News briefs

16 August 2001 |

Comment period extended on Stanley, Davis halls’ EIR
The campus has extended, through Aug. 30, the public comment period on a draft environmental impact report for new health sciences and technology research centers. This will provide maximum time for Berkeley city officials and members of the community to comment on the report, while allowing the university to meet planning and approval deadlines.

The extension of the comment period, which was to close Aug. 1, will provide a total of more than 70 days of public review.

The campus proposes to replace two outdated research buildings — Stanley Hall and old Davis Hall — with modern, seismically safe structures in the northeast area of the campus. The proposed new buildings will house interdisciplinary research in the health sciences, bioengineering and information technology.

The draft EIR identified construction noise and the loss of tennis courts and a skateboarding area as the significant, unavoidable environmental impacts associated with the new projects.

Copies of the draft EIR are available at the Physical & Environmental Planning Office, room 300, 1936 University Ave. Copies are also available for review at the downtown branch of the Berkeley Public Library, 2121 Allston Way.

Extension discounts for career staff
UC Berkeley Extension offers all UC career employees a 25 percent discount on course fees. Evening and weekend courses begin throughout the year and are taught around the Bay Area and online.

Extension courses can increase job skills, develop creative talents, or provide an outlet for fun.

All UC employees who work half-time or more and have at least one year of service are eligible for the discount. Visit http://hrweb.berkeley.edu/EDTCATLG/unexform.htm for the discount enrollment form. The extension course catalog is available online at http://www.unex.berkeley.edu or by calling 1-888-UC SMART, ext. 567.
Grant to help teach evolution via the Web
A $390,000 grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute will help staff at Berkeley’s Museum of Paleontology create a comprehensive Web site on evolution, complete with resources for those who teach evolution and fun activities for students learning evolutionary concepts.

The developers want it to be a nationwide resource for teachers and parents frustrated by anti-evolutionist arguments, such as claims that evolution is a “theory in crisis” that “scientists are abandoning.”

Nominees sought for annual Haas awards
To highlight the Berkeley tradition of public service, the campus is accepting nominations for the Elise and Walter A. Haas International Award and the Peter E. Haas Public Service Award.

The Haas International Award is open to Berkeley alumni who are natives, residents, and citizens of a nation outside the United States, and who have a distinguished record of service to their country. The Haas Public Service Award recognizes alumni who have made a significant public contribution to the betterment of society in the United States, particularly at the community level.

The deadline for nominations is Aug.20. Visit http://www.urel.berkeley.edu/haas/ for information.

Optometry school seeks study volunteers
For people with diabetes, small, barely detectable changes in the retina may predict the onset of vision and may allow early treatment, if a study beginning this summer at the School of Optometry is successful.

Preliminary tests have found a striking relationship between these small changes and existing eye damage. The school has launched a $1.6 million research project to study these changes in people with diabetes.

The school seeks volunteers who have the disease but little evidence yet of eye complications. Some 44 patients have enrolled; researchers would like to enroll 100 or more adults under the age of 65 with good vision.

To participate, contact Ying Han at 643-0507.

Management program deadline approaches
The University of California Management Skills Assessment Program, MSAP, is back from a one-year hiatus.

The residential program, which will be held at Asilomar Conference Center in Pacific Grove, Dec. 3-7, 2001, offers participants insights into their managerial competencies, skills and potential through small group work in simulated management scenarios. Participants are given objective feedback on skills that have been determined to be critical for successful management at UC. The program is intended to benefit those desiring to enter or expand their role in management, including entry-level to mid-level managers.

Visit the MSAP Web site at http://MSAP.ucdavis.edu for applications and information.

Applications are due Sept. 21. For questions, contact Ellie Schindelman at ebs@uclink or 643-0645.

Drama department changes its name
On July 1, the Department of Dramatic Art officially changed it name to the Department of Theater, Dance and Performance Studies.

The interdepartmental graduate group will become the Ph.D. in Performance Studies.

The change, department administrators said, reflects the department’s commitment to the practice of performance within a broad-based education in the liberal arts and humanities.