time, however, Hernandez also acknowledged the challenges in registering growers of color for the census, conducted by the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. (According to Brodt, USDA's most recent agricultural census, dating to 2017, counts approximately 25,000 producers of color among 128,535 total producers in California.)
“Many of us that are considered socially disadvantaged or historically underserved…a lot of times our peoples come from [nations with] oppressive governments,” Hernandez said. “And so when you come to the United States and you begin to build your life here, to go and engage with the federal government is not the first knee-jerk reaction.”
On top of government mistrust and fears of deportation or detention, other immigrant groups have seen mainstream agriculture – borne by the “Green Revolution” wave across the globe – replace deep-rooted cultural practices, said Kristyn Leach of Namu Farm in Winters.
“It just makes these small farmers distrust our own knowledge, the knowledge that's existed for centuries – before the kind of current iteration of agriculture that we're situated within right now,” said Leach, who works to preserve the agricultural heritage of her Korean ancestors, and facilitates a farmers' collaborative called Second Generation that adapts Asian crop varieties to climate change.
According to Romero-Briones, a collective memory of supplanted culture also lingers in Indigenous communities. In the Cochiti Pueblo, “primarily a subsistence agriculture community” with a long history of corn cultivation, their practices are distinct from those in the mainstream – including regenerative and sustainable agriculture.
Building relationships takes commitment
Given that legacy of cultural displacement and appropriation, how do extension professionals and other agricultural advisors slowly rebuild trust with communities of color? For Romero-Briones, it begins with a genuine respect for Indigenous practices, and she urges interested people to contact their local tribal historic preservation officer to begin strengthening those connections and understanding – beyond a couple of phone calls.
“As someone who works with Indigenous people all day, even I need to recognize sometimes I have to meet with people up to 12 times before we actually start talking about the work that I initially wanted to talk to them about,” Romero-Briones said.
In a similar vein, Chanowk Yisrael, chief seed starter of Yisrael Family Farms, encouraged listeners to reach out to members of the California Farmer Justice Collaborative – an organization striving for a fair food system while challenging racism and centering farmers of color.
“To use a farm analogy: we've got this ground, which is the farmers of color who have been neglected for a long period of time,” said Yisrael, who has grown his farm in a historically Black neighborhood of Sacramento into a catalyst for social change. “It's not just going to be as simple as just throwing some seeds and things are going to come up; you're going to have to do more – that means you got to get out and do much more than you would do for any other community.”
Investing time in a community is one thing – and backing it up with tangible resources is another. Technical expertise is only the “tip of the iceberg,” Leach said, as historically marginalized groups are also seeking land access and tenure, more affordable cost of living, and access to capital.
“All of those things are actually much bigger burdens to bear for most communities of color than not having the knowledge of how to grow the crops that we want to grow, and not knowing how to be adaptive and nimble in the face of climate change," Leach explained, highlighting California FarmLink as an essential resource. (“Understanding Disparities in Farmland Ownership” is the next webinar in the SAREP series, set for Nov. 19.)
Bringing diverse voices to the table
Another key is ensuring that farmers and farm workers of color are represented in management and decision-making processes. Samuel Sandoval, a professor in the Department of Land, Air and Water Resources and UC Cooperative Extension specialist in water management, develops outreach programs in English and Spanish for everyone from farm workers to the “boss of the boss of the boss.”
“It has to be changed,” he said, “because at the end, the person who is going to operate the irrigation system and turn on or off the valves, the person who is looking if there's a leak or not – that's the person who's not being informed, or has not been informed on purpose.”
That exclusion of certain groups can lead to a loss of invaluable knowledge. Leach said there is a real danger in ignoring the wisdom of communities that have contributed so much to the foundation of food systems in California and around the globe.
“These really kind of amazing, sophisticated and elegant agroecological systems that we don't often legitimize through the scientific language and perspectives aren't seen as being really technically proficient – but, in many ways, they're more dynamic and more resilient than the things that we're perpetuating right now,” she said.
As a concrete example, Sandoval said that while extension advisors and specialists conduct studies to remedy a plant disease, farm workers might be developing – separately and in parallel – their own solutions by asking for advice from their social networks via WhatsApp, a phone application.
