4 - Your UCI, Summer '09 Issue

yourucis u m m e r ‘ 0 9 a l u m n i m a g a z i n e

w w w . a l u m n i . u c i . e d u

Men’s Volleyball claims second NCAA championship in three yearsBest in the U.S.

AGAINAGAIN

page 2 | summer ‘09 your uci www.alumni.uci.edu | page 3

GlAd GrAdsUCI students celebrate their new alumni status after the School of Humanities commencement ceremony on Saturday, June 14. UCI graduated more than 7,700 students in 11 ceremonies during June.

Publisher Jorge E. AnconaEditor Michelle WilliamsAdministrative Intern Writer Diana ThaiContributing writers Mark Aydelotte, Marc Ballon, Kathy Bold, Allison Dolan, Fumi Kimura, Erin Knapp, Bob Olson, Bill Ross, Blake Stone, Stacey Shackleford and Heather WuebkerGraphic design Intern Katrina Dikitanan Your UCI is published quarterly for members of the UCI Alumni Association and friends of the University of California, Irvine. You can reach the association by phone: 949-UCI-ALUM (824-2586) or toll free 888-824-2466; by fax: 949-824-7383 or by e-mail: [email protected]. Cover photo: UCI senior players hoist their 2009 NCAA trophy. Photo courtesy of UCI Athletics.

UCI ALUMNI ASSOCIATION STAFFJorge E. Ancona Executive DirectorAllison Dolan Associate Executive DirectorMichelle Williams Associate Executive DirectorKristie Kee Director of Programs and ChaptersHelen Little Director of Finance and AdministrationMichael Reza Director of Membership and Marketing

Jeff Minhas ‘04 Programs CoordinatorBlake Stone ‘05 Alumni Relations Coordinator

8 UCI WINs sErIEs WITH lONG BEACHAnteaters grab second “Black & Blue” series trophy

10 UCI TO HONOr FOUr “Celebration of Stars” announced

16 rEPEAT!UCI Men’s Volleyball claims second NCAA title

20 rEMEMBErING rOBErT sPrAUGE 92-year-old philanthropist leaves his mark on campus

26 AlUMNA GOEs TO WAsHINGTON Laura Peralta ’04 one of 100 selected to intern at the White House

31 FArEWEll COMMENTArY: UCIAA President Jenny Doh ’91 looks back on her tenure

4 PUBlIsHEr’s lETTEr 5 UCI NEWs 8 ATHlETICs

26 ClAss NOTEs28 UCIAA MEMBErsHIP30 UCI CAlENdAr

y uruciSummer 2009 Issue www.alumni.uci.edu


Photo by Cindy Love, courtesy of UCI Student Affairs

letter from the publisherUCI Alumni AssociationBOARD OF DIRECTORS

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

President Salvador Sarmiento ’73 Immediate Past PresidentJenny Doh ’91

Secretary/HistorianCathy Stites ’92

VP AdvocacyEd Raskin ’02

VP DevelopmentAnne Rosse, M.A. ’90

VP MembershipKent Yamaguchi ’83, ‘84

VP ProgramsNeil Sahota ’97, ’00, M.B.A. ’03

VP ScholarshipJohanna Wilson ’98

VP Volunteer RelationsRameen Talesh ’90

DIRECTORS-AT-LARGE

Michael Adams ’04

Libby Hope ’91

Rebecca Kanter ’00

Christine R. Lee ’90

Dennis Nguyen ’94

Serafina Raskin ’02

Rita Santangelo ’86

CHAPTER REPRESENTATIVES

ICS ChapterFarshad Farhand ’94

Santa Ana Alumni ChapterCharles Dobson ’70, MS ’79

EX-OFFICIO

Chancellor’s DesignateTom Mitchell, Vice Chancellor

UCIAA Executive DirectorJorge E. Ancona, Assistant Vice Chancellor

ASUCI RepresentativeMegan Braun

AGS RepresentativeCarrie Carmody

Student Alumni AssociationKendra Hansen


Summer is not, despite the common misconception, a quiet time here at the alumni association. The staff and I are catch-ing a quick breath after a very busy spring quarter in which UCI welcomed more than 7,700 students to the alumni family after they participated in one of 11 different UCI Commencement ceremonies. Yes, eleven. UCI continues its long-held tradition of having smaller ceremonies so that each graduate’s name can be read as he or she makes their way across the stage.

Many members of our Board of Directors and committees volunteered their time to serve as Mace Marshals during these ceremonies, a nine-year tradition in which UCIAA leads each processional, and figuratively, leads our graduates from students to alumni.

With the 2008-09 academic year just barely behind us, UCIAA is hard at work in planning for the 2009-10 year.

To kick off our new academic year, UCIAA weclomes its 22nd president, Salvador Sarmiento ’73, to our Board of Directors. I invite you to ‘meet’ Sal on page 12. With this change, Jenny Doh ’91 will be serving as our Immediate Past President for the next year. Under her leadership these last two years, UCIAA has been able to reach out to even more Anteaters than ever before. I would like to thank her for her pas-sionate support of UCI and the association. Her farewell column can be found on page 31.

In September, UCIAA will be hosting a reunion for the Class of 1969. Preliminary details can be found on page 14 with additional details to be forthcoming in the coming weeks. I encourage you to watch our Web site — and your mailboxes — for all the details.

