Posts Tagged: Barbara Allen-Diaz

VP Allen-Diaz's farewell to the ANR community

Dear ANR Community:

Thank you for all your efforts on behalf of the people of California, UC ANR, the University of California, and me, personally. We have had the opportunity to share our excellent research and education programming as well as initiate new and exciting programs and activities. I can't thank you enough for all the support that you have given me over the last 5 to 8 years. Never forget the incredibly invaluable role that you play in providing science-based information to decision makers, providing science-based solutions to new and/or vexing problems in agriculture, natural resources, nutrition, and youth development. Never forget that it is you who create educational programs that reach some of our most underserved communities and well as programs that improve our water quality, pest management options, conserve our natural and water resources, and serve our youth with programming in 4-H club, after-school and camp programs.

We have done a lot in the last few years, and some of the highlights include

1. rebuilding our CE academic footprint by hiring some 90 new CE Advisors and Specialists with 45 new releases on the way, identifying priority positions with internal and stakeholder input.
2. providing an active hub for UC ANR by purchasing 2801 Second Street, consolidating 145 of our programmatic and administrative staff into one location, and designing it for use by all of our folks across the state.
3. purchasing another 10 acres adjacent to 2801 Second Street for UC ANR to expand and showcase our programs well into the future.
4. insisting always that UC ANR be treated fairly within UC policies so that our academics have the same privileges as campus-professorial faculty, including access to Mortgage Origination Program loans, equivalent status, and compensation. We have different roles and foci, but we draw our academics from the same pools – only our academics make a difference working directly with Californians in communities throughout the state.
5. strengthening our strategic initiatives by providing leadership and resources, through a competitive grants program and other means, to ensure that our resources are focused on sustainable agriculture, sustainable natural resources, water, endemic and invasive pests and diseases, and healthy families and communities.
6. strengthening our statewide programs by ensuring excellent leadership and providing support, and strategically creating new statewide programs (IGIS, Master Food Preservers and Master Naturalist).
7. creating two ANR Institutes: California Institute for Water Resources and the Nutrition Policy Institute, both directed by outstanding leaders in their fields, increasing ANR visibility as well as connections with our campus partners.
8.  working through the initial results of our work environment study, listening to employees and actively working to create a Staff Assembly Council to give our staff voice to administration and to the UC system.
9. staying in the trenches with UC Path, continuing to work toward creating for a single unified business unit, which will increase efficiency enormously when we don't have to reconcile five different ledgers to answer even simple questions.

UC ANR has a unique role as a leader and coordinator of the Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension faculty and programs on behalf of our great California land-grant university. We conduct relevant, often cutting-edge, problem solving-focused research and education programs that make a difference to young and old across the state. UC ANR is a valuable contributor to the UC President's initiatives, bringing practical, local experience to bear on these statewide, nationwide and global issues. Our Research and Extension Centers are jewels in the crown of UC, where basic and applied research and education occurs with the guidance of highly professional and engaged staff. With a presence in every county in California, Cooperative Extension is the face of the University of California in most communities, and the programs that you deliver improve the lives of Californians every day.

Thank you for the opportunity to work with you, learn from you, and move forward with you. The future looks very bright; our partners both within UC and throughout the state are engaged with us, and together we can continue to make a difference for California and the world.

Sincerely,

Barbara Allen Diaz
Vice President

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

VP announces 2015 competitive grants program RFP

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce that the request for proposals for ANR's 2015 competitive grants program is now released and can be found at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/Divisionwide_Programs/2015_ANR_Competitive_Grants_Program.

The purpose of this grants program is to address high-priority issues identified by at least one of the strategic initiatives: Endemic and Invasive Pests and Diseases (EIPD), Healthy Families and Communities (HFC), Sustainable Food Systems (SFS), Sustainable Natural Ecosystems (SNE), and Water Quality, Quantity and Security (Water).

2015 competitive grants cycle:

Call released: January 22

Application submission cycle

• Letter of Intent (LOI) due March 16
• LOI decisions April 24
• Full proposals due June 22

Technical peer review: late June – early September 2015

Strategic Initiative review and recommendations: September 2015

Program Council review and recommendations: October/November 2015

Announcement of funded grants:November/December 2015

Through the 2015 grant cycle, ANR will continue to invest in short-term, high-impact research, education and outreach projects that address priority issues consistent with the Strategic Vision; encourage collaboration among academics; strengthen the research-extension network; and demonstrate relevance and likelihood of impact on significant agricultural, economic, environmental, and social issues in California.

During the previous three competitive grant cycles, 52 projects have been approved for funding for a total investment of close to $12 million. These projects have yielded significant deliverables and outcomes. Examples are highlighted in the recent assessment summary at http://ucanr.edu/grants_assessment_summary. I continue to be excited by the high level of engagement across the ANR network, including many students, and with many of our external partners. The assessment summary also includes specific information about how the program is reaching collaboration goals.

While the funds available for the competitive grants program will depend on a number of factors, we anticipate funding to be roughly the same as in past cycles. We are committed to providing as much support as feasible to address high-priority issues.

