It is that time of the school year again where we take some time to look at our upcoming campus elections. Aside from the upcoming Graduate Students Association executive officer elections, this spring there are also several items up for new affirmation or re-affirmation. Please read the information below for more details. If you prefer the PDF for "download and go" reading later, I've also attached it below. Don't forget to make your voice heard during the upcoming elections!

Graduate Student Fee Initiatives and Reaffirmations - Spring 2013 Election

Two GSA fees are up for reaffirmation in spring 2013

1) Night and Weekend Parking (last reaffirmed in 2011, on a 2-year reaffirmation schedule)

The first re-affirmation on the ballot asks if graduate students wish to continue a $5.00 (includes return to financial aid of $0.42) per graduate student per quarter, (excluding summer) mandatory fee to fund annual Nights & Weekend parking passes for all graduate students. If reaffirmed, the fee will be collected fall 2013 through spring 2015 and be subject to reaffirmation in spring 2015. This sticker comes in handy for those late night reading, writing, or grading sessions.

2) Student Medical Emergency Relief Fund (last reaffirmed in 2009, on a 4-year reaffirmation cycle)

The second re-affirmation on the ballot asks if graduate students wish to continue an $0.89 per student per quarter, including summer, mandatory fee in order to provide funding for the Student Medical Emergency Relief Fund (SMERF), which will continue to fund grants for students who are not able to cover the costs of medical procedures. If reaffirmed, the fee will be collected fall 2013 through summer 2017 and be subject to reaffirmation in spring 2017. Some of the many services that the SMERF fund covers are dental and medical costs.

New proposals for affirmation

1) Health & Wellness Programs (H&W): H&W is seeking approval to include graduate students on a combined undergrad and grad initiative to fund H&W programs and services. 

Cost per student, per quarter: $7.53 (including summer), $5.65 is for Health and Wellness, $1.88 is for return to aid. Of the $5.65 for Health and Wellness, a 7 to 10 percent administrative assessment and a 1.6 to 3 percent UCOP assessment will be charged on all non-capital expenditures. 

Assessed to: Undergraduate and graduate students

Beginning: Fall 2013

Length of Collection: 4 years renewable; up for re-affirmation in 2017

The fee will provide funds to continue and expand Health and Wellness services. Health and Wellness will expand its selection of resources (such as condoms, healthy food, massages, and field trips) at no additional cost to students. The fee will also increase student involvement through internships, increased staff, and Health and Wellness education on topics such as sex and relationships, healthy eating, drugs, stress-reduction techniques, and wellness. The goal at Health and Wellness is to help students be physically and emotionally healthier and this fee will enable them to provide outreach and prevention efforts to reach more UCSB students. 

2) Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity (WGSE): WGSE is seeking GSA approval to include graduate students on a combined undergrad and grad initiative to increase their current student lock-in fee in order to continue to support and enhance their services. 

Cost per student/per quarter: $4.14 (including summer), $3.11 is for WGSE, $1.03 is for return to aid. Of the $3.11 for WGSE, a 7 to 10 percent administrative assessment and a 1.6 to 3 percent UCOP assessment will be charged on all non-capital expenditures. 

Assessed to: Undergraduate and graduate students

Beginning: Fall 2013

Length of Collection: 4 years renewable; up for re-affirmation in 2017.

The Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity support fee will help maintain staff and programs including Campus Advocacy Resources and Education (formerly the Rape Prevention Education Program), Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Resources, Women's Center Programming, and Non-Traditional Student Services. The support fee will maintain the public spaces within the Women’s Center, Resource Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity, and Non-Traditional Student Resource Center (e.g., libraries, art galleries, meeting rooms) through the addition of new technology, library acquisitions, art gallery resources, and replacement of aging equipment. It will also help to improve current WGSE programs and services such as 1) the Campus Advocacy Resources and Education; 2) help for individuals in crisis; 3) support for lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender/intersex/ally communities; 4) student-initiated activities and events; 5) student employment opportunities; 6) student internships; and 7) educational programming.

Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity currently collects $4.25 per undergraduate and graduate student per quarter (including summer).

The WGSE fee increase would be in addition to the $4.25 per student per quarter currently collected, and would bring the total to $8.39 per student per quarter. 

3) Recreation Facilities Enhancements: Recreation is seeking a 10-year fee to renovate Rob Gym, resurface Pauley Track, and re-turf one Storke Field play field. 

Cost per student/per quarter: $15.00 (including summer), $11.25 is for the projects, $3.75 is for return to aid. Of the $11.75 any non-capital expenditure will incur a 7 to 10 percent administrative assessment.

Assessed to: Undergraduate and graduate students

Beginning: Fall 2013

Length of Collection: 10 years (after 10 years the fee will convert to $2.00 per student per quarter, reaffirmed every 4 years, to cover utilities and maintenance)

The fee will support the repair, renovation, and restoration of aging campus facilities that provide hours of weekly opportunity for students to engage in myriad instructional, competitive and recreational classes and programs that enhance the quality of campus life. Specifically, the projects will be: 1) restoration of Robertson Gymnasium, 2) resurfacing of Pauley Track (with possible other enhancements funds permitting), and 3) the addition of all-weather turf to the western edge of Storke Field. The track and Storke field projects will include lighting to provide additional programming hours particularly during inclement weather and evenings. At the end of the ten-year collection period, a two dollar per student per quarter fee will remain (to be reaffirmed every subsequent 4 years) to cover utilities and maintenance costs. 

Each of the three projects will be scheduled in a pre-determined order and completed as funding is collected.  Should phase 1 & 2 expenses exceed budget, the scope of the final phase of the project may be reduced to align with available funds. (Below is a description of the allocation for budget per phase of construction.)

Allocation & Phasing

1. Rob Gym       2013-2014*        $500,000
2. Pauley Track  2014-2016*        $2,000,000
3. Storke Field   2016-2020*        $3,500,000

*Projects may be completed sooner pending campus funding

Recreational Sports currently collects:

• $5.25 per undergraduate per quarter (including summer) through an A.S. lock-in fee for intramurals,
• $12.10 per undergraduate per quarter (including summer) through an A.S. lock-in fee for recreational sports,
• $7.00 per undergraduate and graduate per quarter (including summer) through a campus lock-in fee for recreational sports

The Recreation Center currently collects:

• $24.68 per undergraduate and graduate per quarter (including summer) through a campus lock-in fee for RecCen 1 & aquatic center,
• $34.50 per undergraduate and graduate per quarter (including summer) through a campus lock-in fee for the RecCen 2,
• for a total of $83.53 per undergraduate per quarter and $66.18 per graduate to support recreation and associated facilities.

The Recreation Facilities Enhancement fee would be in addition to the $83.53 and $66.18 currently collected, and would bring the total collected by Recreation for facilities and programs to $98.53 per undergraduate per quarter and $81.18 per graduate per quarter.

Campus Elections Commission Reaffirmations

Additionally, for your information, the Campus Elections Commission (CEC) has two current fees up for reaffirmation which include graduate students. Per CEC Guidelines, the CEC coordinates finalizing the language for these campus-wide fees.

1. Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity: current fee of $4.25 per student per quarter including summer.
2. Counseling & Career Services: current fee of $5.85 per student per quarter including summer. 

