Berkeleyan

News Briefs

09 October 2008

New members sought for Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Committee

The Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Committee (CSAC) is recruiting new members to serve three-year terms beginning in January 2009. Membership applications will be accepted through Friday, Oct. 24.

Two brown-bag information sessions are scheduled this month, on Thursday, Oct. 9, and Tuesday, Oct. 14, from noon to 1 p.m. in 200 California Hall (the chancellor’s conference room). In addition, application-writing workshops will be held both days: from 4-5 p.m. on Oct. 9, and from 1-2 p.m. on Oct. 14. Organizers emphasize that staff are free to mix and match or attend whatever sessions fit their schedules, and add that if an interested staffer can’t attend any of the scheduled sessions, his or her application will not be negatively affected.

Interested staff can find more information on the CSAC website, and may also contact current CSAC chair Fabrizio Mejia (643-9924).

Volunteer as a campus ‘observer’

Faculty and staff in the PSS and MSP classifications (or their equivalent) are invited to participate in the Berkeley campus Observer Program. Volunteer observers serve as impartial witnesses at campus events that might involve confrontations between protesters and police, or where violations of laws or campus regulations might occur. The presence of observers helps calm such situations, and observers can provide eyewitness reports in the event that complaints are lodged or disciplinary hearings follow. Observer reports have sometimes played a crucial part in the deliberations of hearing committees.

Those wishing to volunteer may contact observer coordinator Susan ten Bosch Paull (642-5171). An observer-training session will take place on Friday, Oct. 10, from 1 to 3 p.m. in 127 Sproul.

Free Culture Conference Oct. 11 and 12

On Saturday, Oct. 11, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., a Free Culture Conference on the Berkeley campus will offer a range of talks, panel discussions, workshops, and presentations to “anyone interested in politics, tech policy, art, and culture.” Subjects to be addressed include remix culture, access to knowledge, and politics and transparency, among many others. On Sunday, Oct. 12, a second day of smaller-scale events will be held, with time blocks being held open as long as possible to assess the specific interests of conference-goers.

The conference, sponsored by Students for Free Culture and Free Culture Berkeley, will be held at International House. For information and to register online (where you will be invited to “pay what you want” to attend), visit conference.freeculture.org.

Memorial for Cal Band’s Bob Briggs is Oct. 18

A campus memorial to celebrate the life of Cal Band Director Emeritus Robert O. Briggs will be held Saturday, Oct. 18, at 2 p.m. in the Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union’s Pauley Ballroom.

Briggs, who died Sept. 17, was the third director of Berkeley’s student-run marching band and a valued mentor to thousands of students during his nearly 30 years of affiliation with the organization. Tributes to him are being posted on the Cal Band website.

Financial-planning workshops for UCRSP participants

Fidelity Retirement Services has been conducting workshops for employees with UC Retirement Saving Program accounts. A complete list of workshops is online. To reserve a space in a workshop, call (800) 642-7131 between 5 a.m. and 9 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Employees unable to attend a workshop in person can view self-paced workshops on the NetBenefits website anytime. Log on to netbenefits.com and click on the “Recorded Workshop” link on the right side of the home page, under “News.” From there you can choose a workshop keyed to your learning objective, be it workplace savings, retirement planning, or investment strategy.

Faculty and staff have three options for accessing Fidelity Retirement Services to obtain assistance or information about their accounts: accessing NetBenefits online; using the automated phone line, (866) 682-7787; or speaking to a Fidelity Retirement Services specialist directly (dial the same phone number, then press “0”).

For further information, contact Kim Martin (643-7634).

Funerary design exhibit ‘kicks off’ with Oct. 30 gala

On Oct. 30, the day before Halloween, a “ghoulish gala reception” to celebrate the opening of “Fatal Design,” an exhibit displaying funerary drawings from the Environmental Design Archives, will be held in 210 Wurster (the Volkmann Reading Room) from 7 to 9 p.m. Halloween costumes are optional; a charge of $25 to benefit the archives will be levied. Those planning to attend are asked to RSVP by Wednesday, Oct. 15, at 642-5124.

The exhibit, which opens on Oct. 31, will run until Jan. 16, 2009.

For the record . . .

In last week’s feature about the 1958 Cal Band, Arleigh Williams was mis-takenly identified as a former ASUC president; in fact, he was ASUC director of activities. The former is an elected student officer; the latter is a staff position.