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Posts Tagged: Miguel Sanchez
Names in the News
El-kereamy named Lindcove REC director
Ashraf El-kereamy will be the new director of UC Agriculture and Natural Resources' Lindcove Research & Extension Center, starting on July 1, 2020. He will continue to serve as a UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Botany and Plant Sciences at UC Riverside and based at Lindcove Research & Extension Center.
“Elizabeth Grafton-Cardwell retires this year after 13 years as director of Lindcove REC, California's premier citrus research center,” said Mark Lagrimini, UC ANR vice provost for research and extension. “We are excited to have Ashraf in place to carry on the tremendous success attributable to the research performed at Lindcove. Ashraf brings a breadth of research, extension and leadership skills.”
El-kereamy has extensive experience with several commodities with research revolving around plant hormones, fruit ripening, plant nutrition, and the responses of different plant species to abiotic stress conditions.
Since February 2019, El-kereamy has been serving as a UC Cooperative Extension citrus specialist based at Lindcove Research and Extension Center. Prior to the specialist position, El-kereamy was a UCCE viticulture and small fruit advisor for Kern County, where he established a research and extension program serving the San Joaquin Valley table grape industry for four years. Prior to joining UC ANR, he was an assistant/associate professor in the Department of Horticulture at Ain Shams University in Egypt.
“I am honored and very excited to be the director of Lindcove Research and Extension Center, which plays a crucial role in the California citrus industry,” El-kereamy said. “I am confident that, with the support of our industry, community and the University of California, we will build tomorrow's Lindcove REC as a center of excellence in research and extension. I am looking forward to leading Lindcove REC and providing our clientele with up-to-date technologies to cope with the challenges facing the California agriculture industry.”
El-kereamy earned a bachelor's degree in horticulture and master's degree in pomology from Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt, and a doctorate in agriculture with an emphasis in grapevine physiology and molecular biology from Toulouse University in France.
Campbell named NORDP Rising Star for 2020
The National Organization of Research Development Professionals (NORDP) has named Vanity Campbell, UC ANR proposal development coordinator, one of its three Rising Stars for 2020.
Campbell helps UC ANR employees improve their grant applications for success in receiving funding.
“Vanity's reputation as a fierce advocate for inclusive research development, an exceptional organizer, and a passionate cheerleader for her colleagues makes her precisely the kind of person this award was designed to celebrate,” wrote her nominator. “When I think about the future of NORDP, I hope she is helping us to lead it.”
NORDP established the Rising Star Award in 2016 to recognize up to three members annually who have made outstanding volunteer contributions and show great potential for future contributions to NORDP and the research development profession. Campbell will be presented with an etched glass plaque and receive free registration for a future NORDP conference.
Communicators win global awards
Six UC ANR-affiliated communicators won writing or photography awards in a global competition hosted by the international Association for Communication Excellence in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Life and Human Sciences (ACE).
Steve Elliott, communications coordinator for the Western Integrated Pest Management Center, won one silver (second-place) and two bronze (third-place) for his writing and photography; Kathy Keatley Garvey, communications specialist for the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, two silvers for her writing and photography; and Diane Nelson, communication specialist for the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, won a bronze for her writing.
Ricardo Vela, Miguel Sanchez and Norma de la Vega of UC ANR's News and Information Outreach in Spanish won a bronze award in diversity electronic media and audio for targeted audiences.
Elliott's entries and the categories:
- Writing for the Web, silver award for “IPM in Yellowstone”
- Photo Essay, bronze award for “Growing in Guam”
- Social media, bronze award for single blog post, “To Communicate Better, Start with Audience”
Garvey's entries and the categories:
- Writing for Newspapers, silver award for “Paying It Forward,” about the successful career of award-winning academic advisor Elvira Galvan Hack
- Picture Story, silver award for “Kira Meets a Stick Insect” (at Bohart Museum of Entomology)
Nelson's entry and category:
- Writing for the Web, bronze award for "Can Science Save Citrus?"
Vela, Sanchez and de la Vega's entry and category:
- Diversity electronic media and audio for targeted audiences, bronze award for Breakfast - Desayuno de Campeones - English and Spanish videos
The awards were presented during ACE's virtual conference June 24. ACE is an international association of communicators, educators and information technologists who focus on communicating research-based information. The organization offers professional development and networking for individuals who extend knowledge about agriculture, natural resources, and life and human sciences.