Timeline for the Spring 2013 Election (subject to change)

• January Graduate Students Association (GSA) meeting – presentations from those seeking approval for their CEC initiatives to include grad students.
• February GSA meeting – GSA votes on whether to approve requests for inclusion of grad students on CEC initiatives (if GSA denies the request sponsors have 30 days to collect signatures and may still qualify for the ballot if they can collect the required number of signatures (15 percent of grad population)). 
• February – If GSA wishes to propose any new fee initiatives of their own, the GSA president should be in contact with the Campus Elections Compliance Officer, Suzanne Perkin.
• Beginning of April – GSA publishes an online Voter’s Guide with all GSA initiatives, reaffirmations, and candidates, as well as instructions for how to vote.
• April 22-25 – Election
• April 26 – Election results received, verified, and announced. Note: Some results take longer to receive (e.g. write-in data). 

Renuka Shenoy works at the KCSB radio station

Renuka Shenoy, a third year Ph.D. student in Electrical Engineering, took some time to talk with the GradPost about her research and how she spends her free time as a DJ for the India Show on KCSB and performer in several musical groups.

Research Topic

Pattern Recognition in Bio-image Informatics

How did you get started with the India Show on KCSB?

I heard that the India Show was looking for new programmers and jumped at the opportunity! I don't have any prior experience programming on the radio, but it is something I have always wanted to do, and the KCSB experience has been everything I hoped for.

How do you select the music for the show?

We usually play an hour each of classical and popular music. I try to play as much of a variety of old and new songs as possible, and also try to include seasonal music. That being said, I usually only play songs that I like.

What are some of your favorite songs or artists? Do you have any to recommend to someone new to Indian music?

I love old Hindi film music—stuff from the '50s and '60s especially. My favorite artists are Kishore Kumar, Hemant Kumar and Geeta Dutt—I would definitely recommend giving these artists a listen. Also, for anyone who likes instrumental or classical music, Pandit Shivkumar Sharma has some lovely pieces on the Santoor (an Indian string instrument).

What other things do you do, both on and off campus?

I am a part of three UCSB music groups—Ravaani (UCSB's South Asian a cappella group), San Clemente Voices (a mixed voice choir of UCSB grad students), and Agni (an Indian classical music and dance group on campus). That pretty much takes up all my free time!

 How do you balance your time between research and extracurricular activities?

Research work always comes first. None of my extra-curricular activities are too much of a time commitment—an hour or two a week per group at most. They serve as a means of relaxation and something to take my mind off the stress of work.

What are your long-term goals after UCSB?

I want to stay in the research community, perhaps teach. I'm still not a hundred percent sure.

What advice do you have for your fellow grad students?

Don't get caught in a rut of overworking yourself—take some time off to do the things you love!

Many UCSB doctoral alumni go on to establish interesting, well-paying careers in a wide range of fields beyond academia. If this of interest to you, you will be happy to learn of a new resource for UCSB students that demystifies non-academic careers, revealing many interesting professions that can utilize the skills you are developing in graduate school.

The Versatile PhD is a web-based resource that you can use anytime, from any computer, confidentially. There you will find:

• A thriving, supportive web-based community where you can participate in discussions, network with PhDs and ABDs outside the academy, or just listen and learn by osmosis

• Examples of successful resumes and cover letters that resulted in humanities and social science PhDs and ABDs getting their first post-academic positions

• Compelling first-person narratives written by successful humanities and social science Ph.D.s and ABDs who have gone on to non-academic careers, describing how their careers have developed after grad school and where they are today

• Detail-rich Panel Discussions in which Versatile PhDs working in a given non-academic field describe their jobs and answer questions from grad students like you. Past topics include Freelance Writing and Editing, Higher Education Consulting, Management Consulting, Federal Government and University Administration.

The Versatile PhD can be accessed from any computer and is confidential. None of your academic colleagues will know you are using the site.

Because you are a student at UCSB, you get access to the Premium Content Area where those high-quality written materials are stored. Log in with your UCSB NetID at www.graddiv.ucsb.edu/versatile-phd. This will take you to a secure site where you can establish your own login for the Versatile PhD.

The Versatile PhD is currently mainly for humanists and social scientists, but, a second forum was created this year for science, technology, engineering, and math students and panel discussions geared towards that population will be held there several times a year. As of July 1, 2013, the Premium Content will be as applicable to science disciplines as it now is to humanities and social science.

Dr. Paula Chambers, the founder of The Versatile PhD, will be on campus Feb. 20 to kick off this new service.

• Humanities, arts, social sciences, and education students can sign up for a lunch discussion here
• STEM students can sign up for an afternoon discussion at https://csep.cnsi.ucsb.edu/forms/PDS/Registration.php

As a 22-year-old Caltech undergrad applying to UCSB’s Physics Ph.D. program, Kohl Gill had a specific career destination in mind and a clear route to get there. In his Statement of Purpose, he wrote:

Dr. Kohl Gill“As I entered Caltech four years ago, my intention was to pursue a bachelor’s degree in Physics leading to a doctorate and eventually to a position in academia or industry. Though I keep these options in mind, my experience here at Caltech has opened my eyes to a more personally rewarding alternative – a career serving our country in shaping science policy. When I asked Jack Smith about students considering science policy, the former astronaut and senator replied: ‘Before going into politics, become an expert in something else.’ I realize I will need a Ph.D. in Physics to effectively pursue my goal. More than just a degree, it is crucial that I contribute to a body of thorough, respectable research in a relevant field and acquire the contemporary expertise so necessary for policy decisions.”

“This is not the typical Statement of Purpose to graduate school,” UCSB Physics Professor Mark Sherwin quipped to laughter from the audience as he introduced Gill for a Career Day Colloquium titled “Physics, Policy, and Phones” on Jan. 29 at Broida Hall. Kohl did go on to earn his Ph.D. from UCSB in 2005, and he did have that rewarding career in science policy in Washington, D.C. But as sometimes happens, one can decide to veer off the main career superhighway in pursuit of another passion. And that’s what Kohl S. Gill did when he founded LaborVoices, a Bay Area-based startup that aims to eliminate human trafficking and other labor abuses in India and elsewhere in the world using a simple device: a mobile phone.

Gill made the most of his 7 1/2 years in graduate school at UCSB. When not working in Dr. Sherwin’s quantum information science research group, he took Punjabi courses (his family’s home language), studied Judo, and did volunteer work for Santa Barbara’s foster care program.

Gill has always been passionate about two things: fighting corruption and advocating for transparency. So after earning his Ph.D. in 2005, he traveled to his parents’ native India, where he rented a place in a Delhi slum for $30 a month and worked there for a year as a transparency and governance fellow with the nonprofit Indicorps. In this role, he helped to enforce good governance as a volunteer paralegal advocate.  

UCSB Physics Ph.D. alum Dr. Kohl S. Gill addresses students in a Career Day Colloquium titled “Physics, Policy, and Phones” on Jan. 29 at Broida Hall. Photo credit: Patricia MarroquinBack in the States, Gill spent several years in Washington, D.C., as a Senior Policy Analyst for the U.S. Department of Energy and a labor diplomat in the U.S. State Department focusing on international labor rights and corporate social responsibility.  “The bulk of what I did at the Department of Energy involved the science of science policy,” said Gill, adding that this is an “emerging field that analyzes how science is being done.”  The role, he said, involves “turning the microscope onto scientists ourselves and seeing how we work, why we work and don’t work together, and how innovation actually happens.”

Weary of a 6-year-old long-distance relationship with his partner, 2003 UCSB Electrical and Computer Engineering Ph.D. alum Maura Raburn, Gill left D.C. and returned to California to reunite with her in the Silicon Valley city of Sunnyvale. It was there that encouragement from others and a strong desire to fight injustice led him to found LaborVoices in May 2010.

