Posts Tagged: Ann Senuta

Learning & Development News

UC ANR has new online orientation guide

UC ANR has a new online orientation guide for new employees. It begins with a welcome video from VP Glenda Humiston and continues to a table of contents where new employees will find topics such as the ANR Mission and Vision, ANR Core Messages, History of ANR, ANR programs and unit overview videos, as well as personal responsibility, employee resources, and more. UC ANR continues to explore ways to orient our new employees beyond the annual New Employee Administrative and Programmatic Orientations.

UC Learning Center upgrade

Between July 7 and 14, the UC Learning Center website (lms.ucdavis.edu) will be down for an upgrade. Therefore, plan your compliance and other training with that schedule in mind. As new information is available from UCOP, we will send out a reminder announcement.

Lynda.com

ANR employees still have access to Lynda.com. Therefore, disregard any messages you may have received stating that our subscription is over. If you have not already created a personal account, please go the ANR Portal and under “My Links” click on Lynda.com Learning. This month's learning module recommendations are “Delivering Employee Feedback” with Todd Dewett and “The Benefits of Project management” with Richard Harrington. Check them out!

MSAP provides people managers new awareness

Last month Tina Jordan, Academic HR manager, and Karina Macias, UCCE nutrition program manager in Fresno County, attended the April 2017 Management Skills Assessment Program (MSAP) at the UCLA Conference Center at Lake Arrowhead. The goal of MSAP is to address skill gaps and grow competencies that will prepare people managers for future opportunities in their UC workplaces.

During the four-day program, Jordan and Macias participated in simulated UC management scenarios, received behavioral feedback from assessors, attended a career development workshop, and connected with UC systemwide colleagues. Before they arrived, they participated in pre-assessment components and will be involved post-program activities to continue their professional development.

As testimonials to their experience, Jordan said, “My MSAP experience was awesome! I was able to learn a lot about myself and what I project to my colleagues and managers. What I liked most about MSAP is how the program is customized for individual professional development. The feedback and resources I was given was personalized for me only. I thank ANR and everyone who supported me in this endeavor.”

Macias remarked, “MSAP was an insightful experience. I have become more confident in my strengths and more self-aware of my development areas. I look forward to using the skills and information I learned, in my continued professional growth.”

But MSAP would not happen without UC assessors and a big “THANK YOU” is due to Ann Senuta, director of ANR Publications. Senuta was assigned three MSAP assessees for whom she provided feedback and coaching during the program. Of her experience she said, “People who have taken part in the MSAP program say it's intense. It is! The process of identifying and evaluating your assessees' strengths and areas of development is a huge responsibility, but it's probably the most rewarding aspect of MSAP. I have so much respect for everyone who goes through MSAP—the assessees who want to discover how to improve their skills, the very organized coordinators, and most of all the other assessors from all over the UC system who work incredibly hard in those three and a half days to help guide the next generation of UC's managers and leaders.”

Become an assessor and help ANR serve this UC systemwide initiative for upward mobility. Academics can add the assessor service to their merit and promotion package. For information on how to become an assessor, contact Jodi Azulai at jlazulai@ucanr.edu.

The next MSAP will be held Oct. 9-12, 2017. See the next article to apply.

CALL FOR ANR APPLICANTS: Management Skills Assessment Program (MSAP)

If you or your people managers are ready for a leap in professional development, we encourage applying for the Management Skills Assessment Program (MSAP).

This program assesses the management skills of high-potential, early-career supervisors and managers for future leadership opportunities at the University of California. We strongly recommend discussing the program with supervisors and managers who exhibit potential for management development.

Applications are due July 10, 2017.

Eligibility requirements include:

• Full-time career status with a current, satisfactory (or better) performance evaluation
• Career Tracks job classification as a supervisor or manager

Participants will be selected based on an evaluation of the applicant's (1) career goals in management, (2) level of skills essential for performing management functions, and (3) demonstrated career path and/or strong commitment to management skill development.

ANR Learning & Development pays the $1,095 program fee plus transportation and other related travel costs.  

What to expect:

• A demanding program with assessees in activities from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m.
• No time to check email or attend to work responsibilities.
• Eat with other assessees and share small condos. 

Application instructions and further information about the program are at http://msap.ucr.edu. Choose UC ANR (not UC Davis) in the application.

A UC ANR committee will review all applications and make the final selection.Completed applications must be submitted online at http://msap.ucr.edu by Monday, July 10, 2017 (Remember the website will shut down between July 7 and 14 for upgrade). As supervisor, you will also have a required portion in the submission for application consideration and commit to participate in the required post-program activities. 

For more information, contact Jodi Azulai, ANR Learning and Development coordinator, at jlazulai@ucanr.edu.