Read more at https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail.cfm?postnum=42747.
Meyer receives Bradford-Rominger Agricultural Sustainability Leadership Award
Deanne Meyer, UC Cooperative Extension livestock waste management specialist, is this year's recipient of the Eric Bradford & Charlie Rominger Agricultural Sustainability Leadership Award, given by the Agricultural Sustainability Institute (ASI) at UC Davis.
Meyer is being honored for her leadership in substantially improving the sustainability of California's dairy industry through her research and outreach.
The Bradford-Rominger award recognizes and honors individuals who exhibit the leadership, work ethic and integrity epitomized by the late Eric Bradford, a livestock geneticist who gave 50 years of service to UC Davis, and the late Charlie Rominger, a fifth-generation Yolo County farmer and land preservationist.
Meyer has directed the environmental stewardship efforts of the California Dairy Quality Assurance Program (CDQAP)—a voluntary partnership between the dairy industry, government and academia—since the program's inception in 1996.
Meyer's dedication to build a bridge between industry and regulatory agencies has paid dividends for California's air and water quality. With Meyer's leadership, more than 700 dairy farms have completed an on-site, third-party evaluation of their facility's manure management. The program has been so successful that it received California's highest environmental honor, the Governor's Environmental and Economic Leadership Award, in 2007.
Reflecting on Meyer's work, Glenda Humiston, UC vice president for agriculture and natural resources, said, “Serving as chair of California's Water Quality Task Force in the mid-1990s, I had a front row seat to the challenges Deanne faced as she organized CDQAP and brought many unlikely allies to the table. The many successes of that program is a testament to her skills as both a scientist and a diplomat.”
Beyond Meyer's work with CDQAP, her research in groundwater salinity has provided farmers, agency staff and other concerned stakeholders with unbiased information presented with an understanding of agricultural realities.
“Her efforts, leadership, and dedication are so valued by all the diverse sectors she works across,” said Anita Oberbauer, professor and dean for Agricultural Sciences at UC Davis. “By working closely with regulatory agencies and farmers, she ensures our state's livestock and dairy producers have the tools that they need to meet the environmental challenges.”
Names in the News
Khaira to lead UC CalFresh
Kamaljeet (Kamal) Singh-Khaira has accepted the position of director of the University of California CalFresh Nutrition Education Program, also known as UC CalFresh. Singh-Khaira began her new role on June 18, 2018, succeeding David Ginsburg, who retired after leading UC CalFresh since 2008.
“We are very fortunate to have another strong leader to direct the UC CalFresh program,” said Helene Dillard, dean of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. “Under David Ginsburg's leadership, our program has grown substantially and become a widely emulated model across the nation. Kamal Singh-Khaira—with her more than 20 years of experience developing and implementing health and active living initiatives—is ideally positioned to lead the program into the future.”
Prior to joining UC CalFresh, Singh-Khaira was an independent consultant. She previously held leadership positions with the Network for a Healthy California and the American Heart Association.
Singh-Khaira has a master's degree in community development from UC Davis and is the 2012 recipient of that program's Ted Bradshaw Award, honoring an alum of the program who exemplifies the passion, humanity and devotion for community empowerment. In 2015 Singh-Khaira received a U.S. Department of Agriculture Western Region Food and Nutrition Service Recognition Award honoring her professional contributions and leadership in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) education efforts.
Singh-Khaira is based at UC Davis and can be reached at (530) 752-0555 and kjkhaira@ucdavis.edu.
Bruno named UCCE quantitative policy analysis specialist
Ellen Bruno joined UCCE on July 1, 2018, as an assistant specialist in quantitative policy analysis Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at UC Berkeley.
Bruno will develop a research and extension program that focuses on policy issues relevant to California's agriculture and natural resources. Much of her current research and extension work relates to the changing regulatory structure of groundwater in California and the potential for groundwater trading.
Prior to joining UCCE, Bruno was a graduate student researcher in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at UC Davis. Her Ph.D. dissertation, titled “An Evaluation of Policy Instruments for Sustainable Groundwater Management,” assessed the potential of market-based instruments for improving management of groundwater for agriculture.
Bruno earned her B.S. in management science from UC San Diego and M.S. and Ph.D. in agricultural and resource economics from UC Davis.