Another date to mark on your calendars is in October when UCI will honor four outstanding campus friends at its annual Medal event. Among the four recipients is alumnus and biology professor Anthony James ’73, Ph.D. ’79 whose work is helping improve health around the globe. I invite you to learn more about this year’s Medal-ists on page 11.

That’s only a brief sampling of activities going on here. We are hard at work planning events and programs that will allow you to re-connect with Anteater friends, and hopefully, find your way back on campus. I do hope you will join us this year.

Best from Irvine,

Jorge E. Ancona Assistant Vice Chancellor, Alumni Relations Executive Director, UCI Alumni Association

THE W

IrE:new

s from the U

CI comm

unity

UC Irvine’s Program in Nursing Science, which trains the nurses of tomorrow, received accreditation for its bachelor’s program from the Commission on Col-legiate Nursing Education, or CCNE.

The commission awarded the program the maximum five-year accreditation and noted no compliance or deficiency concerns, a reflection of the strength of the Program in Nursing Science.

Well on its way to becoming a national

leader in nursing education, the pro-gram graduated its first class on June 14, 2009, with 36 students earning degrees. The program, which will help alleviate the acute nursing shortage in Orange County by training new nurses and future nursing professors, currently has 164 undergraduate stu-dents. A master’s degree program will start in the fall of 2009.

For more information, visit http://www.cohs.uci.edu/nursing/

Nursing O.C. back to health

scientist tapped to create large-scale brain

Neural computing power is about to increase exponentially in the research lab of cognitive neuroscientist Jeffrey Krichmar. The new UCI assistant professor is part of a research team headed by HRL Labo-ratories in Malibu that was recently awarded a multi-million dol-lar, multi-year grant to fund development of an electronic brain with functional and cognitive capabilities similar to the

brain of a small mammal.

The project is one of three being funded by the Defense Ad-vanced Research Project Agency’s Systems of Neuromorphic Adaptive Plastic Scalable Electron-ics program, or SyNAPSE. The goal of the SyNAPSE program is to bridge biology and electronics and establish a new para-digm for creating more intelligent machines that can interact with, react to, and actually learn from their environments.

The HRL team will begin with a model developed at the Neurosciences Institute in San Diego that mathematically represents how synapses and neurons in the brain work together to per-form cognitive functions. Using this algorithm, the researchers will develop nanotechnology-based hardware and software that will result in a large-scale electronic brain capable of performing functions such as visual perception, planning, de-cision-making and navi-

gation. Once completed, the electronic compo-nents of the artificial brain will number one hundred million neurons and one trillion synapses, equivalent to the brain of a small mammal.

UCI Medical Center now treating critical stroke-neurovascular patients

Recently, Orange County’s Health Care Agency designated UC Irvine Medical Center in Orange a Stroke-Neu-rology Receiving Center. It joins five other such sites offering high-level neurovascular care to which paramedics and ambulance drivers take stroke cases.

“Studies show that im-mediate treatment in the early stages of a stroke can significantly improve outcomes for patients,” says Dr. Steven C. Cramer, director of UC Irvine’s Stroke & Cerebrovascular Center. “The key is to have a system in place to quickly recognize stroke symptoms, prop-erly triage patients and then deliver them to a hospital that is prepared to rapidly assess their condition and begin treatment.”

Not all hospitals have the resources or personnel to effectively treat a stroke. The county requires that a Stroke-Neurology Receiving Center have a dedicated medical direc-tor, an emergency-med-


news wire


icine physician on-site at all times, and a neurolo-gist, neurosurgeon and radiologist always on call.

UC Irvine Medical Center also has an interven-tional neuroradiologist available around the clock capable of extract-ing a stroke-inducing blood clot by inserting a catheter into a patient’s arteries.

student Center design turns green to gold

The UC Irvine Student Center recently received the Leadership in En-

ergy and Environmental Design gold certifica-tion from the U.S. Green Building Council. UCI’s student center is the first in the state to win gold certification.

Among the Student Center’s “green” features is reflective roofing that makes the building less expensive to cool, water-

less urinals in the men’s rooms and other plumb-ing fixtures that use 42 percent less water than conventional systems, access to public transit and UCI’s own shuttle system, along with use of recycled water for irrigation, as well as paint and carpet that emit low levels of volatile organic compounds.

Math model predicts cancer growth

John Lowengrub, UC Irvine mathematics pro-fessor and chair, applied his academic skills to the

question of how cancer spreads. Lowengrub created mathematical computer models to pre-dict tumor growth and evaluate therapy options with a goal of maximiz-ing treatment effective-ness and minimizing patient suffering.

His recent study in the journal Cancer Research shows that cancer growth is not as erratic as previously thought. Using a computer mod-el, he predicted tumor changes in part by as-sessing the environment around the cancer — for

example, levels of oxygen and sugar, which feed cancerous cells. Aggres-sive cells moved to areas with more nutrients, making the tumor unsta-ble and altering its shape. Cancer progression could be determined by track-ing these changes, and therapy options could be tailored accordingly, the study found.

The model consistently reproduced cell invasion patterns observed in experiments and patient biopsy samples. Lowen-grub hopes doctors someday will use this tool to make better decisions when treating cancer patients.

