April 2023 Division Message: Spring Quarter Welcome, Celebrating Student Centeredness, and more

Student Affairs updates, info, events and shoutouts

Spring Quarter Welcome, Celebrating
Student Centeredness, and more

Dear Student Affairs Colleagues and Friends,

Welcome to the first day of Spring Quarter!

We’ll be welcoming prospective first-year Tritons this coming Saturday, and again in May for Triton Transfer Days. My thanks in advance to the departments and programs that will be on campus this weekend to warmly welcome our newly admitted students and their loved ones. I look forward to joining you.

In this month’s message, you’ll find updates and celebrations as well as an important reminder regarding the expectation that each of us and our team members – including our critically important student paraprofessionals – complete the UC Mandatory Training requirements. If you have questions about these essential trainings or have difficulty accessing them, please email vcsa@ucsd.edu. We’ll get you connected to colleagues who are leading this important effort.

This week is also GPSA Student Appreciation Week! Please consider sharing a “shout out” on behalf of our Triton graduate and professional students.

Finally, I welcome your assistance in uplifting our recognition of acts of student centeredness at UC San Diego. You’ll find below an invitation to celebrate our colleagues for their student-centered efforts on a daily basis. It doesn’t take more than a few minutes to make someone’s day and this quarter, in particular, is filled with student-centered endeavors. So, let’s celebrate our colleagues for actions and advocacy that improve the Triton experience and put students at the center.

Recognizing Acts of Student Centeredness

You may have seen some folks donning cute little Student Centered pins around campus over the last couple quarters, or picked up one of the WEAR/SHARE postcards at our last Student Affairs All-Staff meeting. Well, we have more of these pins on hand, and would like to get them to colleagues across UC San Diego who make a difference for students!

Celebrate a colleague today!

In this spirit, I encourage you to nominate a colleague for their student-centered efforts at StudentCentered.ucsd.edu – we’ll make sure to send both of you a pin to wear, and one to share.

2022-2023 Impact Report submissions

And while you’re actively pondering what to include in your student-centeredness recognition, it’s never too early to start thinking about your unit’s, department’s, or personal submissions to the 2022-2023 Student Affairs Impact Report, which will be due this June. AEOD will be providing more information in our May division message.

Mandatory UC Learning Center Trainings

Be sure to complete your assigned UC trainings, which are now included as part of our annual performance evaluations. In addition to systemwide requirements, this review will also include additional assigned trainings – such as the Clery Act Training for Campus Security Authorities.

Based on individual requirements, you’ll receive automated assignment emails and reminders from the UC Learning Center with information about required courses and relevant due dates for training. If you supervise student employees, please ensure that they have also completed their mandatory trainings.

If you’d like to check your status on compliance courses, please login to UCLearning.ucsd.edu.

Update on Scaling Paid Undergraduate Research (SPUR)

As I announced last month, the Division of Student Affairs – in collaboration with the Offices of the Vice Chancellor for Research Affairs and the Executive Vice Chancellor – has partnered with The Design Lab in order to explore ways to scale paid undergraduate research (SPUR) opportunities.

On March 21 – despite the rain and the fact that it was finals week – students, faculty and staff came together for the formal launch of the SPUR initiative, and an introduction to the process of Design Thinking.

Take a look at what we learned in the video below:

You’re Invited: April 4 SPUR Workshop

If you missed out on this exciting launch, there’s still an opportunity to participate in generating new ideas to expand paid undergraduate research opportunities at tomorrow's April 4 Workshop in the Design and Innovation building. If April 4 doesn’t work for you, let us know and we will attempt to coordinate an additional time with The Design Lab.

April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Each year, April is designated as National Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM). The initial goal of SAAM was to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual violence, but it has since expanded to focus on community education and violence prevention. SAAM has been recognized at UC San Diego since 2007 and serves as an opportunity for all Tritons to get involved and learn more about our role in creating an anti-violent community.

Tritons Take Action

CARE at the Sexual Assault Resource Center (CARE at SARC) orchestrates campus-wide activities for SAAM, including development of the annual theme. This year’s theme, Tritons Take Action, empowers us all to find tangible, daily ways to reduce harm in our communities and create healing spaces for the survivors in our lives. Please visit saam.ucsd.edu for the full SAAM calendar, detailed event descriptions, and registration information.

GPSA Student Appreciation Week kicks off today

Since 1993, the first week in April each year has been marked as national Graduate and Professional Student Appreciation Week. At UC San Diego, it is an opportunity for our university to celebrate the important contributions and impact of our more-than 7,000 graduate and professional students on campus.

From April 3-7, GPSA is hosting events, giveaways, and social outings. For a schedule of events, visit the GPSA Week website.