LaborVoices collects anonymous feedback from factory workers via their mobile phones and other mobile technology on such issues as wages, treatment, and worker safety. The feedback is then sent to the companies that do business with these factories as part of their supply chains.

“We help brands detect emerging risks and choose the best suppliers, help factories attract and keep the best workers, and help workers to help each other make better decisions, avoiding abusive situations,” Gill has said about LaborVoices.

"The right question isn’t 'What can I do?' but 'What should I do?' Answering the latter frees you up to do what you need to, until you can find the right next step. Under no circumstance should you let go of your academic integrity." –Dr. Kohl Gill's advice to students

At his colloquium, Gill summed up his career adventure – from UCSB Physics labs to Delhi slums to D.C.’s halls of power to Silicon Valley startup country – as a cautionary tale. “If you really encourage your students,” Gill joked, “they could be a danger not only to themselves but to the global economy.”

Before his talk, Gill took some time to answer some questions for the GradPost. Find out how UCSB prepared him for his career, his professional development advice for grad students, mentors who made a difference, and more. Read on. ...

University degrees

M.S., Physics, 2001, UCSB; Ph.D., Physics, 2005, UCSB
B.S., Physics, 1998, California Institute of Technology

Please give us a little background about yourself.

I was born and raised in rural Mississippi, the sixth of seven siblings. My parents emigrated from India in the ’70s. Our family watched our home state (Punjab, India) descend into a terrorist state of violence and corruption while I was a kid. I remember being horrified to hear that you couldn’t even trust the police, where my parents grew up. While not always “poor” – we were on public assistance, occasionally, free school lunches, etc. – we were firmly lower-middle class when I was growing up. My dad was a laborer at a scrap metal yard, and my mom has always been a nurse.

What led you to found LaborVoices?

I had planned to use my Ph.D. to do other work, namely science policy, since before grad school. It was even in my statement of purpose when I applied! After my degree, I wanted to devote a year to service, and attached myself to some anti-corruption work in India. I was essentially a volunteer paralegal there. I returned to D.C. into a series of two science policy fellowship stints, the first at DOE [Department of Energy] and the second in the human rights bureau of the State Department. While at State, I covered some tech issues, but mostly labor conditions in supply chains. That got me thinking about how vulnerable workers use their mobile phones, and how much corporations spend to protect their supply chains.

In what ways did UCSB prepare you for your current career?

UCSB gave me a few keys to my later work. First, it gave me a solid and demonstrable basis of analytical reasoning and experimental methods. You can’t survive in physics long without that. Second, it gave me the freedom for side pursuits, such as Judo, volunteering with the Santa Barbara County foster care system, and studying Punjabi (my family’s home language). And third, it gave me a network of supporters that helped launch me into my work in India and then D.C.

How did your Physics education help you in your career work?

My physics background most informed my science policy work, mostly at the DOE. There I worked on funding issues around energy efficiency and renewable energy, as well as innovation policy.

Who were your mentors or advisors while you were at UCSB?

Well, Dr. Mark Sherwin was an excellent mentor, advisor, and boss. He helped me get through with my sanity intact, and taught me a lot about how to be a good scientist, with real integrity. Brian Griffin and Steve Hoyt at the Santa Barbara Judo Club were excellent advisors, as was Dr. Gurinder Mann in the Religious Studies department.

What differences did you find between life in the university/academic world versus life in the business/corporate world?

Ha! Actually, the only experience I’ve had in the business world besides LaborVoices was flipping burgers at Shoney’s back in high school. The only comparisons between academia and the startup world I have are facile – rigorous truth and novelty mean less here, and practicality and scalability mean more.

What advice would you give to current grad students about their education?

It’s unlikely that you’ll stay in academia. Get used to that. But don’t be afraid to venture forth, since it’s also unlikely that you’ll stay in one job for very long anyway. As long as you’re continually finding and tackling problems that you actually care about, that mean something to you, you’ll do fine. And if you get stuck, ping your networks, including me. [Visit the LaborVoices website or email Gill.]

What advice would you give to grad students regarding professional development and future careers?

The right question isn’t “What can I do?” but “What should I do?” Answering the latter frees you up to do what you need to, until you can find the right next step. Books like Stephen Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” and David Allen’s “Getting Things Done” can help you along that path. Under no circumstance should you let go of your academic integrity.

Do you have any job search tips you’d like to share with our grad students? Anything you think will help a grad student stand out as a job seeker with potential employers?

A CV is not a résumé. For an explanation of that and other tips, I would strongly recommend the podcast series found at manager-tools.com. They’re both free and priceless.

Do you have any suggestions for the UCSB educational system (or universities in general) on how to better prepare grad students for careers?

One quick tip would be to support grad students in experimenting with career options. Internships and fellowships are very helpful, especially for folks like me who came straight to grad school out of college.

What do you consider to be your greatest accomplishment?

Trying. Again. Today.

What do you like to do for fun and/or relaxation?

Exercise, listen to audiobooks, plot world domination with friends.

For more information about LaborVoices, view this Vimeo interview with Kohl Gill.

Want to showcase your research or other big idea? Want to present to a broad campus audience? Want to win up to $2,500 for your research? Sign up for the Grad Slam!

Part of the Graduate Student Showcase and open to all graduate students, the Grad Slam is a campus-wide competition for the best three-minute talk. This is an opportunity for graduate students to tell the campus about their research or share their thoughts on ‘big ideas that matter’. Creative presentations are welcome but all talks must include a live oral presentation and one, two, or three PowerPoint slides.

All graduate students, undergraduates, faculty, and staff will be invited to attend Grad Slam events. Refreshments will be available and attendees will earn raffle tickets that enter them into a drawing during for an Apple iPad.

The Details

Format

• 3-minutes, 1 to 3 PowerPoint slides
• Academic and creative presentations welcome
• Up to 10 preliminary rounds

Criteria for judging

• Impact on an academic field or on society
• Clear and compelling presentation
• Geared for a general university audience

Preliminary rounds (April 12-18)

• Up to ten preliminary rounds with a maximum of fifteen participants each
• Criteria for judging: impact on an academic field or on our broader society; clear and compelling presentation; the extent to which the talk is geared towards a general university audience
• Prizes for top three presentations in each round: $50 gift card for the UCSB bookstore
• The top presentation in each preliminary round advances to the finals

Final Round (April 19, afternoon)

• Up to ten final contestants
• Distinguished judges
• Top prize: $2,500 research fund*
• Prize for two runners-up: $1,000 research fund*
• Followed by final Graduate Student Showcase reception

*To be eligible for the research fund prizes, graduate students must be registered in Spring 2013 and in good academic standing. Students must also be available to compete in the Grad Slam finals on Friday, April 19 from 3-5 p.m.

Resources

• Giving an Academic Talk by Jonathan Shewchuk, Associate Professor in Computer Science, University of California at Berkeley
• Giving Oral Presentations from English Communication for Scientists by Jean-luc Doumont (ed.), Nature (2010)
• Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds
• Making the Most of Your Three Minutes for 3MT: The Three Minute Thesis by Simon Clews, Director, Writing Centre, University of Melbourne
• 10 Hints for Improving Presentations for the Three Minute Thesis Competition by Danielle Fischer, Charles Darwin University

Inspiration

• TED Talks: Approximately 3-minute talks on “ideas worth spreading”
• PhD Comics Two-Minute Thesis: PhD Comics challenged graduate students to explain their work in two minutes – the best have been turned into videos!
• 3 Minute Thesis Competition Winners: Winning presentations from a multi-university thesis competition in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and the South Pacific

Ready? Submit your presentation proposal

Entries must be submitted by Friday, March 15. Selected participants will be notified by Friday, March 22.