Biologist part of $6.25M limb regeneration research project

UCI biologist David Gar-diner’s laboratory is one of four that will share a $6.25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to compare gene regulatory pathways in the axolotl, a salamander that can regenerate its limbs, with pathways in a mouse model for humans.

The goal is to iden-tify genes involved in wounds that lead to re-generation in the axolotl, then determine how they are regulated in response to injuries in the mouse.

A new UC Irvine group headed by neuroscientist Hans Keirstead is sending vitamins and wheelchairs to disadvantaged people in Africa.

The UCI Africa Initiative aims to raise awareness about how small ges-tures can have a huge

affect on Africans’ lives. Formed in late April, the group includes par-ticipants from Student Affairs and the School of Medicine.

“It’s amazing how little you have to do to have a large impact in Africa. I think more people would

help if they knew how easy it is,” said Keirstead, co-director of the Sue and Bill Gross Stem Cell Research Center and faculty member of the Reeve-Irvine Research Center, which seeks treatments for spinal cord injuries.

The initiative builds upon Keirstead’s personal con-nection to Africa. In 2006, he was appointed vice chancellor of UDECOM, a private university in the Republic of Guinea, in West Africa.

In early May, the UCI ini-tiative shipped to Guinea 2,000 pounds of vitamins donated by Thomas Tierney, former chairman of the UCI Foundation. Tierney heads Tustin-

based Vita-Tech Inter-national Inc., a vitamin manufacturer.

Later this year, the UCI group will ship 550 wheelchairs to disabled people in Africa. About 300 will go to residents of The Polio Home, a Guinea facility for polio victims established by The Lyceum Group. The Irvine-based Free Wheel-chair Mission donated the wheelchairs.

UCI organizers want to start an exchange pro-gram in which students and faculty would travel to Africa, and Africans would come to UCI to learn and take home with them new skills and contacts that could bet-ter their lives.

UCI Africa Initiative sends vitamins, wheelchairs to Africa


Because axolotl, mice and humans have similar genetic pathways, sci-entists hope to identify regeneration signals that could lead to human therapies.

Ken Muneoka at Tu-lane University, a UCI alumnus, is heading the project, which also involves the University of Kentucky. The award is part of $260 million allocated over five years to academic institutions nationwide for multidis-ciplinary basic science research.

UCI awarded $45M for infectious disease research

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded UC Irvine $45 million over five years for infectious disease research.

The renewal grant, which is the campus’s largest ever, went to the Pacific-Southwest Regional Center of Excellence for Biodefense and Emerg-ing Infectious Diseases Research and its director, Dr. Alan Barbour, a UCI infectious disease expert. Created in May 2005 with a four-year, $40 million NIAID grant, the center is one of only 11 federally funded research sites

dedicated to countering threats from bioterrorism agents and emerging infections.

“Our center brings together some of the region’s best scientists to cooperate in research teams. Each person brings a special exper-tise. Our common goal is prevention and cure of illness by some of the most serious pathogens facing people in the U.S., Latin America and Pacific Rim countries,” Barbour said. “We appreciate the new vote of confidence by the National Institutes of Health.”

The center’s main objec-tive is to provide the science for creating a defense against emerg-ing diseases, like dengue fever, and potential bioterrorism agents, such as the botulism toxin. It also seeks to train next-generation scientists and educate researchers about lab safety.

Anesthesiology program receives accreditation, rankings boost

The residency program in the Department of Anesthesiology & Perioperative Care has received a full five-year accreditation and will expand from a traditional three-year program to

a four-year program providing complete training for future anesthesiologists.

UCI now offers one of only two California anesthesia four-year residencies with full accreditation. In addition, the department moved from 44th to 26th nationally in National Institutes of Health research funding for anesthesiology departments.

scientists receive $2M to build sustainable energy

UCI will receive $2 million over five years as part of two of 46 Energy Frontier Research Centers recently announced by the U.S. Department of Energy. The goal is to accelerate scientific breakthroughs necessary to build a sustainable energy economy.

UCI chemists Matt Law and John C. Hemminger

Baghdad project supports Iraqi children

UC Irvine’s Baghdad School Project has shipped 7,500 packets of notebooks, pencils, erasers and rulers to the war-torn country over three years.

“Children in Iraq lack the basic educational tools that American students take for grant-ed,” founding member Danielle Al-Chalati ’09 says. “We hope the donations can enrich their classroom envi-ronment.”

The project, a student-run group that raises money to buy class-room supplies for Iraqi

schoolchildren, fills a need not met by es-tablished relief groups, which focus on such basics as food, medical supplies and clothing.

A branch of the Dean’s Ambassadors Council in the School of Social Sciences, the Baghdad

School Project works with the U.S. Military Postal Service to de-liver the supplies, saving thousands of dollars in shipping costs.

Each packet costs about $20, and the project relies entirely on donations.

’71 (dean, School of Physical Sciences) are part of the Center for Advanced Solar Photophysics involving Los Alamos National Laboratory and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado, which will develop materials that convert sunlight to electricity.

For the latest campus news, visit: http://today.uci.edu/

sports news

UCI baseball won its first-ever Big West championship, going 22-2 in conference play under second-year head coach Mike Gillespie. The Anteater’s .916 won-loss percentage is the second best in the Big West his-tory with Fresno State posting a .952 (20-1) percentage in 1988.

