ANR Update

Megaro joins ANR as government and community relations director

Anne Megaro joined UC ANR as government and community relations director on Aug. 28. In her new role, Megaro will guide UC ANR employees in nurturing relationships with government officials and will monitor legislation that could affect UC ANR. She will also develop programs to promote community awareness of UC ANR.

Megaro, who earned a Ph.D. in animal science from Cornell University and a B.S. in animal science and management from UC Davis, brings a solid understanding of agriculture, science and the UC system along with knowledge of California's legislative processes.

“We're absolutely thrilled to have someone of Anne's caliber and credentials on board at UC ANR,” said Vice President Glenda Humiston. “Her hiring is a real coup for us and couldn't come at a more critical time. Educating our elected officials about the value of ANR research and outreach is always important, but especially as we try to increase investment in research infrastructure to address issues such as water, wildfire, invasive pests, food insecurity and other challenges facing the state.”

For the past five years, Megaro has been the California State Senate Committee on Agriculture's consultant. As the sole agriculture committee consultant for the Senate, Megaro planned legislative hearings, conducted independent research and analyzed agricultural bills to advise senators and staff on policy and legislative issues. She collaborated with senators, assembly members, governor's staff, legislative staff, government agencies, stakeholders and members of the public to resolve issues related to specific bills or policies.

“With the goodwill she's developed and contacts she's made in the state Senate, coupled with her ability to work with UC Cooperative Extension county directors and Research and Extension Center directors on effectively engaging policymakers at the local level, Anne will elevate UC ANR's ability to connect people with the data they need to make informed policy decisions,” Humiston said.

Megaro is based at the ANR building in Davis in Room 178 and can be reached at (530) 750-1218 and ammegaro@ucanr.edu.

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.

Haver named interim associate director of Research and Extension Center system

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce that Darren Haver has agreed to serve as the interim associate director of the Research and Extension Center system, effective Oct. 1, 2017. Darren has served as the UC Cooperative Extension water resources advisor in Orange County since 2002, director of South Coast Research and Extension Center in Irvine since 2009 and director of UC Cooperative Extension in Orange County beginning in 2011.

Darren brings a wealth of experience to this position. We continue to develop a plan to address administrative vacancies and look forward to working with him in this interim role. Darren will serve in this capacity until June 30, 2018, or until a new director is appointed. Please join me in congratulating Darren on his interim position.

I also wish to congratulate Lisa Fischer on her pending retirement from UC ANR and thank her for her years of leadership of the REC system. Under her direction, each REC has developed a strategic plan to set the course for the future and numerous capital improvements have been made to the RECs, including new office and conference spaces. We wish Lisa the very best as she takes on new adventures.

Wendy Powers
Associate Vice President and Interim REC Director

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.

Travel funds available for UCCE specialists to collaborate

ANR will be making additional travel support available for UC Cooperative Extension specialists to collaborate with ANR academics off-campus, including UCCE advisors in the counties and ANR academics at the research and extension centers in FY 2017/18.

With the level of funds available, each specialist may apply for up to $2,500 for FY 2017/18 (travel reports must be submitted within 45 days of travel, and funds must be expended by June 30, 2018). These travel funds must be used by the UCCE specialists only and cannot be used for out-of-state travel.

UC ANR values the work of AES faculty across the three partner campuses. As the recognized lead for the California Agriculture Experiment Station, UC ANR receives federal Hatch funds to support the AES mission and distributes those funds to the three partner campuses to manage and support AES faculty. In recognition of the importance of the partnership between UC ANR academics and AES faculty, UC ANR is expanding the travel support program to include AES faculty as part of a pilot program. Upon completion of a request, UC ANR will support travel by AES faculty to meet and work with UC ANR county-based or REC-based academics. Support is limited to $1,000 per AES faculty member with a cap on the total pool of funds available set at $25,000 for FY17-18. Additional support may be available through the campuses; AES faculty should consult their departments or colleges to determine if additional support is available. Travel support must be used by the AES faculty member for his/her own travel to plan and execute research or present research findings at meetings hosted by UC ANR academics.

Completing a short online survey is the only step in accessing these funds.

A brief survey form is accessible from your ANR Portal. The survey asks 

•        Name and title of academic requesting support

•        Project/Program name

•        Brief project description (one paragraph)

•        Collaborating advisors

While there is no deadline for applications for these travel funds, they must be expended in the current fiscal year.

"We are pleased that we are able to take this step to assist in meeting an identified need," said Wendy Powers, associate vice president.

UCCE specialists may apply for funds directly at http://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=18400.

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.

 

Vice Provost – Cooperative Extension position being re-evaluated

UC ANR has been searching for a Vice Provost – Cooperative Extension for some time now without success. Following an extended application submission and review process, the search committee has not identified any applicants to be interviewed. 

My sincere thanks to the search committee for their time and hard work to identify and review candidates for the position. Thanks also go to Vice Provost Greer, who has agreed to continue in the role through the end of September.

Over the course of the next few weeks, we will evaluate the necessary functions of the entire leadership team and, with advice from key leaders throughout the UC ANR system, develop a plan to move forward to provide for these key functions. We are currently finalizing plans to meet needs effective October 1. We will share those plans shortly.

Glenda Humiston
Vice President

Reminder to sign up for regional Goal 5 information sessions

Join Associate Vice President Wendy Powers at one of five regional information sessions being held in late July and early August to talk about Goal 5 of ANR's Strategic Plan, which involves conducting a process to align programs and services with the 2025 Strategic Vision. The purpose of Goal 5 of the UC ANR Strategic Plan is to assess both current and future needs, strengths and impacts of our work, then align our efforts such that we are positioned to achieve the 2025 Strategic Vision.

The San Diego session has reached capacity, but you can still register for one of the other locations at http://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=20857.

At each location, Powers will be joined by Raj Kapur, the consultant and facilitator who will lead UC ANR through the process; Jan Corlett, chief of staff to the vice president; and Mark Bell, vice provost of strategic initiatives and statewide programs.

Each session will held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and lunch will be provided. From 10 a.m. to noon, the topic will be Goal 5 of the strategic plan, plans and approach being used, as well as current status of the work. Anyone wishing to stay after lunch and visit with the Goal 5 team is welcome to do so.

Before attending the session, please read the draft public values statements posted at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/2016-2020_Strategic_Plan/Goal_5__Prioritize_programs_and_services/Public_values_statement.

The Goal 5 information sessions will be held at the following locations:

• Wednesday, July 26, 2017 – South Region Information Session at the UCCE San Diego Office, 9335 Hazard Way, Suite 201, San Diego, CA 92123. WAIT LIST ONLY.
• Thursday, July 27, 2017 – Coast Region Information Session at the UCCE San Luis Obispo Office, 2156 Sierra Way, Suite C, San Luis Obispo, CA 93401
• Friday, July 28, 2017 – Central Valley Region Information Session at the Kearney REC, 9240 South Riverbend Ave, Parlier, CA 93648
• Thursday, Aug. 3, 2017 – North Region Information Session at the Redding City Hall Community Room, 777 Cypress Ave, Redding, CA 96001
• Friday, Aug. 4, 2017 – Sacramento Region Information Session at the Davis ANR Building, 2801 Second Street, Davis, CA 95618

The information sessions are in person, however a video of the 30-minute Zoom meeting held June 20 can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiZ1CgyyEgM.

 

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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