The Graduate Students Association is looking for at least four graduate students willing to serve on the elections committee. Committee members will be required to become familiar with the GSA procedures for elections by reading the GSA by-laws.

If, in the rare chance that the GSA do not receive the total amount of nominees desired for the GSA Elections committee, they will hold the position open for an additional week. This is a wonderful way to become involved with the GSA with a great cause and not have to devote a lot of time throughout the year.

If you or someone you know are interested, please submit or ask them to submit their nominations to Ester Trujillo at gsavpcommunication@gmail.com by Tuesday, March 5. Nominations must include your full name, perm number and contact email. Nominees will be notified within 48 hours of nomination and ask if they accept their nomination.

For more information, please feel free to contact Mario Galicia at gsapresident.ucsb@gmail.com or Ester Trujillo at gsavpcommunication@gmail.com.

Following a national search, Dr. Carol Genetti has been named the new Dean of UCSB’s Graduate Division, effective March 1, it was announced Wednesday.

Dr. Genetti has served as Acting Dean of the Graduate Division for the past eight months. Before taking on this role, she was the Associate Dean of Humanities and Fine Arts in UCSB’s College of Letters and Science for seven years. She has been a member of the Linguistics faculty since 1990. The following is the announcement by UCSB Chancellor Henry T. Yang:

February 27, 2013

TO THE CAMPUS COMMUNITY

Dear Colleagues:

I am pleased to announce that Professor Carol Genetti has graciously agreed to serve as the next Dean of our Graduate Division, effective March 1, 2013.

Graduate Division Dean Dr. Carol Genetti. Credit: Patricia MarroquinThis appointment follows a national search and the recommendation of our search advisory committee, chaired by Vice Chancellor Michael Witherell. On behalf of our campus, I extend our sincere thanks to Dr. Witherell and to all of our search committee members for their devoted and diligent work. I also would like to thank our Executive Vice Chancellor, Academic Senate Chair, Deans, and other administrative and faculty colleagues who participated in the search and consultation process.

Dr. Genetti has done a superb job as the Acting Dean of our Graduate Division for the past eight months. Prior to taking on this role, she served for seven years as the Associate Dean of Humanities and Fine Arts in our College of Letters and Science. She has been a distinguished member of our Linguistics faculty since 1990, and has contributed to our campus community in numerous ways over the past two decades. She chaired our Department of Linguistics from 1999 to 2005, served as a graduate advisor for Linguistics, and has been an active member of various campus committees, including our National Research Council Advisory Committee and Graduate Outreach Advisory Committee.

Professor Genetti's primary research focuses on the description, historical development, and theoretical characterization of languages of the Himalayan region. She is a specialist in Tibeto-Burman languages and is particularly known for her work on the syntax of complex sentences. In 2009 she was awarded the inaugural Georg von der Gabelentz Prize from the international Association for Linguistic Typology for her monograph A Grammar of Dolakha Newar. Through her work on endangered languages of the Himalayas, Professor Genetti became involved in broader activities related to the documentation and conservation of the world's linguistic diversity, with recent research focused on models of language conservation, training programs, and ethics. She served as the founding Director of the Institute on Field Linguistics and Language Documentation, is founding Co-Director of the international Consortium for Training in Language Documentation and Conservation, and was chair of the Linguistic Society of America's Committee on Endangered Languages and their Preservation. Her work has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and Wenner-Gren, and she has received distinguished fellowships from the Research Centre for Linguistic Typology and James Cook University in Australia.

Carol is an experienced and dedicated leader for our Graduate Division, with a deep commitment to advancing the excellence and diversity of graduate education at UC Santa Barbara. Please join me in extending our warmest congratulations to Dean Genetti.

Sincerely,

Henry T. Yang
Chancellor

Indy Hurt, 2012 student commencement speakerAs the winter quarter winds down, it's time to start thinking about commencement. The 2013 Graduate Division commencement ceremony will be held Sunday, June 16, at 4 p.m., on the Faculty Club Green. Students who have completed or will complete a graduate degree or credential between the period of Fall quarter 2012 and Fall quarter 2013 are invited to participate. If you plan to participate in the ceremony, please register here. Tickets are not required for the ceremony, so all graduate students are invited to come celebrate their peers. More information about commencement, including event check-in, announcements, parking, photographs, and regalia is available at graddiv.ucsb.edu/commencement.

Student Speaker Competition

Would you like to represent your peers by speaking at the ceremony? Graduate Division is accepting nominations for a Graduate Student Commencement Speaker from faculty, staff, and students. Self-nominations are welcome and encouraged.

Eligibility: Graduate degree/credential received or expected between Fall 2012 and the end of Summer Session 2013; and at least one faculty letter of support

Required Materials: Application Form and Checklist; Statement of Interest; Biographical Sketch; CV; Faculty Letter(s) of Support

Deadline: April 5

More Information: graddiv.ucsb.edu/commencement

Life in graduate school is a matter of solving challenging problems, playing games, and drinking coffee from French Press for second-year Mathematics Master’s student Alex Troesch. Alex received a B.S. in Mathematics and Physics from the College of Creative Studies at UCSB in 2011. As an undergraduate student, Alex received multiple awards for academic excellence in Mathematics and Physics.

Alex took the time from his busy graduate schedule to respond to a few questions about his research in geometric group theory, his experience as an undergraduate teacher, and how his interests in math, physics, and technology intersect. Read on to learn more about Alex’s accomplishments.

Tell us a little about your research and how you came to choose the topic.

I am working in geometric group theory. In particular, I study how complicated symmetries can be broken down into simple reflections and how this structure can help us understand large collections of symmetries. I became involved in this topic because I have always been drawn towards aesthetically pleasing mathematics and the study of symmetry is a natural point of interest. Additionally, these problems are closely related to problems of algorithm design and computational complexity due to their extremely combinatorial nature. This requires the use of extensive computer software to help us understand the transformations involved. A large part of my thesis work has been developing software tools to help us perform calculations for particularly difficult examples of symmetries.

How do your interests in math, physics, technology, and the future intersect with your experiences as a researcher and teacher?

For my teaching, I always try to be a little bold in my discussions with students. I try to say things which may surprise them and make them want to look a little bit closer at the topic. I feel that technology plays an essential role in the way we communicate and to teach effectively we need to be aware of the lessons that this interplay can teach us, because communication is at the heart of any good teaching experience. For example, I have experimented with videoconferencing for office hours via Google+ in order to encourage students to participate and ask questions even if they can’t make it in person. The notions of ubiquitous and wearable computing can have potentially far-reaching changes for how we communicate, and these changes should not be ignored.

While the needs of modern technology have often informed directions for applied research in math and physics, more and more areas of pure math are becoming relevant to modern engineering; a recent example of this is topological data analysis. I like to think about the shape of things to come and what role my ideas can play in it, since anyone trained to think clearly and creatively has the potential to make a big difference in the world.

What has graduate student life been like for you?

After struggling with a very heavy course load for a few years, to be without the constant strain of lectures and grueling problem sets is a welcome change. It has been hard to balance my time between learning what I need to know for my thesis and learning what sparks my interest at that very moment. I have been prone to delve deep into the bowels of Wikipedia and the 2nd floor of the Davidson library. Sometimes a late night coffee can turn into an early morning snack. I can get a bit carried away.

What has been a source of motivation or drive for you in your graduate studies?