UCI collected three ad-ditional Big West major awards and had a school-record 10 Anteaters honored on the all-con-ference teams. Ben Orloff was voted UCI’s first-ever Player of the Year, Daniel Bibona picked up the program’s second con-secutive Pitcher of the Year award while Mike Gillespie was named the Anteaters’ first confer-

Baseball brings home Big West title

UC Irvine has won the “Black & Blue Series” trophy for the second consecutive year in its annual competition with Long Beach State.

The “Black & Blue Series,” presented by Duke’s of Huntington Beach, was created four years ago to build the rivalry between UCI and Long Beach State in all common sports.

Each year at the con-clusion of the final scheduled athletic event between the two institu-tions, the winner of that year’s “Black & Blue Series” receives a surf board trophy bearing the inscription of the annual winners. The winning in-stitution retains posses-sion of the trophy until the award presentation the following year.

The ‘Eaters claimed a 27-23 victory in 2008-09 with wins by women’s volleyball, men’s water polo, women’s cross country, men’s volleyball (twice), women’s bas-ketball, baseball (three times), women’s water polo (twice), men’s golf and women’s track and field.

UCI defeats CsUlB in ’Black & Blue’ series


Ben Orloff, Daniel Bibona and Cory Hamilton were selected on the second day of the 2009 Major League Base-ball draft. Orloff, a ninth-round pick, was chosen by the Houston Astros while Bibona was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 16th round. Hamilton was drafted in the 23rd round by the Detroit Tigers.

Orloff batted .358 to sit second among the starters and topped the team with 91 hits and 62 runs scored. The senior tied for fifth with 11 doubles and made 215 consecutive starts at short. In addition, he was honored as the nation’s best shortstop with the Brooks Wallace Award, the first time an Anteater has earned that accolade.

Bibona posted a 12-1 record on the mound. The lefty leads the Big West with 108 strikeouts and was second in the league with a 2.63 ERA. He earned Baseball America’s All-American honors going undefeated in Big West games en route to collecting 2009 Big West Pitcher of the Year honors.

Hamilton made 20 appearances for UCI, striking out 33 batters in 37.1 innings. The right-hander was 0-2 with a 7.96 ERA.

Three 2009 recruits also were drafted on Day 2. Left-hander pitcher Paul Strong (Marina HS) was a 17th-round pick by the Texas Rangers. Kyle Hooper (Saugus HS), a right-hander, was chosen by Pittsburgh in the 28th round and southpaw James Wright (Los Alamitos HS) was a 29th-round choice by Minnesota.

ence Coach of the Year since 1987 when former skipper Mike Gerakos collected the honor.

UCI’s season came to a close after going 2-2 in postseason action, falling to Virginia twice in regional play at Ant-eater Ballpark. The Irvine

Regional was UCI’s fourth straight postseason ap-pearance and fifth in six years.

The Anteaters finished the season 45-15, posting its highest-second win to-tal in its Division I history, surpassing the 2008 total of 42 wins and coming to

within two wins of the 2007 mark of 47. With 15 losses, the Anteaters also recorded the least amount of defeats since 1974 when the Divi-sion II champions went 48-8. It is also the third consecutive season UCI has registered less than 20 losses.

Three Anteaters, three recruits selected in MlB draft

Cicerone throws open new era in UCI baseballChancellor Emeritus Ralph Cicerone was a driving force behind the return of the base-ball program in 2002 and the refurbishing of Anteater Ballpark. In recognition of his efforts, he was invited to throw the ceremo-nial first pitch at the Anteaters’ initial home game that year.

And on May 19 he did it again, as Cicerone — who moved to Washington in 2005 to head the National Academy of Sciences — returned to Irvine to be honored for his contributions to the university and its baseball program.

Before the UCI-UCLA baseball game at Ant-eater Ballpark, Chancel-lor Michael Drake wel-comed the crowd to the dedication ceremony and expressed gratitude to Cicerone and his wife, Carol, for endowing a graduate fellowship in earth system science earlier in the day.

The dedication of Cicerone Field is part of a $2 million effort to expand and improve Anteater Ballpark. The plan includes increasing chaired seating from 900 to 2,500, building a permanent press box and concession stands, and renovating the scoreboard.

sPrING HIGHlIGHTs

UC Irvine’s Women’s Var-sity Four made history May 9 in winning the Grand Final at the 71st annual Dad Vail Regatta on the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia.

UCI entered the semifi-nal heat with the fastest time trial from the first day and the Anteaters placed second to ad-vance to the Grand Final.

Three hours later, Coach Carrie Chamberlain-Parsons’ Varsity Four of Heather Conniff (coxswain), Ashley Fee (stroke), Alex Bolt (3), Elizabeth Nguyen (2) and Allison Baker (bow) took to the water for their final race of the season. The original 37 crews from Friday had been narrowed down to the final six.

The Anteaters’ perfor-mance marks their place in Irvine history as the first crew to take first place at the Dad Vail Regatta.

Women’s rowing

Anteater crew takes gold, makes history

The women’s golf team ended the season with a 22nd finish at the NCAA Championships.

The Anteaters were led by senior Jane Chin who was named a first-team All-American. Chin, the first UCI women’s golfer to earn first-team All-American dis-tinction, was named Big West Golfer of the Year and finished the season ranked second in the country with a 71.94 scoring average. Junior Patty Chawal-itmetha, sophomore Hillary Packard and freshman Joy Trotter were named second team All-Big West.