A reimagining of collaboration, Sandoval said, would include (and compensate) people working in the field for sharing their perspectives – bringing together academics and farmers, integrated pest management experts and pesticide applicators, irrigation specialists and those who do the irrigation.
A need to look within
Concerns about inclusion and validating alternate sources of knowledge apply also to the recruitment process in extension. Leach said that she has seen listings for advisor jobs that would require, at a minimum, a master's degree – which would automatically disqualify her, despite her extensive knowledge of Asian heirloom vegetables.
“When you look at a job description and you see ‘Asian crop specialist,' only required qualification is a master's degree, and then somewhere down the long list of sort of secondary desired, recommended things is some knowledge of Asian crops or communities…you know that just says a lot in terms of what has weight,” Leach explained.
Before organizations can authentically connect with communities of color, they should prioritize diversity in their own ranks, said Romero-Briones. First Nations Development Institute had to ensure that they had adequate representation across the many Tribes that they serve.
“Before we start looking out, we have to start looking in,” she explained, “and that means we have to hire Indigenous people who know these communities.”
For extension professionals and other members of the agricultural community in California, the UC SAREP webinar series has helped spark that introspection and a meaningful reevaluation of institutional processes and assumptions.
“These discussions have been tremendously illuminating and eye-opening,” Brodt said. “But hearing and learning is just the start – it's incumbent on us, as an organization and as individuals, to take action to ensure that farmers of color and their foodways are truly respected and valued.”
/h2>/h2>/h2>/h2>- Author: Jodi Azulai
Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay
ANR Learning & Development
Home | Webinar Recordings
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Do you have a learning topic you would like to present to our ANR colleagues that covers the ANR Strategic Plan 2020-25 or one of these four strategic learning goals? Submit your webinar idea here. __________________________________________________________________________________________________
Check below for upcoming opportunities, ICYMI (in case you missed it) recordings, and resources.
Extension Methods & Delivery
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Building Support
Office, Team and Personal Management
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EXTENSION METHODS & DELIVERY
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Building Virtual Program that Works!
December 6, 8, and 13, 2021
9:00 am. - 11:00 a.m. PST
Cost: $30; Space is limited.
Click here to read more and register.
The University of Maryland Extension invites you to join in the highly interactive three-session virtual program hosted on Zoom. The program provides you with practical and applicable technics and resources to create learner-centered virtual programs.
Our program provides you with evidence-based models and an in-program experience of building your own virtual program framework. By the end of the program, you will leave with numerous resources as well as your own perspective virtual program framework. This program does not train you on virtual platforms but the foundational aspect of the virtual program building that ensures a successful program implementation. Click here to read more and register.
Learn How to Design Cutting-Edge Programs to Make an Impact in Your Local Communities - Impact Collaborative Innovation Facilitator Training.
Dec. 7 and 9, 2021
10 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. PST
Click here to learn more.
What you'll learn:
- Our Innovation Facilitator training provides you with a new way of looking at innovation.
- Once trained, you are an invaluable asset in helping teams develop projects or programs more quickly and connect them with national resources.
- You will use our innovation incubator process to bring fresh ideas aligned with institutional goals to every team you work with.
2021 NAEPSDP Annual Conference (Virtual)
(National Association of Extension Programs and Staff Development Professionals)
Nov. 30 - Dec. 2, 2021
Click here for more information and to register.
Click here for tentative schedule.
The theme of this year's conference is "Moving forward in a new world." We are looking forward to getting together virtually to again interact with colleagues and share ideas and successes!
ePubs: Database available for all Cooperative Extension Professionals (Connect Extension)
Click here to learn more.
This is a database available for all Cooperative Extension professionals that contains subject matter content or programming process model publications developed by the Extension Foundation and project/program fellows.
Examples of available ePublications:
Wellness in Tough Times Toolkit
The Google Earth Pro Pilot A Model for Creating Innovative Extension Curriculum
Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Recovery: Creating a Virtual Conference for Low-Resourced Communities
Video Resources Library (Connect Extension)
Click here to learn more.