After I finish at UCSB, I would like to go on and get a Ph.D. in mathematics. So, in a direct way, my desire to continue my education provides me with motivation. Also, the moment when you can see a problem or idea in a new way provides me with a great sense of accomplishment. Sometimes these little victories can be few and far between, but they certainly keep me motivated to work and think about hard problems and difficult concepts.

Name an accomplishment you are most proud of and why.

I was allowed to design and teach a lower division seminar course on topology and modern geometry through the College of Creative Studies during my final undergraduate year and it was a great experience. It was a challenge to piece together a thread of interesting ideas and to get a chance to truly see what life is like from the other side of the classroom. I’m not sure what the students thought of the course, but I am definitely proud of the work and thought I put into it.

What do you do to relax? Any hobbies, collections, pastimes, favorite places to go, favorite things to do? Along these same lines, what makes you happy?

I have become an avid player of modern board games such as Dominion, 7 Wonders, and Ticket to Ride. I find it very easy to get wrapped up in a board game, which helps put me at ease and allows me to completely focus on the moment of playing a great game with friends. A nice cup of coffee from the French Press downtown is a sure way to put a smile on my face.

What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you?

I think people would be surprised to know that I think Pinkie Pie is the best pony.

What do you hope to be doing 5 or 10 years out of graduate school?

I am torn between pursuing a traditional research position at a university and pursuing a career in industry since I am still unsure of where my immediate goal, getting my Ph.D., will take me. All I know is that if in a few years' time I am surrounded by enthusiastic and creative problem solvers I will find a way to be happy with how everything turns out.

Do you have any advice for current grad students?

We are all in this business of making new knowledge together, and it’s a hard business where insight and motivation can come from unlikely places - so be ready.

Kirsten Tilleman, a second-year graduate student in Bren School of Environmental Science and Management and a UCSB basketball team member, recently made the headlines of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) website for her hard work, both on and off the basketball court. In an article titled "The Active Conservationist," Kirsten is described as a down-to-earth student athlete originally from Bozeman, Montana. We were lucky enough to have Kirsten accommodate us with a few short answers she provided for us in a recent interview. Read below for more on Kirsten and don't forget to keep sending us recommendations for future "Graduate Student in the Spotlight" columns.

Discipline/Emphasis:

Kirsten (second from right) and her master's group project team I’m at the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management working toward a Master’s in Environmental Science and Management (MESM) and specializing in water resource management and conservation planning.

Research Interests/Goals:

My master’s group project is on evaluating public access resource assessments and plans at Tejon Ranch, Calif. Our research and analysis supports our client’s — the Tejon Ranch Conservancy — public access management plan. Our project also provides the basis for several recommendations for planning, management, and expansion of public access on Tejon Ranch.

More broadly, I’m interested in the intersection between policy, watershed management, and land use, with some environmental education in there as well. Bren’s MESM is a professional degree that trains students in applied, interdisciplinary science and its use toward generating real-world solutions. I plan on using my MESM degree to meaningfully and positively effect change in both ecosystems and social systems.

What’s it like enduring the grind of being a graduate student and an athlete for you?

Kirsten was named the 2013 Big West Women's Tournament MVPI suppose it’s similar to having a full-time job while also being a full-time graduate student, except that your boss controls your schedule beyond the normal work hours and workdays. And they can make you run. It’s a constant challenge to balance the two aspects of my life, but I am fortunate that both my graduate program and coaching staff support my desire to do both. Sometimes it means setting aside “fun” things to get everything accomplished, but I trust it will be worth it in the long run.

Put simply, you know all those Tumblr pages about life as a grad student with accompanying humorous GIFs (that are usually right on the mark)? Well, there are Tumblr pages for life as a student athlete along those same lines. Combine them and you have life as a graduate student athlete!

What’s been a source for motivation and / or drive for you?

I think gratitude underlies a large part of what I do and why. I feel blessed for the opportunities I have and the people and places that fill my days. It is thus both an honor and responsibility to give everything the best I can and continually work toward improving.

Name the accomplishment you are most proud of, and why.

This is a tough question. Choosing one accomplishment, I’d have to say I’m most proud of how I responded to the adverse environment of my first two years playing basketball in college. My teammates and I experienced great injustice from the coaching leadership, but the team took a stand. Personally, I responded by graduating Oregon State in three years total and making it to Bren for my master’s degree and last two years of collegiate athletics eligibility. The experience taught me important lessons about myself, how to stand up against mistreatment of people, and how to find fulfillment elsewhere when unexpectedly, plans change.

What makes you, you?Kirsten at work for Project WET at Pilgrim School

The outdoors was my first classroom.

Where did you grow up?

I’m a proud born-and-raised Montanan. Specifically, I grew up in Bozeman, Montana, exploring the mountains, valleys, and forests characteristic of my home.

What’s a guilty pleasure of yours?

Nail polish. I love the endless color possibilities!

What’s playing in your iPod right now?

This is going to sound silly, but I actually don’t use an iPod — I either play vinyls on my record player or stream on my computer. That being said, I’m a big fan of Brandi Carlile, Bon Iver, Of Monsters and Men, The Lumineers, The Cave Singers, The Decemberisits, Florence + the Machine, Band of Horses, Broken Bells, and so much more … basically I’m an indie music gal with a particular affinity for country/folk, new age/pop, and alternative rock.

Any advice or final thoughts to current or future graduate students?

If you want to do something and are willing to make it a priority, the time to do so will appear and work itself out. So take advantage of all the opportunities being a grad student offers because, chances are, you won’t have access to many of them after graduation. Oh, and never underestimate the power of good writing and grammar.

Congratulations to Haddy Kreie, a first year doctoral student in Theater Studies, who has been awarded the 2013 New Scholar's Prize from the International Federation for Theatre Research (IFTR).

IFTR New Scholar's Prize is awarded to the top three essays submitted based on originality, coherence, and rigor. The award includes conference entry, travel to Barcelona, and accommodations for the duration of the conference, as well as consideration for publication in Theatre Research International.

Haddy's winning essay was titled "Jean Luc Raharimanana's The Prophet and the President: Subversive images of Women and Death in the Theatre of Madagascar," a revision of a chapter from her master's thesis.

Drawing on cultural interrogation of rituals surrounding ancestor worship the essay performs an allegorical analysis of Jean Luc Raharimanana’s The Prophet and the President, a play from Madagascar that confronts the hybrid religions and governments of the post/colonial moment. She explores processes of hybrid destruction as necessary for subverting colonial and indigenous structures of power that have historically relegated women to positions characterized by subservience, division, and unworthiness, carving out a new, reconstructive position for women in forging an independent national subjectivity.

Haddy became acquainted with the work of Jean Luc Raharimanana as a result of her two-and-a-half year service in the Peace Corps in Madagascar. She received her Master's degree from Florida State University in 2012 before arriving at UCSB to pursue her doctorate.

Once again, graduate programs at UC Santa Barbara shine, with two of them ranking in the top 10 nationwide, according to U.S. News & World Report magazine’s annual list for 2014 just released.

UCSB’s Materials program was ranked No. 1 among public institutions in the United States. On the overall list that includes private universities, Materials took the No. 2 spot, sharing it with Stanford University. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a private research university, is No. 1 on the overall list.

Chemical Engineering claimed the No. 9 spot on the overall list, and No. 5 among public universities. UCSB’s College of Engineering is listed at No. 20, moving up one place from its 2013 ranking.