Bruno is located at 223 Giannini Hall at UC Berkeley, and can be reached at ebruno@berkeley.edu.
Marshall-Wheeler named 4-H advisor
Nicole Marshall-Wheeler is now an area 4-H youth development advisor for Colusa, Sutter and Yuba counties as of June 1, 2018.
Marshall-Wheeler joined UCCE in 2016 as a 4-H youth development community education specialist in Butte County, providing oversight and leadership to the county's 4-H Youth Development Program, coordinating and managing nearly 200 volunteers and 500 youth. She also worked two summers (2014 and 2015) as a 4-H events assistant for UC ANR California 4-H State Office. From 2010 to 2016, she was an after school program director and leader at Chico Area Recreation and Park District, overseeing 200 youth and 10 staff, budget management, mentorship and resolving conflict with staff, youth and parents. As a California 4-H alumna, she was a Butte County 4-H All-Star and California 4-H State Ambassador.
Marshall-Wheeler is based in Colusa and can be reached at (530) 458-0570 and nmarshall@ucanr.edu.
Sanchez joins NOS
Miguel Sanchez joined ANR's News and Information Outreach in Spanish (NOS) as a broadcast communications specialist on July 1. He will be producing videos and writing news releases in English and Spanish to provide ANR's research-based information to Latino Californians.
Prior to joining NOS, Sanchez was the technical director for Entravision on KVER Univision Notivalle for six years in Palm Desert, helping to produce the evening newscast and upload news to the station's social media platforms. From 2003 to 2012, he was a video editor, photojournalist and technical director for newscasts in Santa Maria for KCOY-12 CBS and KKFX-11 FOX, then Entravision on KPMR Univision 38.
He earned an associate's degree in multimedia from Brooks College in Long Beach.
Sanchez is based at Rubideaux Hall in Riverside and can be reached at (951) 781-2124 and
miguel.sanchez@ucr.edu.
Koopman Rivers named UCCE Siskiyou County director
Carissa Koopman Rivers is the new director for UC Cooperative Extension in Siskiyou County. Koopman Rivers, a UCCE livestock and natural resources advisor, succeeds the late Steve Orloff. She is based in Yreka and can be reached at (530) 842-2711 and ckrivers@ucanr.edu.
JoLynn Miller, a 4-H youth development advisor, is serving as the interim director for UCCE Central Sierra while Scott Oneto is on a one-year sabbatical leave. Miller is based in Sonora and can be reached at (209) 533-5686, cell (209) 588-6757 and jlmiller@ucanr.edu.
At Hopland Research & Extension Center, superintendent John Bailey has been serving as interim director since Kim Rodrigues retired July 1. Bailey can be reached at (707) 744-1424 x112 and jtbailey@ucanr.edu.
CASI Center wins WEDA Award of Excellence
The Conservation Agriculture Systems Innovation (CASI) Center received this year's Award of Excellence from the Western Extension Directors Association (WEDA). Dan Munk, UCCE farm advisor in Fresno County and CASI member, delivered a presentation on CASI's goals and accomplishments on July 10 at the WEDA annual conference in Guam, then accepted the award on behalf of the group.
The WEDA Award of Excellence is presented annually to recognize Extension outreach education programming that has achieved outstanding accomplishments, results and impacts in addressing contemporary issues in one or more of the 13 Western states and Pacific Island U.S. Territories.
Composed of scientists and growers, the CASI Center develops and delivers information on the economic and environmental benefits of conservation agriculture systems and strives to increase adoption of locally appropriate systems in California. CASI was founded by and continues to be fueled by Jeff Mitchell, UCCE specialist.
Surveys conducted by the CASI Center indicate that no-tillage and strip-tillage practices were used on less than 0.5 percent of California's annual crop acreage in 2004 (http://casi.ucanr.edu/?blogstart=51& blogasset=14128), but today, an estimated 45 percent of dairy silage acreage in California now uses these production techniques. Major transformations toward reduced disturbance tillage systems have occurred in several other crops including tomatoes, sorghum and cotton.