The women’s water polo team won the inaugural Big West Women’s Water Polo Championship and went 23-9 overall on the year.

Head coach Dan Klatt ’01was named Big West Coach of the Year while senior Gianna Rossi was named Big West Tournament Most Valuable Player as well as Big West Player of the Year. Freshman goalkeeper Morgan Vickers was named Co-Big West Freshman of the Year. UCI ended the season ranked ninth in the nation.

WOMEN’s WATEr POlO

UCI clinches first conference title

Chin earns first All-American honors


WOMEN’s GOlF

CICErONE FIEld

Anthony James ’73, Ph.D. ’79 is a Distinguished Professor of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics and Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at UCI. He has a long history with UCI, where he earned his bachelor’s and doctor-ate degrees in the School of Biological Sciences and the Department of Developmental and Cell Biology.

An internationally known biologist, he leads a global effort to develop new methods of controlling transmission of dengue fever. His research interests include the molecular biology of insect vectors of disease, the genetics of vector competence, and malaria and dengue fever. Funded by a $19.7 million grant in 2005 from the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, the endeavor is among 43 groundbreaking research projects to improve health in developing countries that are supported by a $436 million grant from the Grand Challenges in Global Health initiative, launched by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

In 2006, his team created a genetically engineered mosquito highly resistant to the most prevalent type of dengue fever virus.

He has earned a number of honors for his research. In 2006, he was elected to the National Academy of Sciences, and in 1994, he was named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. James received the UCI Alumni Association’s Lauds & Laurels Distin-guished Alumnus Award in 2004.

The World Health Organization estimates that 2.5 billion people, two fifths of the world’s population, are at risk from dengue and there may be as many as 50 million cases of dengue infection worldwide every year. James’ research is helping to improve health around the world.

An internationally known biologist, Anthony James leads a global effort to develop new methods of controlling transmission of dengue fever.

These individuals are LEADERS, ADVISERS and INNOVATORS, and we look forward to honoring them for their outstanding service and contributions. — Chancellor Michael V. Drake

MEDALISTS

The final two 2009 Medalists’ stories can be found on page 18


William Parker is the current chair of UCI’s Department of Physics & Astronomy. He is the former vice chancellor for research and dean of graduate studies, serving from 1993-95, and again from 2000-06. He has also served as director of Network and Academic Computing Services and as associate executive vice chancel-lor. He joined the faculty in 1967, two years after the university opened. His research interests in-clude superconductivity, macroscopic quantum effects in superconductors, low temperature physics and fundamental physical constants, and his work on the electronic properties of metals has led to a greater understanding of fundamental physics.

Parker’s administrative service began in 1975, when he became assistant vice chancellor for planning and programs. He was named associate executive vice chancellor in 1984 and helped create the Irvine Campus Housing Authority – the organization responsible for the development of University Hills, a highly regard-ed national model for faculty and staff housing communities.

Parker has continued to teach physics throughout his administrative career. His research efforts, classroom work and community service have earned him many honors and awards, including the Lauds & Laurels University Service Award in 1980; awards for outstanding teaching from the School of Physical Sciences in 1979 and 1983; the Lauds & Laurels Extraordinarius Award in 1989; and the Daniel G. Aldrich Jr. Distinguished University Service Award in 2008.

For more than three decades, William Parker has helped guide UCI as an administrator, teacher, mentor and researcher.

Hosted by the University of Califor-nia, Irvine Foundation, the Medal awards ceremony – “A Celebration of Stars” – is the campus’ largest fundraiser and one of Orange County’s premier events.

Each year, UC Irvine selects members of its community to recorganize with its most presti-gious honor. The Medal confers lifelong recognition on those who have made exceptional contribu-tions to the university’s mission of teaching, research and public service.

The 2009 ceremony is being chaired by Gary Singer ’74 and his wife, Melanie.

It will feature a reception and formal dinner, medalist tributes and entertainment from the Claire Trevor School of the Arts. Event proceeds support key programs, including Regents’ Scholarships and graduate fellowships.

Medalsaturday, Oct. 3 5-10 p.m. Bren Events Center

MEDALISTS

The final two 2009 Medalists’ stories can be found on page 18



If history is a good indicator of the future, Salvador Sarmiento ’73 will fit right in as the UCI Alumni Association’s newest president.

Elected to begin service July 1, Sarmiento has made serving others his life’s work; first as an at-torney and now as one of only 1,500 judges in Cali-fornia — a responsibility he doesn’t take lightly.

“I am really fortunate,” says Sarmiento. “I ap-preciate the opportuni-ties life has given me, my family, a great education and now the opportunity to help others as a judge.”

His calling was cemented as a child in El Paso, Texas, where he and his

seven siblings watched his immigrant parents toil on a 9,000-head com-mercial dairy farm for $90 every two weeks.

“I’ve always believed that we stand on the shoul-ders of someone else,” explains Sarmiento. “I know I am fortunate that people like my parents struggled to allow me to be in a position to help others now.”

Sarmiento and his fam-ily moved to southern California in 1964, and in 1969 two UCI students visited his high school as part of an outreach pro-gram to recruit Orange County students to the young campus.