"The new rankings are an apt reflection of the extraordinary quality of our campus,” new Graduate Division Dean Carol Genetti said in a UCSB Office of Public Affairs and Communications press release. “Our graduate programs are at the heart of our academic mission and a significant driving force behind the innovative research for which this university is renowned."

UCSB's Gevirtz Graduate School of Education surged 23 spots from 2013, taking the No. 40 spot overall and No. 29 among public universities.

"This significant jump in the rankings is a wonderful recognition for the Gevirtz Graduate School of Education," Dr. Gale Morrison, the graduate school's acting dean, said in the UCSB release. "Under [Dean] Jane Conoley's leadership, the faculty has continued the tradition of excellence in research, service to the wider education community, and quality preparation of professionals in education, teacher education, and counseling, clinical, and school psychology."

All fields and programs aren’t ranked every year, and U.S. News did not issue new rankings this year for graduate programs in the humanities, social sciences, and biological sciences, including chemistry, earth sciences, computer science, and physics. For more information, read the Office of Public Affairs and Communications news release.

Having heard about the quasi-mythical Brengrass through the grapevine here at the GradPost, we thought it might be a good idea to find out the truth – call it cold, hard fact-digging … or a spotlight on an informal grad student organization, your call.

A little online sleuthing took me to the Brengrass Facebook page, where I found out that not only does Brengrass exist, but the group also has an upcoming show!  Mark your calendars, because they are playing at Old Town Tavern in Old Town Goleta on Thursday (March 14) at 8 p.m.

Intrigued by the band and inspired by their upcoming concert date, I messaged the Facebook administrator and ended up getting in touch with a couple of Brengrass members,  Jon Montgomery (second-year Master of Environmental Science and Management student at Bren School, Guitar and Mandolin) and Adam Kreger (first-year Environmental Science and Management student at Bren School, Vocals, Piano, and Guitar).

Jon and Adam had the kindness to tell me a little bit about the makeup and activity of the group, which I thought I would share with you.

GradPost: How and when was Brengrass formed?

John: "Though I’m not sure on the exact history, Brengrass was formed by Bren students several years back as a way for the students, passionate about environmental issues and making music, to come together and share both those passions.  Brengrass has continued on since its conception and gone through a continuous rotation of lineups as students come and leave the Bren School.”  

GP: Do you have a lot of member turnover?

J: “The Brengrass lineup is continually changing and rotating. Even within a single year we can have a variety of different lineups; it all depends on people’s interest and availability throughout the year.  Usually each year the lineup remains relatively stable and the big turnover occurs as second-year MESM students graduate and a new class joins the Bren School. However, alumni and others in the Bren community are always welcome to join. This frequent turnover is actually really exciting; it brings a fresh new sound to Brengrass each year, so every time you see Brengrass perform it could be completely different.”

GP: Where do you think Brengrass fits in with your academic life and career? Is this related? An escape? A creative outlet? A release?

Adam: “For me Brengrass is a way to get together with great people, have fun, and contribute something creative to the community.”

J: “I think it’s a great escape as well. It's nice to take a step back from the graduate school work and play music with friends, even it’s only for a few hours each week.” 

GP: How often – and where – do you play these days?

J: “Our shows vary by year and time of year, but we’ve been fortunate to have been part of some really great events the past year and we’re looking forward to our spring schedule as well. In all honesty, all of us love getting a chance to play music for our friends and family, so we jump on any opportunity that comes our way, whether that be a Bren School function [see the GradPost article on Bren School's 2012 Commencement, where Brengrass performed], an afternoon at a local winery, or a weekend throwdown at one of our favorite local bars. Typically, we try to schedule at least a few gigs each quarter to keep us on our feet.”

  Brengrass performs at Bren School's Commencement ceremony in June 2012. Credit: Patricia Marroquin

GP: Can you say what defines Brengrass, what the group’s identity is centered around?

J: “Simply put, Brengrass is about having a good time and sharing music with each other and the whole community.  It also provides a creative outlet for the students that may not be fulfilled in our academic studies.”

GP: What are some of the challenges facing Brengrass, what makes it difficult?

A: “Sometimes it gets hard getting organized with such a large group and varying levels of commitment. At the same time, it’s great to have a stress-free outlet for creative expression and so much interest, talent, and enthusiasm to draw from.”

J: “We try to make Brengrass a stress-free atmosphere; graduate school provides enough of that.  Often the members have differing tastes in music, but almost always we are able to find common ground. Who doesn’t love The Beatles?”

GP: What do you want other grad students to know about the group?

J: “First off, Brengrass is a welcoming, open group and we like to include everyone and anyone who has an interest in being involved, regardless of musical abilities, so if you would like to be involved just talk to one of us at our next show. Secondly, finding an outlet for creative expression outside of our studies can be really helpful in all aspects of life and I highly encourage all students to find an outlet to help direct some of that passion and excess creativity. Lastly, if you’re looking for a lively musical group to brighten up your next local event, consider Brengrass!”

So, to recap, Brengrass is a group of grad students (and alumni and friends) who come together as a community through music in order to relax and to relieve some of the pressure of graduate student life. The band is open to those outside of the Bren School, with varying degrees of talent, so if you’re interested come out to the show this Thursday and talk to the band afterward. I’m sure you’ll find some common ground (hint: try The Beatles). See you Thursday, at 8 p.m., at Old Town Tavern.

Want to showcase your research or other big idea? Want to present to a broad campus audience? Want to win up to $2,500 for your research? Sign up for the Grad Slam!

Part of the Graduate Student Showcase and open to all graduate students, the Grad Slam is a campus-wide competition for the best three-minute talk. This is an opportunity for graduate students to tell the campus about their research or share their thoughts on ‘big ideas that matter’. Creative presentations are welcome but all talks must include a live oral presentation and one, two, or three PowerPoint slides.

The Details

Format

• 3-minutes, 1 to 3 PowerPoint slides
• Academic and creative presentations welcome
• Up to 10 preliminary rounds

Criteria for judging

• Impact on an academic field or on society
• Clear and compelling presentation
• Geared for a general university audience

Preliminary rounds (April 12-18)

• Up to ten preliminary rounds with a maximum of fifteen participants each
• Criteria for judging: impact on an academic field or on our broader society; clear and compelling presentation; the extent to which the talk is geared towards a general university audience
• Prizes for top three presentations in each round: $50 gift card for the UCSB bookstore
• The top presentation in each preliminary round advances to the finals

Final Round (April 19, afternoon)

• Up to ten final contestants
• Distinguished judges
• Top prize: $2,500 research fund*
• Prize for two runners-up: $1,000 research fund*
• Followed by final Graduate Student Showcase reception

Resources

• Giving an Academic Talk by Jonathan Shewchuk, Associate Professor in Computer Science, University of California at Berkeley
• Giving Oral Presentations from English Communication for Scientists by Jean-luc Doumont (ed.), Nature (2010)
• Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds
• Making the Most of Your Three Minutes for 3MT: The Three Minute Thesis by Simon Clews, Director, Writing Centre, University of Melbourne
• 10 Hints for Improving Presentations for the Three Minute Thesis Competition by Danielle Fischer, Charles Darwin University

Inspiration

• TED Talks: Approximately 3-minute talks on “ideas worth spreading”
• PhD Comics Two-Minute Thesis: PhD Comics challenged graduate students to explain their work in two minutes – the best have been turned into videos!
• 3 Minute Thesis Competition Winners: Winning presentations from a multi-university thesis competition in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and the South Pacific

Ready? Submit your presentation proposal

Entries must be submitted by Friday, March 15 at 4 p.m. Selected participants will be notified by Friday, March 22.

