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Welcome to the August issue of the Social Sciences E-News Upcoming Events
Social Sciences If you have a good idea for a feature story or would like to post an event to the School of Social Sciences website, please contact your department manager or Heather Wuebker, hwuebker@uci.edu. Pass it on Know anyone who might be interested in our newsletter? Email Heather Wuebker to subscribe. |
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1- El Salvador's congressmen tap local expertise of UCI faculty and SAPD officers On Tuesday, July 22, seven delegates from El Salvador's multipartisan congress met with professors from UC Irvine and police officers from Santa Ana's gang suppression unit in an effort to explore potential solutions to the country's growth in gang and drug related violence. While it is the smallest country in Central America, El Salvador has one of the highest per capita murder rates in the world with latest census data reporting the number at 64 per every 100,000 compared with the United States' rate of six per every 100,000. Read On... 2 - National voting trends on affirmative action bans topic of UC study 
As the November 2008 election draws near, several states may soon find themselves voting on legislation with arguably longer lasting effects than a four year Presidential term, says UC Irvine political science associate professor Louis DeSipio. With a recently awarded $50,000 grant, DeSipio, along with researchers from UC Berkeley, will be examining trends in voter supported state bans on affirmative action programs. For Californians, it was Proposition 209 back in 1996. With its passage, state-level affirmative action programs in higher education and public employment ceased to exist. Washington State's 1998 Initiative 200 and Michigan's Proposition 2 in 2006 yielded identical results. Read On... 3 - Study to shed light on pro bono practices of top U.S. law firms 
Large U.S. law firms commit an average of 3-5 percent of their time each year to pro bono work, representing causes from the death penalty and immigration to same-sex marriage and the teaching of evolution in public schools. Steven Boutcher, UC Irvine sociology graduate student, has received a $10,600 award from the National Science Foundation to study how much time each of the U.S.' top 200 law firms spend on pro bono work and the influence they have on social movements through the causes they choose to represent. Read On... 4 - Nuclear strategies and sanctions topic of new UC Irvine study Last weekend's meeting in Geneva between Iran's chief nuclear negotiator and other major world powers included the third-ranking State Department official, marking a potentially important shift in the United States' historically isolationist strategy toward Iran following its 1979 revolution. Diplomats from the United Kingdom, Germany, France, China, Russia and the United States gathered to discuss with the Iranian negotiator an incentive-laced package that, if accepted by Iran, could lead to a suspension of the country's uranium enrichment program. Etel Solingen, UC Irvine political science professor and author of Nuclear Logics, says much of the outcome of this very initial step depends upon whether the internal power dynamic in Iran is shifting toward those who favor increased trade, modernization of the oil and gas industry, foreign investment, and a "normal exchange with the rest of the world, particularly the U.S." Read On... 5 Chavez investigates media portrayal of immigrants in new book, The Latino Threat Why aren't Latinos learning English? Do they really want to take over the Southwestern United States? Political pundits have made their careers debating these questions, but UCI anthropology professor Leo Chavez provides answers and exposes myths in his latest book, The Latino Threat: Constructing Immigrants, Citizens and the Nation. Chavez recently spoke about immigration and the 2008 election, May Day rallies, and the surprising way Latino culture is changing American culture. Read On... Denise Sandoval, alumnus and Fulbright scholar, impacts economic development on a global scale 
Throughout her five years of international and economics undergraduate study at UC Irvine, Denise Sandoval welcomed every opportunity for educational travel that came her way, spending semesters studying in Mexico, Spain, Brazil and Washington, D.C. Now an alumnus of the university, her passion for the road has yet to waver. Read On... Upwardly mobile Latinas tap into "ethnic capital" to climb the corporate ladder According to a recent study by UC Irvine sociology graduate student Jody Agius Vallejo, ethnic professional associations play a major role in Latina business women's ability to succeed in the Orange County corporate culture. Findings are based on a three year study including more than 80 interviews with women who belong to several local Latina business associations. Komaie awarded Haynes Foundation Fellowship to study Iranian community Golnaz "Goldie" Komaie, a seventh year sociology graduate student, has received a $20,000 Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship from the Haynes Foundation in support of her research on second generation Iranian immigrants living in California. A second generation Iranian herself, Komaie studies how other sons and daughters of immigrants have incorporated into communities in Los Angeles and Orange County. Read On... The dedicated servers You may know them as your dedicated department assistants, facilities fanatics, mailroom manager and the guys you call when your computer crashes. For the past four weeks, however, these Social Sciences superheroes have traded in their keyboards and files, sacrificed their Monday lunch hours and endured countless floor burns and bruises to defend the Social Sciences' honor in the UCI summer staff volleyball league. They are team Dedicated Servers and their season ended this week. Sadly, it did so without a win but not without a lot of laughs and a lot of fun. Read On... Cohen is named founding faculty member of new UCI Law School Linda Cohen, economics professor and Social Sciences research and graduate studies associate dean, has been named a founding faculty member of the new UCI School of Law. An expert in government regulation and energy policy and innovation, Cohen has published extensively in journals such as the Georgetown Law Review and the Southern California Law Review. She has also served on committees and commissions for the state of California, the National Academy of Sciences, and the U.S. Department of Energy. Read On... Petracca receives award for his 21 years of service as honor society advisor Mark Petracca, political science department chair, has received a Chapter Advisor Recognition award from the national political science honor society, Pi Sigma Alpha. The annual award recognizes his "extraordinary dedication, commitment, and leadership" in his role as the UCI chapter advisor for the past 21 years. He is one of only five advisors out of the nation's 683 participating chapters to receive this year's honor which carries a $1,000 prize. A member of the UCI faculty since 1984, Petracca is a prolific writer and commentator who regularly publishes work in political journals and appears on television. Read On... More Headlines
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