Taking into consideration the findings from the 2014 grants program formative assessment, we have made a few small changes to this year's call. Most notably, grant applicants will now be asked to identify the specific priority issue area their proposals address. The priority issue areas are highlighted in the RFP and include links to the Strategic Initiative plans for further information. In this way, we will be better able to track and communicate efforts and impact.

Sincerely,

Barbara Allen-Diaz
Vice President

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

SAVE THE DATE for Work Environment Assessment workshops

Dear Colleagues,

Earlier this week Vice President Barbara Allen-Diaz wrote to you outlining the follow-up plans for the Work Environment Assessment. The six workshops that she described have now been scheduled, so please SAVE THE DATE now and plan to attend. Invitations will be sent about prior to each event with more information.

Please remember that California is a very large state, and in scheduling workshops, some people are going to have to travel farther than others.  We also understand that not everyone will be able to attend, and we will plan to share information with everyone later in the spring.  The regional groupings, the location of the workshop, and the date are listed below.  See the map on the website at http://ucanr.edu/sites/wesurvey  to identify which counties, RECs, campuses and administrative units are in each grouping:

• South, San Diego – Monday, March 2
• Central Valley, Kearney REC – Monday, March 9
• Sacramento Valley, Davis – Wednesday, April 1
• North, Redding – Wednesday, April 15
• Administrative Units, Davis – Wednesday, May 20
• Coast, San Luis Obispo – Wednesday, May 27

Please plan to attend – a positive and welcoming work environment is important to all of us.

Work Environment Committee

VP announces Work Environment Assessment follow-up

Dear Colleagues,

I want you to know how much I appreciate the time that you took to participate in the Work Environment Assessment in 2012. ANR had a phenomenal 64% response rate! I hosted a virtual town hall with you in April of this year after the results were finally released. Today, I want to provide an update on the steps we are taking to follow up on the Work Environment Assessment. Workshops are being planned for the spring of 2015, and a “Save the Date” message will be coming soon with the date and location of the workshop in each regional grouping. 

Goals of the workshop are to:

• share information on what we're learning from the assessment results with data by regional grouping as well as overall statewide totals;
• address instances of exclusionary behavior by engaging in a discussion of Principles of Community; and
• share information about the new ANR Staff Assembly.

ANR is committed to ensuring a safe, supportive, inclusive and welcoming work environment for everyone. While overall results from the ANR climate study show that most ANR employees are comfortable in their work environment, some reported discomfort.  There is also variation between groups; for example, academics are more comfortable than either represented or non-represented staff. Some employees have experienced exclusionary behavior such as feeling ignored, left out, intimidated or bullied.  

Over the past several months, the UC ANR Work Environment Assessment Committee (see roster below) has been working to identify areas of opportunity for improving the work environment for all ANR employees. The first step will be to engage ANR employees through a series of six workshops.  All academics, staff and county-paid staff will be invited to participate to discuss data from the work environment assessment and additional insights from prior listening sessions. The assessment data will be provided by regional grouping, as well as a statewide overview. 

Although the assessment data that we have does not include campus-based CE specialists (they received the campus version of the survey), they will be invited to participate in the workshops along with the rest of their ANR colleagues. 

We are taking two immediate steps to address the issue of exclusionary behavior.  First, the workshops will include a session devoted to developing “Principles of Community” for ANR.  Principles of Community provide a foundation for understanding our common values.  They define expectations for behavior in the workplace that is professional, welcoming and inclusive.  And they provide a framework for addressing issues that may arise in the workplace.  After all of the workshops have been completed, the draft Principles will be shared and then finalized. 

The second step is to provide a communication mechanism for non-academic staff to voice their issues, concerns and suggestions. ANR academics have the Academic Assembly Council, but there is no similar organization in ANR for staff. Currently all ten campuses, the Berkeley Lab and UCOP have a Staff Assembly organization. There is also a statewide body, called the Council of UC Staff Assemblies (CUCSA) that has representation from all of the Staff Assemblies. I am committed to forming an ANR Staff Assembly. Accordingly, one of the workshop sessions will focus on understanding what an ANR Staff Assembly would do, and why staff would want to be engaged in this organization.

I want to thank the Work Environment Assessment Committee for all of their work to analyze the data and prepare for these workshops. Our work environment is a top priority for me, and I hope you will plan to attend the workshop in your part of the state.