*To be eligible for the research fund prizes, graduate students must be registered in Spring 2013 and in good academic standing. Students must also be available to compete in the Grad Slam finals on Friday, April 19 from 3-5 p.m. Students may use the funds to purchase research supplies or pay for research or conference travel. Students must submit a proposal to Graduate Division for how they will spend the funds with approval from their faculty advisor. Funds will be paid out as a stipend. The student’s faculty advisor is responsible for confirming the proposed activity does take place with expenses consistent with the award proposal.

The Graduate Division is pleased to announce that 1992 UCSB Dramatic Art master’s alum Jason Loewith, Artistic Director of Olney Theatre Center in Washington, D.C., has been named the keynote speaker for the 2013 Graduate Division Commencement on June 16.

Jason Loewith, 1992 UCSB master's alum and Artistic Director of Olney Theatre Center, will give the keynote address at Graduate Division's Commencement ceremony on June 16.Loewith has worked in such theater roles as producer, director, playwright, and dramaturg in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, and now in the nation’s capital.

“I'm honored and humbled to address such a diverse and dynamic community at the Graduate Division Commencement,” Loewith said. “My time at UCSB was utterly transformative; I acquired the tools I've needed for my work, which aims to provoke emotional and intellectual transcendence through the arts. But that's what we aim for within any discipline, right? I hope to bring that message to the class of 2013.”

As a playwright, Loewith has been honored with Lucille Lortel, Outer Critics Circle, and Jeff Awards for Best New Musical for “Adding Machine: A Musical,” which he co-wrote with composer Joshua Schmidt. He produced the world premiere at Chicago’s Next Theatre Company in 2007, where he served as Artistic Director from 2002 to 2008. That production went on to a six-month run Off-Broadway in 2008, winning four OBIE Awards for direction, design, and performance. Loewith directed a dozen regional and world premieres at Next, where his programming twice received the After Dark Award for Outstanding Season (2003-04 and 2005-06). Work that he directed or produced there also won multiple Jeff, After Dark, and Black Theatre Alliance Awards and received critical accolades from Chicago’s major media outlets. Loewith increased Next's budget from $168,000 to $700,000, retiring $100,000 of inherited debt and quadrupling the number of members on the Board of Directors along the way. He created and implemented two strategic plans for Next Theatre, which led to triple-digit subscription and contributed income growth.

Since moving to Washington in 2009, Loewith has directed new plays for Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre, D.C.’s Studio Theatre, and Baltimore’s Everyman and CENTERSTAGE, where he also served as Associate Producer for Special Programs.  During that time, Loewith served as Executive Director of the National New Play Network, the country’s alliance of theaters that champions the development, production, and continued life of new plays. With NNPN he supervised dozens of Rolling World Premieres across the country by writers including Luis Alfaro, Steven Dietz, Quiara Hudes, and Theresa Rebeck.  In his four years at the helm, NNPN added new programs and expanded old ones, garnering major new funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the Harold and Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust.

“Jason Loewith is an excellent example of the distinguished contributions being made by UCSB graduate student alumni throughout the nation and the world,” said Graduate Division Dean Dr. Carol Genetti. “His graduate education at UCSB significantly enabled the tremendous impact that he has had in the world of contemporary arts. His story is inspirational and I am greatly looking forward to his commencement address.”

Professor Risa Brainin, Chair and Director of Performance in UCSB’s Department of Theater and Dance, said: “We are thrilled to have Jason Loewith, a graduate of our M.A. program, as a commencement speaker. Mr. Loewith has had a wonderfully successful career, first as the Artistic Director of the Next Theatre in Chicago, then as the Executive Director of the National New Play Network, and now as the Artistic Director of the Olney Theatre Center.  We are proud of his many outstanding achievements!”

Earlier in his career, Loewith served for two years as Artistic Administrator for Chicago’s Court Theatre; five years as General Manager (and frequent dramaturg) at Off-Broadway’s Classic Stage Company; worked in the literary departments of the Mark Taper Forum and the Public; and mounted an astonishing 50 productions in three years as Production Manager at the Odyssey Theatre in Los Angeles.

His work has been supported multiple times with NEA grants for Artistic Excellence, as well as the Rockefeller/MAP Fund and MacArthur’s International Connections Fund.  Loewith was a Theatre Communications Group (TCG) New Generations mentorship grantee in the first year of the program.

In addition to his 1992 Master of Arts degree in Dramatic Art/Directing from UCSB, he earned a Bachelor of Arts, with Honors, in English/American Literature from Brown University in 1990.

His book, “The Director’s Voice, Volume 2,” in which Loewith engages a cross-section of diverse and dynamic stage directors in conversation about today’s American theater, was published by TCG in 2012.

Upon assuming the role of Artistic Director for the 75-year-old Olney Theatre Center in February of this year, Loewith told the Washington Post: “I have always been drawn to a challenge, and hopefully not just a crazy challenge but one that’s going to end up being rewarding for the theater, the patrons.” The Post article also quoted a colleague of Loewith’s, who said of him: “He is both a right-brain and left-brain kind of guy — an incredible artist as well as a very smart administrator.”

Loewith said he’s honored and delighted by the invitation to speak at Commencement. “It's going to be fantastic to return to UCSB, and I intend to spend a lot of time at Freebirds, where I ate my very first burrito (sadly for my waistline, the first of many).”

In a 2011 talk on the state of contemporary theater, Loewith explained his method for determining if his show is a success. “I sit in the back row, and I know the show is successful when the audience is breathing as one.” The 2013 Graduate Division Commencement audience is likely to be “breathing as one” when Loewith takes the stage and addresses UCSB graduate students in June.

The 2013 Graduate Division Commencement will be held Sunday, June 16, 2013, at 4 p.m. on the Faculty Club Green. Grad students, registration is now open for 2013 Commencement; the deadline to register for the ceremony is May 3. For more information and to register, visit Graduate Division's Commencement page. 

I recently had the good fortune to sit down for a chat with Carlos Jimenez and John Vanderhoef, the current and former coordinating editors of Media Fields, respectively, to discuss what the journal is up to and how interested graduate students can get involved.

 For those of you unaware of it, Media Fields is a peer reviewed online journal that was started by graduate students in the Film and Media Studies department at UCSB. The journal was born out of the Media Fields Research Collective, which started at UCSB in 2007. According to the Media Fields website, the collective was started in order to explore "representations of space in media, and the spatial and environmental characteristics of media forms and practices." Now largely synonymous, the collective and the journal have grown and blossomed into an interdisciplinary, intercampus organization. It organized conferences in 2007, 2009, and 2011, and has one planned for this Spring (2013). Titled “Access/Trespass,” this Spring’s conference will be held April 4 and 5 in the McCune Conference Room (Humanities and Social Sciences Building room 2060). This year’s keynote will be Professor Ricardo Dominguez from UCSD’s Department of Visual Arts. For more information, go to the Media Fields website conference page.

Impressively, the journal, now in its fifth issue, is maintained through the volunteer work of graduate students. According to Carlos and John, that volunteer nature poses one of the big challenges for maintaining Media Fields; getting pro bono time commitments from busy graduate students is never an easy task. Furthermore, the temporary nature of graduate school, and the precariousness of grad student life make continuity and the passing on of knowledge a challenge for the journal. On the plus side, though, the people who are involved are there because they are interested and they care and, as John emphasized to me, Media Fields is always looking for more collective members, so there is room for you to join! There are even opportunities available for those with experience in web programming and design.