“I attended Saddleback High School which is about 7 or 8 miles away

from the UC Irvine cam-pus, but I wasn’t aware of

UCI until sometime in the middle of my senior year,”

Historically Speaking

Orange County judge elected 22nd president of UCI Alumni Association

Salvador Sarmiento ’73 poses with Jenny Doh ’91 at the UCI Alumni Association’s 40th Anniversary Celebration. Sarmiento’s term as president began July 1. Laurel Hungerford Photography.

By Michelle WilliamsUCI Alumni Association


Sarmiento explains.

One of his classmates had a copy of a UCI course catalog and that was the first time Sarm-iento had considered attending the campus.

“Some recruiters from UCI then came to the school and 10 or 12 of us were pulled out from our classroom to talk to them. They brought applications, but I think only two of us submit-ted applications. I was accepted.”

As a UCI student, Sarmiento, along with other Latino classmates, created a K-12 academic outreach program called La Escuelita, or Little School, and assisted in the formation of a ballet folklorico group.

That summer tuto-rial program, at Monroe Elementary School in Santa Ana, was entirely student-run. Both pro-grams continue in differ-ent versions today.

After completing his his-tory degree at UCI, Sarm-iento went on to earn his J.D. from the UCLA School of Law in 1976 and began his career as a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Orange County. That was followed by his appoint-ment as a Deputy State Public Defender for the State of California in San Diego. In 1985, he start-ed his own legal practice in Santa Ana which he ran for 12 years.

With more than 30 years of experience helping others, Sarmiento is well

positioned to lead the university’s largest volun-teer organization. And his goals while doing so are rooted in his mantra of service to others.

“I don’t think our alumni take advantage of what is happening on campus,“ he says. “I hope I can encourage people to join the association, to get in-volved with the campus.

“Having our community back on campus has such an impact on the uni-versity. And, right now with the state’s economic problems, the univer-sity and the association have an opportunity to be sensitive to struggles people are going through by making these difficult times easier. That is what I want to be doing as presi-dent of the association.”

Past Presidents

“The university and the association have an opportunity to be sensitive to struggles people are going through by making these difficult times easier. That is what I want to be doing as president of the association.”

Established in 1968 and later incorporated as a California not-for-profit, the UCI Alumni Associa-tion is governed by a board of directors, which is led by its president. Any degreed UCI alumnus/a can be nominated for the association’s presidential position — leading an alumni board of up to 21 elected direc-tors, four chapter representatives and six ex-officio members.

Typically, presidential candidates have served on the Board of Directors in other capacities prior to their election and like all board members, presidents must be members of the association in good standing.

UCIAA presidents through the years:

Michael Gollong 1968-69

John McCue 1969-70

Dia Dorsey 1970-72

Andreana Soulelles 1972-74

Cheryl Biles 1974-76, 1977-79

Robert Steedman 1976-77

Neil Gleason 1979-81

Marie Richman 1981-83

Doug Davidson 1983-85

Fred Sainick 1985-87

Peter Stevens 1987-89

Rick Evans 1989-91

Martha Newkirk 1991-93

Al DeGrassi 1993-95

Greg Mickleson 1995-97

Steve McHolm 1997-99

Debbie Daniel 1999-2001

Carl Fields 2001-03

Bernadette Strobel-Lopez 2003-04

Steve Capps 2004-07

Jenny Doh 2007-09


Help UCIAA welcome the class of 2013 to the Ant-eater family at the UCI Alumni Association’s annual Summer Send-Off events.

This year, send offs are planned for Sacramento, San Francisco, San Diego and Riverside. Volunteers are needed for all events, but coordinators also are needed for San Diego and Riverside. Without coordi-nators, these events can’t take place.

Mark you calendars, super Anteaters! The 40th reunion of UCI’s first four-year graduating class has been set for Saturday, Sept. 26. All activities will take place on campus throughout the day, finishing off with an outdoor celebration on Anteater Plaza (between Aldrich Hall and Langson Library).

By late July you will receive registration information. Parking details and maps will follow in mid-August.

sAVE THE dATE!

Save the dat e C l a s s o f ’ 6 9 4 0 t h R e u n i o n A n t e a t e r P l a z a , U C I C a m p u s S a t u r d a y S e p t . 2 6

If you are looking to get involved with the university, the alumni association and your community, joining a UCIAA committee is a great way to do so.

Each UCIAA committee is overseen by an elected vice president and staff liaison. Generally, alumni are asked to serve two years on a committee before applying for a board position.

Committee members are dedicated alumni volun-teers who help to promote the vision and goals of the association to enrich the lives of alumni and engage them in a lifelong advance-ment of UC Irvine.

Advocacy Committee Assist with the association’s

F r e s h m e n S e n d - O f f s

UCIAActivities

legislative advocacy pro-gram. Advocate on matters affecting the university. Attend the annual AAUC Legislative Conference, UC Day in Sacramento.

Development Committee Advise the association on fundraising practices, including suggesting al-ternative and additional means of funding for the Phineas Banning Alumni House, alumni programs, scholarships, special events, underwriting, community philanthropic projects, phil-anthropic projects involving other student groups or alumni associations, and any development projects relating to UC Irvine that may have an impact on the association.

Finance Committee Assist in preparing UCIAA’s annual budget and program-by-program bud-getary procedures. Analyze any projected investments of the association’s financial reserves. Determine the financial impact of the as-sociation’s programs both included and not included in the annual planning process.