Sincerely,

Barbara Allen-Diaz
Vice President  

Work Environment Assessment Committee
2014-15 Roster

Jodi Azulai, Training and Development Coordinator

Bethanie Brown, Human Resources Supervisor, Human Resources—Staff Personnel Unit

Jan Corlett, Chief of Staff to the Vice President

Jeff Dahlberg, Director, Kearney Agricultural Research & Extension Center

Chris Greer, Vice Provost, Cooperative Extension

Kat Hicklin, Business Officer, South Coast Research & Extension Center and UC Cooperative Extension Orange County

Amy Long, Administrative Assistant, Cooperative Extension, San Diego County

Linda Manton, Executive Director, Human Resources—Staff Personnel Unit; Affirmative Action Contact; Title IX Contact

Robert Martinez, Human Resources Coordinator, Human Resources—Staff Personnel Unit

John Sims, Affirmative Action Compliance Officer, Human Resources—Staff Personnel Unit

Rachel Surls, Cooperative Extension Advisor, Los Angeles County

 

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

VP approves UCCE positions for recruitment

To continue our aggressive effort in hiring Cooperative Extension Advisors and Specialists, I am announcing the release of positions for future rounds of hiring. These positions have been through a thorough process of proposal and review. The more than 120 proposals for these CE positions were developed in consultation with our stakeholders. The review process involved public comment (more than 900 individual comments from agricultural organizations, governmental agencies, youth and nutrition coalitions, individuals and many others), ANR Program Teams, Cooperative Extension County Directors and College and School leadership.  All of the review information, along with information regarding current staffing and retirement projections, was considered by ANR Program Council in their deliberations to provide me with recommendations. My decisions in the release of these positions were based upon review of all the available information.

These positions are now in the queue and will be released for recruitment in phases over time to enable us to accomplish the search and hiring process in an orderly fashion, evaluate resources on a real-time basis, deal with unexpected changes in staffing, and address unanticipated issues as they arise. While I am providing the anticipated release dates, we will also be monitoring progress in recruitments already released to ensure that we are progressing efficiently.  Although we have hired more than four dozen new Cooperative Extension Advisors and Specialists over the past three years, we currently have 20 recruitments of previously released positions either underway or still to be initiated.

So, CE advisor and specialist positions approved for hiring in 2015-2016 (location, counties or campus) are as follows:

Round 1 (Spring 2015)

Area Youth & Community Advisor (Mendocino, Lake)

Area Agronomic Cropping Systems / Nutrient Management Advisor (Kings, Tulare, Fresno)

Area Citrus Advisor (Tulare, Fresno, Madera)

Area Nutrition, Family and Consumer Science Advisor (Central Sierra Multi-County Partnership)

Area Environmental Horticulture Advisor (Fresno, Madera, Tulare, Kings)

Area Environmental Horticulture Advisor (San Diego, Orange)

Livestock & Natural Resources Advisor (Siskiyou)

Beef Cattle Herd Health and Production Specialist (School of Veterinary Medicine, UCD)

Community Food Safety Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, UCD)

Integrated Urban Water Management Specialist (College of Natural and Agricultural Science, UCR)

Round 2 (Summer 2015)

Area Youth & Families Advisor (Imperial)

Area Nutrition, Family and Consumer Science Advisor (San Mateo, Santa Clara)

Area Small Farms Advisor (Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Mateo, San Benito)

Area Rice Advisor (Sutter-Yuba, Placer, Sacramento)

Area Orchard Systems Advisor (Madera, Merced)

Area Vegetable Crops Advisor (Colusa, Sutter-Yuba)

Area 4-H Youth Development Advisor (Marin, Sonoma, Napa)

Agricultural Safety & Health Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Irrigation Water Management Specialist (Kearney Agricultural Research & Extension Center)

Quantitative Policy Analysis Specialist (College of Natural Resources, UCB)

Round 3 (Fall 2015)

Area Agronomic Cropping / Weed Science Advisor (Glenn, Butte, Tehama)

Area Agronomy Advisor (Capitol Corridor Multi-County Partnership)

Area Nutrition, Family and Consumer Science Advisor (Tulare, Kings)

Livestock and Range Economics Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Aquaculture Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Mechanization Engineering Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Round 4 (Spring 2016)

Area Livestock & Natural Resources Advisor (Placer-Nevada, Sutter-Yuba)

Area Livestock & Natural Resources Advisor (Plumas-Sierra, Butte)

Area Nutrition, Family & Consumer Science Advisor (Butte, Colusa, Glenn, Sutter-Yuba)

Area Vegetable Production & Irrigation Advisor (Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Merced)

Area Low Desert Weed Advisor (Imperial, Riverside)

Forest Products and Woody Biomass Specialist (College of Natural Resources, UCB)

Orchard Crop Entomology Specialist (College of Natural and Agricultural Science, UCR – located at KARE)

Evaluation Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Round 5 (Summer 2016)

Area Sustainable Orchard Systems Advisor (Butte, Glenn, Tehama)

Area Orchard & Vineyard Systems Advisor (Stanislaus, San Joaquin, Contra Costa, Alameda)

Community Economic Development Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Dairy Cattle Production Health Management Specialist (School of Veterinary Medicine, UCD)

Round 6 (Fall 2016)

Area Desert Livestock Advisor (Imperial, Riverside, San Bernardino)

Area Forestry & Natural Resources Advisor (Sutter-Yuba, Butte, Nevada

Area Livestock & Range Advisor (Ventura, Santa Barbara)

Area Dairy Systems Advisor (Sonoma, Marin, Mendocino)

Biometeorology Specialist (College of Agricultural and Environmental Science, UCD)

Barbara Allen-Diaz
Vice President
UC ANR

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

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