Training Sessions: Supporting Students in Distress

This spring, Case Management Services will facilitate two in-person training sessions for “Creating a Culture of Care: Supporting Students in Distress” – to be held on April 13 and May 11, 2023.

These free, interactive trainings are designed to assist staff in recognizing and supporting students in distress – defined as: a student whose academic progress or functioning in the university environment is adversely affected due to a number of indicators that are impacting their well-being and/or the well-being of others.

To complete the training, individuals only need to attend one of the scheduled dates. To register for one of these sessions, visit this link on UC Learning (login required).

Congrats, Shannon!

Shannon Milligan, Director of Student Affairs Assessment, Evaluation, and Organizational Development, was recently named to the San Diego LGBT Community Center’s Young Professionals Council (YPC) for 2023.

The YPC aims to advance The Center’s twin goals of promoting LGBTQ health/wellness and human rights, and fosters a culture of diversity, service, leadership, advocacy, and camaraderie among LGBTQ and allied San Diegans.

The YPC Academy was created in 2012 to develop and empower the next generation of young LGBTQ people and their allies. The academy expands the ranks of young people in the LGBTQ justice movement by enhancing their skill-set, broadening their network, and activating them to grow. During the six-session academy, participants hear from elected officials, social justice and community leaders, and other local experts who help participants expand their leadership, communications, fundraising, and movement-building capabilities. Approximately 20 participants are selected each year to participate in the program.

Congrats, Berenice!

Please join us in congratulating Berenice Jau on having been recently promoted to Associate Director for OASIS. In this role, Berenice will be responsible for providing leadership and management of the TRiO Student Support Services Program (SSSP), Hope Scholars, and Underground Scholars.

Berenice has been serving as the Interim Assistant Director since last summer, and in this capacity has been instrumental in providing stable leadership in on-going support and services to our students. Additionally, she was critical in securing our spending proposals for the new state funding allocated to Hope and Triton Underground Scholars.

Berenice joined OASIS in 2010 and has dedicated her career to advocating and improving higher education access and success for low-income, first-generation students of diverse, under-represented, and historically marginalized backgrounds and communities. A first-generation, low-income Latina college graduate from San Diego herself, Berenice is passionate about the future of higher education and ensuring it is an accessible, inclusive, and holistic space for students from all communities to learn, develop, and grow.

Congrats, Andra!

Andra Jacques, Manager of Global Partnerships and Programs in Global Initiatives, was recently selected as a grantee for the 2023 Fulbright International Education Administrators Award in Japan.

The International Education Administrators (IEA) Award is a prestigious, fully-funded award that presents higher education officials with the opportunity to engage in an intensive two-week seminar abroad – offering guided exposure to Japan’s higher education system, society, and culture.

During her time in Japan, Andra will visit colleges and universities in the region, meet higher education personnel, and connect with government, private and public sector agencies in June 2023. This is Andra's second Fulbright IEA Award; she received the award for South Korea in 2017.

Enhancing the Black Student Experience Symposium - April 21-27, 2023

The annual Enhancing the Black Student Experience Symposium (EBSE) aims to increase awareness of the Black student experience at UC San Diego by fostering intentional and sustained action to enhance this experience and promote pro-Blackness at UC San Diego.

This year’s symposium will consist of daily sessions and workshops from April 25-27 (Week 4 of Spring Quarter 2023), as well as a kick-off event on April 21, 2023. Each day will focus on topics our students have indicated are most important to their holistic success at UC San Diego.

Staff Appreciation Week - May 1-5, 2023

As a modest “thank you” for your diligence, resilience, and unwavering commitment to student centeredness throughout the year, the office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs is pleased to invite you to our second annual Spring Staff Appreciation Week from Monday, May 1 through Friday, May 5, 2023 – full of opportunities to gather on campus, enjoy some treats, and connect and engage with your teammates and fellow Student Affairs colleagues.

Student Affairs Spring All-Staff Meeting
The semi-annual Student Affairs All-Staff meeting will take place during Staff Appreciation Week, on Tuesday, May 2, 2023.

More details about all Staff Appreciation Week activities are forthcoming. Stay tuned!

Transfer Student Triton Days - May 3-4 (virtual); May 8, 2023 (in-person)

Triton Days provide admitted UC San Diego students with an opportunity to celebrate their accomplishments and connect with fellow Tritons. For many students and their families, Triton Days will be their first chance to explore our dynamic campus in-person!

Let me know if you would like to take a walk on campus, grab a cup of coffee together, or hop on a Zoom to connect – just send me an email at vcsa@ucsd.edu. Until I see you next, please take good care.

Be Well,