The journal offers a unique opportunity for those involved, it creates a special kind of professional community that is difficult to find in the graduate level. Carlos explained the rewards of working at the journal to me, saying that it is a community that is “there for learning, editing, writing, and collaborative work that is so rarely available at the graduate level, especially in the humanities.”

And, to top it all off, the journal puts out some [expletive deleted] good material! Don’t take my word for it, though, check out issues 1 through 5 online now, and be sure to apply to their upcoming issue on Media Spaces of Gender and Sexuality (CFP attached!).

From left, Jewel Snavely, Rebecca Dorsey, Dane Johnson, Matthew O'Carroll, Briana Seapy, and Katie Cole, the Bren students behind the campus Water Action Plan. Credit: Mo Lovegreen

Until now, a master plan to reduce water consumption and waste had been a parched area on University of California campuses. But six graduate students from Bren School of Environmental Science and Management are making a splash with their recently approved Water Action Plan that is the first of its kind in the UC system and one of the most detailed plans for a university in the nation.

Two of the Bren students, Matthew O’Carroll and Katie Cole, proposed the project a year ago in an effort to address a mandate by the UC Office of the President that all 10 UC campuses create water conservation plans by 2014. They were joined in the master’s project shortly thereafter by fellow Bren students Rebecca Dorsey, Dane Johnson, Briana Seapy, and Jewel Snavely.

The team's "water tour" took the grad students inside UCSB's central water pumping station, one of its cooling towers, and its wastewater collection facility. Credit: Dane JohnsonThe Water Action Plan Team members first plunged into the project last summer when they went on a “water tour” throughout campus and collected data from numerous sites, including UCSB's central water pumping station, one of its cooling towers, and its wastewater collection facility.

Based on their findings, and taking into account estimated water rate increases and campus growth, the team made projections through 2028. The final document offers recommendations for immediate and future water savings; and includes outreach and education components.

"This is a living document," Katie said in an Office of Public Affairs and Communications press release. "We want it to be something the campus continues to come back to, and update, as technology advances and circumstances change. We see it as a roadmap. Some things here may not be feasible now, but we've laid out the conditions for which they would be feasible. We don't want this to collect dust. We want it to stay relevant."

“The Bren students have done a fantastic job developing this plan, which will serve as a template for other UC campuses to develop Water Action Plans of their own," Ron Cortez, associate vice chancellor for administrative services and co-chair of the Chancellor's Sustainability Committee, said in the press release. "This speaks to the progressive nature of UCSB, not only in its ability to surpass California's 20 percent water-use reduction mandate nine years in advance, but also in our ability to assist others as they strategize for future reductions, conservation, and education of their campus communities. UCSB has shown great leadership with this plan, and we are excited about the finished product."

For more information about the Bren grad students’ Water Action Plan, read the Office of Public Affairs and Communications press release.

In case you haven't noticed, the Graduate Division recently launched its revamped website, and it looks great!

A smoother layout, more images, and a flashier contemporary design highlight the aesthetic changes of the website, while a more intuitive dividing of resources and links makes the site more readily navigable. New sections and features have been added. For example, a new Career and Professional Development page has subsections on such topics as Developing Writing Skills, Exploring Career Options, How to Be an Effective Teacher, and Developing Leadership Skills. The site also has pages with News and Student Profiles. And the Financial Support section has information and lists of all UCSB funding and UC funding opportunities.

The first thing to catch your eye will be the homepage banner – with that smooth, shifting headline photo.

Of course, most grad students head over to the Graduate Division website for practical, administrative reasons. Worry not, the Academic Services page is easier than ever to use, and the forms and materials are super-neatly organized.

See the sweet makeover for yourself and don't forget to thank Grad Div.

The UCSB team gathers at the White House. From left: James Choe, Harry Bergmann, Alex Kovalick, Jacob McConnell, Melanie Jones, Justin Lichter, Assistant Secretary of Energy David Danielson, Martin Harrison, Jason Dale, Michael Georgescu, and Ben White. Credit: DOE courtesy image

An interdisciplinary UCSB team of undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral students were praised for their innovation, winning one of the top national prizes this month in the 2013 Better Building Case Competition at the White House.

Better Building Case is an annual U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) contest that aims to get college students searching for creative solutions for energy efficiency.

The 10-member UCSB team won the “Most Innovative” award in the Energy Efficient Buildings Hub portion of the competition. The students examined strategies for the Hub to assist Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, in completing a renovation that produces significant energy savings in a publicly owned, multi-tenant office building.

The UCSB group was among 14 universities – including Yale, MIT, Cornell, Dartmouth, and Tufts – vying in the competition.

In an Office of Public Affairs and Communications news release, Jordan Sager, LEED program manager for UCSB's Facilities Management department, said this was UC Santa Barbara’s first year participating in the program. "Our team was one of only two West Coast schools in the competition, and was very diverse in terms of fields of study, with members representing five departments on campus. Winning in the ‘Most Innovative’ category is an acknowledgment of both the analytical power and the creativity fostered by this type of interdisciplinary collaboration."

Sager and Katie Maynard, sustainability coordinator for the Department of Geography, assembled the winning UCSB team: Bren School graduate students Ben White, Harry Bergmann, Justin Lichter, and James Choe; mathematics doctoral candidate Martin Harrison; Michael Georgescu, doctoral candidate in mechanical engineering; art history undergraduate students Melanie Jones and Jacob McConnell; and environmental studies undergrads Alex Kovalick and Jason Dale.

The university teams had one month to prepare their proposals. On March 8, they convened at the White House and presented their plans to a panel of expert judges, which included Assistant Secretary of Energy David Danielson.

“This competition provides the next generation of engineers, entrepreneurs and policymakers with skills and experience to start careers in clean energy and generates creative solutions to real-world problems to be used as models by businesses and other organizations across the marketplace,” the DOE says on its Better Buildings Web page. “Through the Better Buildings Case Competition, the DOE seeks creative and innovative solutions for energy efficiency that could be implemented by the commercial industry, thereby serving as ‘models for success.’”

Bren grad student Justin Lichter, a member of the winning UCSB team, is a long-distance hiker and backpacker who has written the book, “Trail Tested: A Thru-Hiker’s Insights Into Hiking and Backpacking.” One of the team members, Bren School’s Justin Lichter (MESM, 2013), spoke with the GradPost about his participation in the competition, what the award means to him, his thoughts on sustainability, and more.

“As a group member for UCSB, we all had similar roles,” Justin explained. “Since the timeline was so short and we only had three to four weeks to prepare our solutions, we all initially tried to gather as much background information on the case and options. From there, we brainstormed and suggested solutions, which ended tying together into a multifaceted approach for our submission. Since we were all coming from different disciplines, one of my main roles was to research the financing aspect and possibilities for the project.”

For Justin, the contest wasn’t primarily about winning but about making a contribution. “We went into the project trying to create an innovative and practical solution for the stakeholders,” he said. “We all would have been happy having accomplished that, had we not won. For the judges to acknowledge our solutions, it just validates the amount of time and energy that we put into the project and that our multi-disciplinary approach has real world application. It has been great to be recognized by the DOE!”

He described what it was like to compete at the White House. “It was a tremendous experience to be able to present our solutions at the White House and go to Washington, D.C., in this role. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”

Justin shared his thoughts on sustainability. “I think there are a lot of improvements that we can make towards being more sustainable and there always will be,” he said. “We can accomplish many of these without affecting our daily lives and with positive economic returns.” 

For more information about the 2013 Better Building Case Competition, visit the DOE Web page and read the UCSB news release.