National attention
Social sciences dean and cognitive scientist Barbara Dosher elected to National Academy of Sciences
For Barbara Dosher, dean of UC Irvine's School of Social Sciences, attention is something to be studied, not sought. Highly regarded for her research on the subject, the professor of cognitive sciences prefers to stay out of the spotlight - a nearly impossible feat recently. On May 3, it was announced that Dosher had been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, which many consider the highest honor in U.S. scientific research. "We are extremely proud of the scientific accomplishments of Professor Dosher," says Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Michael Gottfredson. "She is a model academician - passionate about her field of scholarship and committed to helping advance the careers of her colleagues and students." Dosher was one of only 72 new members and 18 foreign associates elected to the prestigious academy this year. She was UCI's only professor elected in 2011, and the School of Social Sciences' first woman.
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Study: California's economic climate is sunnier than previously thought
UCI economist David Neumark finds non-policy factors such as weather and geography play greater role in predicting states' economic growth than traditional business climate index measures
Location, location, location. That's what UCI economics professor David Neumark says is key to understanding how California's economy has managed to stay in line with or surpass the national growth average, despite the Golden State's less than favorable rankings in popular business climate indexes. In a study released last month by the Public Policy Institute of California, Neumark and co-authors found that non-policy factors such as weather, geography and industry mix provide a more accurate prediction of a state's economic growth than traditional business climate indexes which focus on productivity measures and tax policy.
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Adventures in anthropology
Bill Maurer, 2011 Lauds & Laurels award winner, on the allure and applications of anthropology in the 21st century
A Russian telecommunications minister, a fake business serving as a front for embezzlement operations, and offshore bank accounts in the British Virgin Islands. Sound like the plot of a Hollywood mystery thriller? Try an anthropological study by Bill Maurer, UCI anthropology professor. For the past 17 years, Maurer, who also directs the UCI Institute for Money, Technology & Financial Inclusion, has a become a major force in anthropology through his studies of offshore finance, alternative and Islamic banking, and the use of mobile phones for money transfer.
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Outstanding service
Social sciences undergraduate affairs director and alumnus Helen Morgan receives Lauds & Laurels honors for exemplary campus service
As director of social sciences undergraduate affairs, Helen Morgan's job is anything but a walk in the park. Nearly 40 percent of all undergrads leave UCI with a major from the social sciences, and it is Morgan who organizes, manages and leads a team of staff who help these students achieve academic success. Simply put, says social science dean, Barbara Dosher: "Helen Morgan is the epicenter of student services on the UCI campus." It may seem ironic, then, that Morgan's professional career at UCI began with numerous treks through the tree-lined trails of Aldrich Park. A sociology alumnus, Morgan '92 worked her way through school as a campus tour guide and later as an academic peer advisor and graduate student recruiter.
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Dalai Lama Scholar promotes religious tolerance
Armaan Rowther, public health science undergrad and Olive Tree Initiative student, plans a series of events on interfaith cooperation
A UC Irvine sophomore committed to interfaith dialogue and religious harmony has been awarded the 2011-12 XIV Dalai Lama Endowed Scholarship, established at UCI in 2004 to recognize students committed to ethical leadership, peace and positive global relations. Armaan Rowther will receive a $10,000 scholarship plus $2,500 to support a series of events intended to create a kinship of faiths among the UCI community and encourage coalition building between students and community members of varied faiths.
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Fostering their potential
UCI programs help foster youths - like social sciences alumni Kimberly Snodgrass and Cristian Martinez - succeed
It's called emancipation, but for youths in foster care, being released from the child welfare system at age 18 often feels more like abandonment. Without financial resources or emotional support, many struggle to survive. They often wind up homeless or in prison, according to the Orangewood Children's Foundation. In California, only 54 percent of foster youths graduate from high school - well below the 84 percent norm - and fewer than 10 percent of those go to college. Not even 2 percent earn a degree. At UCI, efforts to keep former foster youths from falling through the cracks include participation in Orangewood's Guardian Scholars Program, which helps students obtain financial aid, housing, jobs, academic counseling and tutoring. Since the program started in 2000, only two of the 40 Guardian Scholars who enrolled at UCI have failed to graduate. About half a dozen such students attend UCI annually. Social sciences alumni Cristian Martinez (pictured) and Kimberly Snodgrass are two such success stories.