Membership Committee Assist in the planning of membership recruitment activities, including but not limited to: student recruit-ment, alumni recruitment, regional recruitment, professional recruitment and support group recruit-

UCIAA seeks volunteers

Volunteers for these events are needed to help wel-come incoming students and their families once they arrive, to assist with food set-up, distribute nametags, answer questions about life on campus and assist with clean up.

Sacramento Marsha Vacca ’71, coordinator Saturday, August 29 10 a.m. to Noon UC Davis Extension Center, Rm. 209, Sutter Galleria 2901 K Street

San Francisco Noki Seekao ’02, coordinator Saturday, August 15 10 a.m. to Noon California College of the Arts 1111 8th Street

continued on page 15

GETTING INVOLVEDGETTING INVOLVED


TrAVEl WITH UCIAA 2010CANAdA | ITAlY | PANAMA CANAl | rUssIA | TUsCANY

CANAdIAN MArITIMEsseptember 2010

PANAMA CANAlJanuary 2010

rUssIAJuly 2010

TUsCANYOctober 2010

UCIAA’s year-round group travel program includes a partnership with other

University of California campuses and travel partner, AHI Travel. UCIAA members benefit from the

convenience of group travel and enjoy the flexibility and spontaneity of independent exploration.

The travel experts at AHI Travel plan special itineraries for UC alumni to include preferred access to popular

attractions and specially arranged cultural experiences. An exclusive educational program enhances

your understanding and appreciation of these extraordinary regions, and being a part of a group of

like-minded people adds to the fun and camaraderie.

For more details and booking information, visit UCIAA’s exclusive travel site at: www.uci.ahitravel.com

ITAlY’s lAkE dIsTrICTITAlY’s lAkE dIsTrICTMay 2010

ment. Determine benefits offered to members such as insurance programs, promotional items, social or sports opportunities.

Programs Committee Development and imple-mentation of association programs, including but not limited to: public functions, receptions, recognition cer-emonies and special events.

Scholarship Committee Assist with formulating policies and procedures for scholarships/fellowships awarded by UCIAA. Review applications and select scholarship recipients. Plan the annual scholar-ship recognition program. Maintain contact with the recipients to encourage a lasting relationship with the association.

Volunteer Relations Committee Develop strategic plans to assist in volunteer recruit-ment, cultivation, develop-ment and placement of alumni volunteers to the UCI Alumni Association board of directors and its committees. The commit-tee also will develop ways to maintain relationships with current and past board members.

To apply for a commit-tee position, visit www.alumni.uci.edu and follow the “Get Involved” link. For additional details, call the association 949-824-ALUM (2586) or send us an e-mail at: [email protected].

continued from page 14

NCAA CHAMPS!NCAA CHAMPS!Men’s Volleyball defeats USC for national title


“To get to three national championships and win two of them shows we have something special here.”

Coach John Speraw

The UCI men’s volleyball team captured its second national title in three years with a 3-2 victory over USC in Provo, Utah on May 9.

With UCI’s second national championship, the Anteaters are one of only five programs to have won more than one men’s volleyball title.

“This shows that 2007 wasn’t just lightning striking,” head coach John Speraw says. “Any program can win one (championship) with the right recruiting class, a couple of transfers and a few breaks in the playoffs. To get to three national championships and win two of them shows we have something special here.”

Senior setter Ryan Ammerman was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player after recording a career-high 13 total blocks in the victory. Senior outside hitter Taylor Wilson and freshman Carson Clark also were named to the all-tournament team.

The Anteaters finished the year with a 27-5 overall record and the No. 1 ranking, which they held for eight weeks during the season. The 27 wins was the second most in school history, tying the 2006 team who also went 27-5. UCI won the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation regular season with a 19-3 record.

Ammerman was named first-team All-American, while Clark and sophomores Kevin Wynne and Jordan Dufault were named to the second team.

Senior libero Brent Asuka ends his career as UCI’s all-time leader in digs with 1,156, which also ranks second all-time in NCAA history.

BUMP, sET, sPIkE: Seniors Brent Asuka (left), Ryan Ammerman (center) and Taylor Wilson (right) demonstrate Anteater

fundamentals in the win at Smith Field House in Provo, Utah.

NCAA CHAMPS!NCAA CHAMPS!Men’s Volleyball defeats USC for national title



After earning a doctorate in engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Fariborz Maseeh founded IntelliSense in 1991. It was the first company to specialize in the cus-tom design, development and manufacturing of next-generation micro-electro-mechanical system devices – tiny, computer-controlled chips used in products from cardiac pacemakers to aircraft landing gears. When IntelliSense was acquired in 2000, Maseeh established the Mas-siah Foundation, whose mission is to investment in education, science, healthcare, and the arts and humanities.

Maseeh is the founding benefactor of UCI’s Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies & Culture in the School of Humanities and the Claire Trevor School of the Arts. It is the first interdisciplin-ary center in the University of California system dedicated to Persian studies not based in a department of Near East or Middle East studies.