ANR Learning and Development

To position ANR as the premiere source of knowledge and science for agricultural and natural resources issues, it is vital that our people keep their knowledge and skills at peak performance. The ANR Learning and Development website offers an array of opportunities for employee learning and professional development that can help serve that goal. I strongly encourage employees to take full advantage of these resources as well as other opportunities to enhance their personal and professional growth. – Glenda Humiston, Vice President

 

 

Names in the News

Getts named weed advisor

Thomas Getts joined ANR as a UCCE area weed ecology and cropping systems advisor in Lassen, Plumas-Sierra and Modoc counties on June 1.

Getts earned his B.A. in forestry management and an M.S. in weed science from Colorado State University in Fort Collins.

Prior to joining UCCE, Getts conducted and was involved with numerous studies focusing on weeds, invasive species, herbicides and crops while working on his master's degree at Colorado State University. Some specific studies he worked on included cut stump treatment to control Russian olive, herbicide tolerance of restoration species, invasive species mapping projects, and screening of experimental herbicides for weed control and crop safety. Working as a teacher's assistant, he was responsible for laboratory instruction, experiment design and execution, experiment maintenance and sprayer calibration.

Getts is based in Susanville and can be reached at (530) 251-2650 and tjgetts@ucanr.edu.

Graham joins Resource Planning and Management

Hugh Graham joined ANR as associate director of the Resource Planning and Management (RPM) team on June 15. He oversees the day-to-day operations of the RPM team, including processing of budget transactions, tracking of funding commitments, preparation of federal fund applications and reconciliation of ANR's provision accounts.

Prior to joining the ANR RPM team, Graham worked at the UC Berkeley Budget Office for three years. 

He earned a B.A. in Russian language at Bowdoin College and Master of Nonprofit Administration at the University of San Francisco with a concentration in finance and accounting. 

Graham is based at UC Office of the President and can be reached at (510) 987-0053 and hugh.graham@ucop.edu.

Schellman joins IPM

Anne Schellman joined ANR as an urban IPM educator on May 4.

Prior to joining ANR, Schellman was the program manager for the California Center for Urban Horticulture at UC Davis. She was instrumental in the rollout of 16 drought workshops held last year and assisted in scheduling five drought workshops for 2015. 

“Her dedication to these workshops helped CCUH respond to the urgent request by the Department of Water Resources for assistance in educating the public and landscape professionals on landscape water conservation during this severe drought,” said Dave Fujino, CCUH executive director.

Schellman is based in Davis and can be reached at (530) 750-1240 and aschellman@ucanr.edu.

Snowden named MG training coordinator

Lauren Snowden is the new UC Master Gardener Program statewide training coordinator. She will be responsible for developing trainings, resources and materials to assist coordinators and volunteers for county-based programs. Volunteer Management Institute, drought train-the-trainer workshops, volunteer management system help resources and the expert speaker database are a few examples of the many projects Snowden is managing in her new role.

Before joining the statewide staff for the UC Master Gardener Program, Snowden worked for Yuba County Health and Human Services where she was an administrative analyst for 12 years. At Yuba County HHS, she worked alongside management to develop training programs for employees and co-workers.

Snowden has been a UC Master Gardener volunteer in Sutter-Yuba counties since 2011. As a UC Master Gardener volunteer, she has co-managed her program's monthly county newsletter and trained the public and fellow volunteers on her favorite gardening topics, such as vegetable gardening, planting for spring flowers and patio gardening.

Snowden is based in Davis and can be reached at (530) 750-1203 and llsnowden@ucanr.edu.

Allison to head 4-H Foundation

Paula Allison joined ANR as executive director of the California 4-H Foundation on June 15. Allison brings a wealth of fund development experience. 

While president of her own consulting company, she provided guidance in strategic planning for a K-12 charter school system and a private university, developing case statements, creating a development program from the ground up, creating annual campaigns, developing a corporate partnership program and planning for a $25 million campaign. She worked for several years at BizWorld, an organization that teaches youth about entrepreneurship, where she developed external partnerships with corporations, nonprofits and leaders in education. Her experience includes board development and volunteer training and management. Recently, she established a branch in her community for the National Charity League, a mother-daughter service organization that focuses on philanthropy and leadership.  Allison has a strong interest in youth development. Growing up, she was exposed to 4-H through her two older sisters.

“In joining Development Services and the California 4-H Foundation, Paula joins a terrific team of skilled and hard-working development professionals,” said Cindy Barber, who retired as Development Services director in June. “I know you will all enjoy working with Paula. She is energetic, enthusiastic and creative.” 

Allison succeeds Amy McGuire, who had been acting director of the California 4-H Foundation since October. 