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An outstanding month for Solinger
Political science professor earns Outstanding Title award from Choice, Outstanding Mentoring Award from UCI Emeriti Association
May was a busy month for political science professor Dorothy Solinger. Her book, States' Gains, Labor's Losses: China, France, and Mexico Choose Global Liaisons, was named a 2010 Outstanding Academic Title by Choice: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries. She was also selected as the UCI Emeriti Association's 2011 recipient of the Outstanding Mentoring Award, an honor which recognizes her mentoring efforts above and beyond her regular faculty responsibilities.
Read on for more on Solinger's Choice award...
Read on for more on Solinger's mentoring award...
Lee and Bean earn 2011 Duncan Award for The Diversity Paradox
ASA award recognizes book as most significant contribution to social demography from 2009-2011
UCI sociologists Jennifer Lee, professor, and Frank D. Bean, Chancellor's Professor, have been named recipients of the 2011 Otis Dudley Duncan Award for Outstanding Scholarship in Social Demography for their book, The Diversity Paradox. Awarded annually by the American Sociological Association's Section on Sociology of Population, the honor recognizes the best book published from 2009-2011 on social demography.
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Bolzendahl's Counted Out: Same-Sex Relations and Americans wins Goode Award
ASA award recognizes book as best book published on the family
Catherine Bolzendahl, sociology assistant professor, has been named the recipient of the 2011 William J. Goode Best Book Length Contribution to Family Sociology Award for Counted Out: Same-Sex Relations and Americans, published in 2010 by the Russell Sage Foundation. Awarded annually by the American Sociological Association's Section on Family, the honor recognizes Bolzendahl's book as the best published on the family in 2009 or 2010.
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Gilmore is UROP's Faculty Mentor of the Month
Honor recognizes the sociology lecturer for his more than 20 years of undergraduate research mentorship
Samuel Gilmore, sociology lecturer, has been named the UCI Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program's May 2011 Faculty Mentor of the Month. A lecturer in the sociology department for more than 20 years, Gilmore has mentored numerous undergrads who have gone on to elite graduate programs, law schools and business programs.
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Garcia and Faust receive UROP Chancellor's Excellence Awards
Awards recognize excellence in conducting and supporting undergraduate research
Vilma Garcia, Chicano/Latino studies and Spanish undergraduate, and Katherine Faust, sociology professor, are the School of Social Sciences recipients of the 2011 Chancellor's Awards for Excellence in Undergraduate Research. Presented at the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program's 15th annual symposium, the awards recognize Faust's efforts to foster research among undergraduates, and Garcia's excellence in undergraduate research. Faust was also selected by UROP's Faculty Advisory Board among all faculty award winners for this year to receive the Special Recognition Award which provides her funding for a new computer.
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SPOTLIGHT EVENT: Graduate Commencement
Saturday, June 4, 2011, 3:30 p.m. @ UCI Bren Events Center
Graduate commencement for Ph.D., Ed.D, and M.F.A. students will take place Saturday, June 4 at 3:30 p.m. in the UCI Bren Events Center. To learn more about the ceremonial details, read on.
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SPOTLIGHT EVENT: Social Sciences Commencement – Ceremony 1
Sunday, June 12, 2011, 1:00 p.m. @ UCI Bren Events Center
Undergraduate commencement for anthropology, Chicano/Latino studies, international studies, political science, social science and sociology majors will take place Sunday, June 12 at 1:00 p.m. in the UCI Bren Events Center. Danielle Wong, political science, will be the featured undergraduate speaker. To learn more about her path to UCI, campus activities and future plans as well as further details on the ceremony, read on.
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SPOTLIGHT EVENT: Social Sciences Commencement – Ceremony 2
Sunday, June 12, 2011, 4:30 p.m. @ UCI Bren Events Center
Undergraduate commencement for business economics, economics, psychology and quantitative economics majors will take place Sunday, June 12 at 4:30 p.m. in the UCI Bren Events Center. Jaclyn Wong, sociology, will be the featured undergraduate speaker. To learn more about her path to UCI, campus activities and future plans as well as further details on the ceremony, read on.
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