This database is available for all Cooperative Extension professionals from Extension Foundation member institutions. It contains video resources on a variety of subjects including the Impact Collaborative Innovation Skill-Building blocks, leadership resources, and technical tutorials. Examples of videos:
Crucial Conversations
Keynote Speaker: Telling Your Extension Story with Faith Peppers
Keynote Speaker: Oh the Places You'll Go with Krystal Allen
Keynote Speaker: Overlooked People and Places, the Hope of a Nation with Nick Smoot
Delivering Online Courses (Connect Extension Resource)
Click here to learn more.
The Extension Foundation offers employees of its member institutions free use of its online course system for the sale and delivery of courses to their clientele. Courses are marketed through a package of two integrated sites, Campus (a Moodle 3.11+ platform) and Catalog, a store front facilitating fee-based access to courses on Campus. Why use it?
- Anyone in the world can enroll
- Extension Foundation provides hosting and support
- Makes courses available 24/7/365
- Provides a single site for all Extension Foundation courses
- Allows for multi-institutional collaboration in development
- Provides incorporation of competency frameworks
- Uses a commercial storefront for sale of fee-based courses
If I find it on the web, it's free to use, right?
Thursday, Jan. 20, 2021
Noon – 12:30 p.m.
Keep yourself out of trouble using images and videos. You'll learn the basics of copyright, when you can and can't use images, use of tables, as well as how to protect your own material. Join Cynthia Kintigh and Robin Sanchez to learn best practices.
Please click this Zoom link to join https://ucanr.zoom.us/j/751701428?pwd=Q1ZrbUtoQVJwMXJVRkQydUlwNytJQT09
Password: 4Learning | +1 669 900 6833 | Webinar ID: 751 701 428
Image by Gordon Johnson from Pixabay
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DIVERSITY, EQUITY, and INCLUSION
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Perspectives: Culturally Responsive Place-based Education Series
Dec. 2, Feb. 3, March 3, April 7, May 5
3:30 – 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time
Click here to learn more and to register.
The Michigan State University Extension Tollgate Farm and Education Center is hosting a virtual professional development panel discussion series for formal and non-formal educators about learning to better incorporate the perspectives of those with whom we work in schools and educational programs. Moderators and panelists from each community provide a chance for educators to deepen their teaching practice in a safe online space for open conversation and community. SCHECHs are available for teachers.
Perspectives: Culturally Responsive Place-Based Education will begin Nov. 4, 2021, with a session on indigenous perspectives and experiences of maple sugaring, especially as they connect to schools and place-based education centers.
Dec. 2 - Incorporating Black Perspectives in Place-Based Teaching and Learning
Feb. 3 - Special Needs Perspectives and PBE In and Beyond the Classroom
March 3 - Engaging with LGTBQ+IA Communities in PBE in Formal and Non-Formal Settings
April 7 - A Latinx Lens: Incorporating Latinx Perspectives through Place-Based Educational Programming
May 5 -Incorporating Asian Principles, Practices, People in Community, & Place-Based Learning
Making the Unconscious Conscious: Understanding and Mitigating Bias (UC Learning Center Course)
March 8, 2022
1 – 4 p.m.
Virtual Instructor-led Training
May 26, 2022
9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Virtual Instructor-led Training
Click to register and for more information.
Participants will be introduced to theory and language in understanding implicit and explicit bias. Using personal reflection, experiential exercises and case studies, participants will gain greater awareness when they engage in bias and gain essential knowledge and skills (tools) in how they recognize and mitigate biases in both personal and professional domains. This session includes an exploration of how the pandemic has impacted this area of diversity, equity and inclusion. NOTE: Class is subject to a minimum enrollment of 15 to proceed. Register with the waitlist if the class is full.
Understanding Neurodiversity: Breaking barriers - WebANR
Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2021
1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
We are all having more and more experiences interacting with people who have autism, dyslexia, attention deficit disorder and other conditions that cause them to process and interact with the world differently. This conversation will be an opportunity to learn a little about the issue of neurodiversity, how to support people who process experiences differently and how inclusion and diversity truly enriches our world.
This conversation will be led by Steve Ruder, a community services supervisor at the UC Davis MIND Institute. There will be information and resources, but also opportunities to ask questions and converse in a safe environment.
Ruder assists families and people with disabilities who have questions regarding high school transition, adult services, and employment. He is the facilitator for the Northern California Business Advisory Council. He also assists families with questions regarding supported decision-making before considering conservatorship. Please contact him at sruder@ucdavis.edu to schedule an appointment.