Andrea Ambrose is interim director of Development Services while the position is under recruitment.

Allison is based in Davis and can be reached at (530) 750-1202 and plallison@ucanr.edu.

Zavala joins ANR

Juan Zavala has joined ANR as an administrative officer 2, responsible for coordinating program and financial activities for the California Institute for Water Resources and Program Planning and Evaluation. Zavala splits his time between the two programs.  

Zavala, whose parents are coffee growers, is fluent in English and Spanish and earned a B.S. in agricultural engineering from National Engineering University in Managua, Nicaragua.

Before joining ANR, he was an administrative assistant at UC Davis. At the nonprofit Fair Trade USA, he implemented and improved strategic relationships with stakeholders and supported task management by communicating with customers and partners in Latin America and in the U.S.

Located in Oakland, Zavala can be reached at (510) 987-0805 and juan.zavala@ucop.edu. 

ANR wins 2 book design awards

The ANR “Citrus Production Manual” received a gold award in the Reference Book category of the 2015 PubWest Book Design Awards, and the “California Master Gardener Handbook” received a silver award in the same category.  

Celeste Rusconi, Communication Services and Information Technology art director, created the overall design used in both books. Senior designer Robin Walton did the production of the citrus book. Senior designer Will Suckow created all of the illustrations and did all color correction for the photographs in both books. Ann Senuta was the production manager for both books.

PubWest Design Awards have been recognizing “superior design and outstanding production quality of books” for 31 years.

New CSIT leadership structure now in place

With final leadership now in place, directors Mike Janes (strategic communications), Ann Senuta (publishing and production) and Gabe Youtsey (information technology) are collectively moving forward with their plans for a more cohesive, dynamic Communication Services and Information Technology (CSIT) unit.

Janes came on board in early February, joining Senuta and Youtsey as the three directors charged by ANR Vice President Barbara Allen-Diaz with developing a comprehensive plan to lead CSIT into the future. Janes's strategic communications will more effectively take advantage of ANR's strong research base by placing a greater emphasis on proactive media relations, ANR branding and a more dynamic and compelling Web presence.

“It's clear that UCANR is highly engaged in programs and activities that are highly relevant to Californians, but many state leaders and the general public often don't seem to understand the vital role that ANR plays,” says Janes. “We're determined to raise UCANR's public profile, and fortunately there's plenty of great material from which we can work.”

Among other projects, Janes and his team, which includes staff providing news and information outreach in English and Spanish, will work closely with Youtsey and his Web development staff on a redesign of the main ANR website. The joint team is currently identifying an external vendor to assess needs and set a strategy for the ANR website redesign. As part of this assessment, a number of ANR senior leaders, academics and staff members will be interviewed for their insight into programmatic and audience needs.

“A website redesign will not just make it easier for our constituents to find information, but will also help them to better understand ANR on a single page, to better highlight our mission and initiatives and to foster deeper engagement with the public in a visually appealing format,” says Youtsey.

To create a strategic plan for information technology, Youtsey has traveled and met extensively with the ANR community to understand how technology is used in support of ANR's mission. The resulting IT plan includes several key projects designed to extend the Division's reach into rural areas with improved networking, to use new and existing data to enhance ANR research, and to connect communities using technology.

“Innovative approaches to research, education and outreach by ANR increasingly rely on a strong foundation of technology,” says Youtsey. “Faster and more reliable networks, modern computers, software tools, social networking and conferencing technologies will all play a part in helping ANR deliver an astounding range of service to California.”

Youtsey will offer an hour-long webinar via UCOP Information Technology Services on May 5 at 1 p.m. about technology at ANR. Details can be found at http://ucop.edu/information-technology-services/initiatives/webinars.html

Many in ANR are well familiar with the CSIT's publishing group, which produces and markets peer-reviewed ANR publications and California Agriculture journal, videos and Division promotional materials and manages the online peer-review systems and the Media Repository. Senuta's publishing operations plan focuses on a new business model and expansion of the Division's publishing options to include e-books, single-copy print-on-demand and repurposed content. She is working to connect with recently hired ANR academics to make them aware of available publishing opportunities and, with executive editor Jim Downing, strengthen California Agriculture's news section as a venue for highlighting Division research for new audiences.

“Like the greater publishing industry, we are expanding our formats to ensure sustainability and increase market reach. Part of this effort is to ensure a variety of publishing opportunities for Division authors to extend ANR research,” Senuta says. “We can't produce it all, so we must target wisely. But what ANR has that many publishers envy is our content — objective, based in science and simply interesting.”

Future endeavors, with support from the Communications Advisory Board, include revitalizing publishing for underserved audiences and investigating the possibility of peer-review credit for academic writing published on ANR webpages.

Read more