The application for consideration for the WEDA recognition was submitted by Brenna Aegerter, Howard Ferris, UC Davis professor Amelie Gaudin, UC Merced professor Teamrat Ghezzehei, Kurt Hembree, William Horwath, Louise Jackson, Betsy Karle, Sarah Light, Mark Lundy, Dan Marcum, Milt McGiffen, Glenn McGourty, Michelle Leinfelder-Miles, Mitchell, Gene Miyao, Munk, Tapan Pathak, Samuel Sandoval-Solis, Gary Sposito, Scott Stoddard, Tom Turini, Amber Vinchesi, Jeannette Warnert and Daniele Zaccaria.
In their application, they wrote: “In concert with these reductions in tillage intensity and soil disturbance, estimates of PM10 or fugitive dust by the SJV Air Pollution Control District indicate about 9.2 tons per day lower emissions that are likely due to reductions in tillage intensity and soil disturbance in the eight-county San Joaquin Valley region that was out of compliance with US EPA air quality standards in the early 2000s. This effort was one of several agricultural management approaches that helped the San Joaquin Valley Air Basin achieve and maintain attainment of the PM10 air quality standard. Further evidence of our impacts includes our leadership and founding role in the creation of the California Farm Demonstration Network, as well as our organizing of a very dynamic group of organic farmers in California that is now working together on no-till organic food production systems. Our impact also extends to what we term ‘saturation visibility' of our work through an average of 65 public presentations annually and over 50,000 views of our CASI videos. CASI is now widely recognized as the ‘go to' organization in California for science- and experience-based information and leadership on conservation agriculture principles, practices and systems.”
WEDA represents Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, California, Colorado, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Micronesia, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Northern Mariana Islands, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.
Krkich named Executive Director of Development Services
I am pleased to announce that we will be joined by a new colleague, Lorna Krkich, who has accepted the position of UC ANR Executive Director of Development Services. She will begin the position on Dec. 29.
Lorna brings a wealth of experience in income development, relationship building and strategic planning for future growth and sustainability. She has deep roots in California and is an alumna of UC Santa Cruz.
Working with The Salvation Army, Lorna developed funding opportunities, and trained and managed major gift officers across four states. Her program, in which she achieved well over annual goals and initiated a lapsed-donor process, resulted in 60 percent growth across the territory. During her time with the American Lung Association, she worked with staff and volunteers to build community presence and implement new fundraising initiatives in mid-level and major giving, increasing corporate donations by 900 percent in three years.
We are very excited to have Lorna working with us to grow our UC ANR programs, rebuild our academic footprint and improve our research infrastructure. Please join me in congratulating and supporting Lorna in her new appointment.
Glenda Humiston
Vice President
Names in the News
Emma Fete joined UCCE as an area 4-H youth development advisor for San Joaquin and Stanislaus counties on Dec. 4, 2017.
For five years prior to joining UCCE, Fete taught and developed various courses including online and hybrid variants as an instructor for the School of Communication at The Ohio State University. As a part of an interdepartmental team, she evaluated general education requirements for undergraduates. Fete also served on the Diversity Committee, analyzing and recommending departmental policies, hiring and recruiting strategies, and implementing training programs to best represent and serve diverse populations. From 2010 to 2012, she worked as an assistant language teacher for the Hiroshima Board of Education in Japan, where she taught and developed coursework in three prefectural high schools and a special needs school. From 2007 to 2010, Fete worked at WOSU Public Media, where she helped manage WOSU radio programming, fundraising and development efforts, and the station's community activities. She also has experience in local and state government as well as child-focused local non-profits. Fete is a dedicated horsewoman who was an enthusiastic 4-Her in her youth and continues to coach 4-H participants today.
Fete earned a Ph.D. and M.A. in communication at The Ohio State University and a B.A. in broadcasting from Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio.
Fete is based in Stockton and can be reached at (209) 953-6118 and emfete@ucanr.edu.
Katherine “Kate” Wilkin joined UCCE on Sept. 18, 2017, as an area forestry/fire science and natural resources advisor in Sutter, Yuba, Butte and Nevada counties.
Prior to joining UCCE, Wilkin was a postdoctoral researcher at UC Berkeley where she developed techniques for the California Air Resources Board to better estimate wildfire emissions and collaborated on an ecosystem services project, including water and carbon, of restored fire regimes. From 2011 to 2016, she was a graduate student researcher at UC Berkeley, and at Cal Poly from 2007 to 2009. Wilkin also worked at Yosemite National Park, National Park Service's Inventory and Monitoring Program, California State Parks, and The Nature Conservancy on complex environmental issues including forest health, wetland restoration, fire management, visitor-use, and mine reclamation. She has been a member of the Northern California Prescribed Fire Council since 2011.
