October 2023 | Issue 42

A Message from the Vice Provost
Michael Rios is wearing glasses and a plaid suit. He looks directly into the camera while smiling outside in front of a plain wall.

As we embark upon the transformative season of fall, I feel excited and inspired by our second Community Engagement Summit, held October 12. The gathering was a unique opportunity for our community to come together, exchange ideas and collectively define the values and principles of community engagement that will shape UC Davis’s future. This strategic direction will not only amplify our collective impact but also ensure that our actions are guided by a shared purpose and commitment to fostering positive change alongside our diverse community partners.

 

The community engagement summits are just two of many significant steps the university has taken to champion, support and institutionalize community engagement efforts. When we consider the different facets of university community engagement — the academic integration of community engagement as part of our research, teaching and learning mission; as a health provider and employer focused on community health and wealth; and the types of institutional partnerships that are being created at the local, regional, and global level — we can see a robust ecosystem of community engagement at UC Davis.

 

Over the next 18 months, PSE plans to put in place the university’s first comprehensive community engagement assessment system to document the impact of community engagement on the institution, our faculty, staff, and students, and our communities. This framework will play a crucial role in achieving Carnegie Community Engagement Reclassification in 2025.

 

Guided by three working groups and a steering committee composed of faculty, staff and community members, the assessment effort will strengthen collaborations between units involved in community engagement, foster a stronger understanding of the impact of community engagement within the institution, and cultivate a strategic vision for enhancing our capacity to support future community engagement at UC Davis.




In community,


Michael Rios

Vice Provost, Public Scholarship and Engagement  
 

Updates and Announcements

Meet the Newest Faces at PSE
On the left is Amy Hart wearing a collared shirt smiling directly into the camera outside in front of bushes of flowers and trees. On the right is Gabriela Kovats Sanchez wearing large earrings and a colorful necklace while smiling widely.

Amy Hart, Ph.D. (left) and Gabriela Kovats Sanchez, Ph.D. (right)

PSE has expanded its team with two new members who bring deep expertise, knowledge, and passion for public scholarship: Amy Hart, Ph.D., and Gabriela Kovats Sanchez, Ph.D. 


As program manager for PSE, Amy will coordinate and administer programs that support public scholarship and community engaged projects initiated by faculty, staff and students. She will also coordinate university-wide assessment efforts to measure the collective impact of community engaged scholarship. Most recently, Amy worked as a public historian for California State Parks, based at Hearst Castle, where she developed museum exhibitions and managed historic preservation projects. She has also taught in the Department of History and the Department of Women’s, Gender & Queer Studies at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.


Gabriela joins us as a postdoctoral scholar focused on assessing and evaluating the internal and external impact of community engagement at UC Davis. Previously, she was the faculty scholar for the Native Resource Center and Center for Intercultural Relations at San Diego State University, where she directed the Elymash Yuuchaap Indigenous Leaders and Scholars Program and Multicultural Learning Community for first year and transfer students. She was also a postdoctoral research fellow with SDSU’s Research and Equity Scholarship Institute and taught Chicana/o Studies and American Indian Studies at SDSU and San Diego City College.
 

Public Engagement Champion

Citizen Science

Scientific research can feel impenetrable to many people. That’s why UC Davis researchers are leading several citizen and community science projects, which can help make research more meaningful and inclusive.
A woman stands on giant shoreline rocks looking out at the ocean and holding a clipboard

Spotlight: Your Public Scholarship Community
Scientist Tessa Hill in sweater and glasses with black background

Tessa Hill Named Rachel Carson Lecture Recipient


Congratulations to Associate Vice Provost Tessa Hill on being the recipient of the 2023 Rachel Carson Lecture by the American Geophysical Union. The lecture is presented annually by a scientist whose work in the field of ocean science is particularly relevant to current societal concerns.
Book cover of chairs side by side with the text “Scholars in COVID Times”

Scholars in COVID Times


Public Impact Research Initiative grant recipient Robert McKee Irwin, professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese, coauthored a book chapter titled “Community Engaged Migration Research” in which he reflects on the challenges faced in carrying out community-engaged research with vulnerable migrants during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two students looking out to the distance, smiling. One student wears a shirt with text “#CaliforniansForAll College Corps”

Sacramento Valley College Corps


We're excited to welcome a new group of College Corps scholars! More than 300 undergraduates from UC Davis, Sac State and Sacramento City College are building meaningful skills at 62 local organizations that focus on K-12 education, food insecurity, and climate action.
The cover of the book American Purgatory: Prison Imperialism and the Rise of Mass Incarceration authored by Benjamin Weber.

New Book Unearths Global History of American Prison System


Assistant Professor Benjamin Weber's latest book, “American Purgatory: Prison Imperialism and the Rise of Mass Incarceration,” explores the history of American incarceration through the lens of the people who resisted from within. 
 

In Other News







Events and Opportunities

Imaging America and IARSLCE Dissertation Dish: An Exploration of Two Community Advisory Boards within Community Engagement at Institutions of Higher Education


Event: October 23 | 12 p.m.–1 p.m.

Register to Attend

Science Policy Career Panel Hosted by Science Says


Event: October 24 | 12 p.m.–1 p.m.

Register by October 20

Ethical Space: Indigenous Engagement for Environmental Science Professionals


Event: November 14-15 | 10 a.m.–1 p.m.

Register to Attend

UC Davis Library Graduate Student Prize


Deadline: December 1

Submit an Application

Supporting the Public Good
 
Philanthropic support plays a vital role in advancing UC Davis public scholarship mission. We invite you to support our vision of discovery, learning and engagement for the public good. 
Make a Gift

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