Join the webinar by clicking on this Zoom link https://ucanr.zoom.us/j/5307501239?pwd=WDI3U2g5cXRvWUhVUlY3MitJWkVVUT09
Meeting ID: 530 750 1239 Phone | +1 669 900 6833 US | Password: 4Collab
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay
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Building Support
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Perspective on Statewide Budget (video) - Slide deck, David Bunn
Giving Tuesday: Strategies for Success (video) - Slide deck, Emily Delk
Foreign Disclosures to UC ANR and Research Sponsors - (video) Slide deck, Kathy Noland, Kim Lamar
Open Forum with Contracts and Grants (video) - Kathy Nolan, Kim Lamar, Vanity Campbell, Suzanne Burton, Andrea Davis, Kendra Rose, Heidi Von Geldern
Image by Clker-Free-Vector-Images from Pixabay
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Office, Team, and Personal Management
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Rev-Up Your Virtual Leadership – Rev up the change!
Dec. 15, 2021
11 a.m. – 12 p.m. PST
Click here to learn more and register.
For 2021, the Extension Foundation's Impact Collaborative program is hosting a series available to member institutions. This is for Cooperative Extension professionals leading five or more peers.
Last year we all pivoted quickly as we redefined how to accomplish our work almost exclusively in shared virtual spaces. The topics in this series are a result of our work with individuals and teams from across Cooperative Extension wondering: What does effective leadership look like when we no longer have the ability to put a hand on a shoulder? How do we reduce friction, confusion and underperformance for individuals, teams and organizations?
We're all experiencing change at a pace humans have never experienced before. This can lead to confusion when it seems like the “transition” phase never ends. Learn to help everyone navigate the chaos together!
How To Build a Fearless Organization (Harvard Business School – Working Knowledge)
By Amy Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management
Click here to read more.
“Psychological safety at work takes effort. It's not the norm. But it's worth the effort,” says Professor Amy Edmondson. She explains how and why a culture of open candor — and the willingness and courage to speak up — is a strategic asset and can be developed in companies of all sizes, in her new book The Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth.
“These are not things that happen routinely in most organizations, but they are mission critical to doing well in a complex, fast changing world,” she says. In our Q&A we asked her guidance for managers and leaders. Click here to read more.
The impact of attitude on life
By Charles Swindoll
The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, the education, the money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home. The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude. I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% of how I react to it. And so, it is with you... we are in charge of our attitudes.
Negotiation Skills (LinkedIn Learning)
Course link.
Negotiation skills aren't just important for the sales professionals among us. With a little practice, anyone can learn the simple rules of negotiation to get a great deal on a new car or house or achieve greater success at work by getting better deals with suppliers, customers and even colleagues. In this course, master negotiator Chris Croft walks through all the phases of a negotiation, from deciding to negotiate to closing. Chris discusses how to plan your negotiation and calculate your opening offer. Plus, he takes you through a series of specific negotiation tactics, demonstrates how to come to a win-win situation through the use of trading, and goes into how to close the deal.
To request your LinkedIn Learning account email ANR IT at help@ucanr.edu.
Excel 2021 Essential Training
Course link.
Excel, the popular spreadsheet program from Microsoft, is an essential tool for many professional roles. In this course, Jess Stratton shows you the ins and outs of the 2021 release. Jess begins with how to navigate Excel and how to create, open and save a file. Next, she shows you how to enter, format, autofill and edit text, as well as how to copy and delete cell data, merge cells and more. Jess explains how to work with sheets, then dives into the myriad adjustments and customizations you can apply to rows and columns. Formulas are at the heart of Excel's ability to perform text or number calculations, so Jess concludes by walking you through formulas and functions, including AutoSum and the very useful XLOOKUP.
To request your LinkedIn Learning account email ANR IT at help@ucanr.edu.
Leadership - It's All About Everyone (Connect Extension)
By Scott Reed, Vice Provost Emeritus, Outreach and Engagement, Oregon State University
Click here to read more.