Wilkin completed a Ph.D. in environmental science, policy and management from UC Berkeley, an M.S. in biology from Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo, and a B.S. with a double major in biology and interdisciplinary studies (environmental science) from The College of William and Mary.
Wilkin is based in Yuba City and can be reached at (530) 822-7515 and kwilkin@ucanr.edu.
Oguns joins ANR as financial analyst
Tayo Oguns has joined Resource Planning and Management Office as a financial analyst.
He serves a critical role in strategic planning for future UC ANR staffing and personnel initiatives.
Prior to joining ANR, Oguns was a financial analyst at UC Berkeley.
He earned a bachelor's degree in finance at University of Massachusetts – Amherst and an MS in business analytics at Saint Mary's College of California.
Oguns is based at UCOP and can be reached at (510) 987-9028 and Tayo.Oguns@ucop.edu.
Three of the twelve awards announced for the upcoming International IPM Symposium will be given to UC Integrated Pest Management Program members.
Peter Goodell, UC IPM advisor emeritus, and Frank Zalom, professor in the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology and former Statewide IPM Program director, were selected for the Lifetime Achievement Award.
The European Grapevine Moth Team was selected for an IPM Team Award for achieving the eradication of European grapevine moth only six years after its discovery in 2009. Team members helped growers in infested counties to monitor the pest and apply control measures on a timely basis. The team's research and extension efforts helped growers avoid losses to the pest every year until it was finally eradicated in 2016.
Zalom, extension entomologist at UC Davis, also has an impressive record of furthering IPM. Zalom began in 1980 as the IPM Coordinator in California. Although he was responsible for advancing IPM in the state, Zalom championed the idea of promoting IPM on a regional and even national level. For 16 years, he co-chaired the American Public Land-grant University National IPM Committee, leading to the development of the Regional IPM Centers. Zalom believes that the science and implementation of IPM will reduce the impact of pests and pest management on agriculture and the environment.
One of Zalom's most successful projects was IPM implementation in almonds. Because of his research on navel armyworm, damage from the pest fell from 8.8 percent in 1978 to less than 1.5 percent in 1990, with a 40 percent reduction in insecticides.
The winners will receive their awards and recognition at the 9th International IPM Symposium March 19-22, 2018, in Baltimore, Md.
CAL FIRE honors Quinn-Davidson
Lenya Quinn-Davidson, UCCE fire advisor in Humboldt County, has been selected to receive a CAL FIRE Partnership Award.
“As one of the team members helping work towards the statewide goals for using prescribed fire, your work with CAL FIRE, local cooperators and other stakeholders has created invaluable partnerships and expanded the training opportunities that many agencies were previously unable to access,” Ken Pimlott, CAL FIRE director, wrote to Quinn-Davidson. “It is important to CAL FIRE to work collaboratively with our partners to achieve our common goals. In this instance, your cooperative approach produced results which exceeded the normal expectations. I thank you for your efforts to further the mission of CAL FIRE.”
Yana Valachovic, UCCE director and forest advisor in Humboldt and Del Norte counties, said, “This is an incredible achievement for someone early in their career and it is strong evidence of her leadership skills and all around excellence!”
Quinn-Davidson will receive the award on Jan. 8 at a ceremony at the California Highway Patrol Academy in Sacramento.
California Grown Rice Endowed Chair open for applications
Applications are being accepted through Jan. 31, 2018, from individuals who wish to be considered for the UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for California Grown Rice.
Through a funding partnership between the California Rice Research Board and the UC Presidential Endowment program, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources has established a $1 million UC Cooperative Extension Presidential Chair for California Grown Rice. The endowed chair will provide a UCCE scientist a dedicated source of funds to support scholarly activities focused on improvement of California rice production and quality. The chair will be awarded by UC ANR to a distinguished UC Cooperative Extension specialist or advisor currently working in the area of California-grown rice research.
Through a competitive selection process, a chair will be selected to hold a five-year term.
Application and selection details, including timeline and submission guidelines, are available at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/275834.pdf.