Essayist William Gibson recently reminded us, “The future is here. It's just not widely distributed yet.” The same sentiment is reflected by the Institute for the Future in discussions of leadership in a world characterized by explosive connectivity and disruption and describes literacies for leading in a “VUCA” world: Volatile/Uncertain/Complex/Ambiguous. The institute further observes that in the next 10 years, leadership will be more distributed and that rock star leaders will be rarer.
Image by Tumisu from Pixabay
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Everyone can learn something new.
ANR Learning & Development
Find webinar announcements and recordings here.
learninganddevelopment@ucanr.edu
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
“The topic of addressing food access through community and school gardens has never been more relevant than in today's COVID and post-COVID environment,” said Kamal Khaira, director of the CalFresh Healthy Living, UC program, at the November ANR town hall. “Today, we are highlighting work from Riverside County where our CalFresh Healthy Living, UCCE team has made significant progress and contributions in fostering garden-enhanced nutrition education in three distinct communities – two urban settings and one rural Native American reservation.”
“This is one important aspect of our community work which brings all ages together in low-resource environments to learn, build and accomplish – delivering avenues for health and wellness both through work with the soil but also through connecting and sharing the harvested food together.”
Jackie Barahona, nutrition educator for CalFresh Healthy Living, UCCE Riverside County, continued the presentation.
“As you can see from the video, our work with communities in planning and developing community gardens is one that enhances our overall CalFresh Healthy Living, UCCE objectives of supporting health and wellness,” Barahona said.
“In 2013 the Riverside team began work with the Community Settlement Association in Riverside through a community grant that funded garden reinvigoration. During the pandemic, over 50 pounds of harvested produce from the garden have been donated to the local food pantry. Garden Club activities occurs twice a month and enhances educational work in the community.
“Our work with Riverside Faith Temple began in 2019. Food harvested from Riverside Faith Temple community garden is donated to parishioners and community members. Our team has continued to host monthly virtual garden club meetings in partnership with the UC Master Gardener Program in Riverside County. We plan to resume in-person garden activities this winter.
“Since 2013 CalFresh Healthy Living, UCCE Riverside has fostered a growing relationship with the Torres Martinez Tribal Community in Thermal. Based on this long-standing relationship, in 2020 the CFHL, UCCE Riverside team worked with a group of three youth and six seniors from the Tribal community to establish a garden at their senior center. This community garden brought elders and youth together to plant and harvest fresh vegetables and herbs. As an intergenerational project, it was a great success. Since that time our team, with support from the CFHL State Office, has assisted Tribal Leadership in establishing a Community Wellness Committee, which consists of youth, elders, and tribal council members. We are working with this committee to inspire initiatives that will lead to sustained health outcomes through physical activity, garden-enhanced nutrition education, direct education and other activities.
“Altogether, learning experiences in the garden provide many benefits – physical activity, an area to socialize with others in the neighborhood, and a reinforcement of what we teach about the importance of fresh fruits and vegetables being part of daily meals. Due to the garden work, our nutrition lessons are not only enhanced but harvested fresh food is available for community tables.”
For more information about the program, read “UCCE building oasis of health in ethnic urban communities” at https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=46096.
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Academic Assembly Council is accepting requests for reimbursement for travel to professional society meetings being held Jan. 1 through June 30, 2022.
Deadline for online submission: Friday, Dec. 10 at 5:00 p.m. (Submissions will be accepted electronically only. No exceptions.)
The Academic Assembly Council (AAC) travel awards support travel to professional society meetings, primarily for the reporting and exchange of knowledge among members. Cooperative Extension academics are eligible for one meeting approval per fiscal year (July 1 – June 30). Academic Assembly Council approval is only for expense reimbursement from the Professional Society Meeting Fund. Leave with pay to attend the meeting must be approved by your immediate supervisor.
This call is for the biannual period of January 1 – June 30, 2022. There will be a second call in early summer for the July 1– December 31, 2022, period. The total amount of awards granted and the criteria for awards remain unchanged.
Applications are scored based on set criteria. Priority scoring is given to applicants new to their positions, presenting papers, or with special functions within the society/meeting.
To submit a request, visit http://ucanr.edu/sites/ucaac/. Direct reimbursement request link is https://surveys.ucanr.edu/survey.cfm?surveynumber=36045.
If you have any questions, please contact Michelle Hammer Coffer atmahammer@ucanr.edu.