In addition to serving as a UC Irvine Foundation trustee and supporting numerous program areas, including engineering, medicine and intercollegiate athletics, he sits on advisory boards of several engineering schools. These include UCI’s The Henry Samueli School of Engineering, MIT, University of Southern California and Portland State University’s Maseeh College of En-gineering and Computer Science. Maseeh was also instrumental in establishing the Teaching and Research Award at The Henry Samueli School of Engineering. He has received a number of awards, including Ellis Island Medal of Honor, Computer Town Gold Medal and Portland State’s Simon Benson Award among others.

Laurel Wilkening was third chancellor of UCI, serving from 1993 to 1998. A re-nowned planetary scientist and expert on comets and meteorites, she served on several NASA committees and boards during the 1990s.

During her five-year tenure, the campus received its first two Nobel Prizes, contributed more than $1 billion per year to the local economy, completed 250,000 square feet of construction, and increased private, state and federal funding. Wilkening’s goal to move UCI into the ranks of America’s top 50 research universities was realized in 1995, and the campus was invited to join the prestigious Association of American Universities the following year.

Wilkening was instrumental in the creation of University Research Park. While chancellor, she asked the UC regents to review and approve a proposal to lease 85 acres of undeveloped campus land to the Irvine Company for the creation of the research park – now a national model for collaboration be-tween the private sector and university researchers. She also played a key role in increasing the number of Regents’ Scholarships for transfer students by 60 percent, in cooperation with the campus’ Academic Senate.

In addition, the Center for Educational Partnerships was established during her tenure to enhance campus outreach to K-12 schools and community colleges. Since retiring in 1998, Wilkening has remained active as a board member for the Planetary Society, the University of Arizona’s Commission on the Status of Women and various environmental groups.

Laurel Wilkening launched national model for industry-university collaborations.

Fariborz Maseeh engineers change for UCI, many higher education systems. continued from page 11


Transfering help

With a campus as large and fast-paced as UCI, entering as a newly admitted transfer stu-dent can be overwhelm-ing. To smooth out their transition to the universi-ty, UCI’s Transfer Student Center and Lounge strives to help transfer students quickly locate appropriate sources of advice and services.

Described as a “home away from home” by Shelly M. Brown-Gunn ’01, M.A. ’06 current Transfer Student Ser-vices Coordinator, the center has quite a his-tory. In Brown-Gunn’s undergraduate days as a re-entry student, formal services specifically for transfer students didn’t exist.

Unbeknownst to her, UCI’s division of under-graduate education had just completed a propos-al to create such a center. After her graduation, she was encouraged to apply and subsequently hired as UCI’s first transfer student counselor where she quickly built a Web presence.

Two years ago, she launched the Transfer Student Center and

Lounge. Today, the center is a fixture on campus.

Located off Ring Road across from Starbucks and the Student Center, the center is the gateway to opportunities. The center has an abundance of resources available to its more than 30 transfer student visi-tors. Students can take advantage of numerous workshops, find a place to heat up their lunch, a computer to check their e-mail or chat with one of the volunteer mentors.

“There are always student mentors in the lounge to answer student questions and offer perspective,” explains Brown-Gunn. In two years, the center has hired more than 25 student interns to help mentor UCI’s tranfer student population.

For more personalized assistance, professional counselors are on hand to help transfer students with questions about academic affairs or stu-dent life.

“We want to help transfer students see that they are not alone on this campus,” says Brown-Gunn.

Aside from addressing the needs of current transfer students, the center also fuels the interest of prospec-tive transfer students. Through its community college partnership with several institutions in Orange County, Brown-Gunn and other counsel-

ors visit different colleges several days a week. Providing answers to admission questions, in-formation about research and study abroad op-portunities and offering preparation advice are just a few ways they try to to get these students engaged beforehand.

Coming in to the new academic year, Transfer Student Services is re-establishing its transfer theme houses in Arroyo

Vista, where Brown-Gunn will serve as a theme house sponsor.

The center also is “home base” for the UC Irvine Chapter of the Tau Sigma National Honor Society for Transfer Students and also for the Transfer Student Organization.

Brown-Gunn says, “Any student who comes to UCI, whenever or wher-ever they may be, we will help them. No one is turned away.”

“Any student who comes to UCI, whenever or wherever they may be, we will help them. No one is turned away.”Shelly M. Brown-Gunn ’01, M.A. ’06

By diana ThaiUCI Alumni Association

Alumna helps UCI transfer students find their way

hen you think of Bob Sprague, you think

of his long-term, loyal and passionate support of our campus and com-munity. He was a true philanthropist in every sense of the word. He gave his time and finan-cial resources generously and quietly – and he and his wife, Peggie, have given because of their passion for causes, not for notoriety or recogni-tion.

The Spragues have made transformational gifts to UC Irvine that sup-port cancer and genetic programs, biomedical research, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s dis-ease, social disorders … and the list goes on. The Spragues’ most recent gift to UCI will support a new Women’s Cancer Research Center that will house faculty research as well as post–doc and

resident training.

The Spragues’ mutual passion for finding a cure for cancer stems from a set of tragic circum-stances.

Both Bob’s and Peggie’s former spouses died from cancer. As widows who faced the results of such a devasting disease, the Spragues persevered and dedicated their lives to ensuring future gen-erations will not suffer the heartbreaking losses they endured.

Two years ago, Bob and his friends at UC Irvine celebrated his 90th birth-day, and although he had slowed down physically, his mind was as sharp as it was 50 years ago. Bob had a keen sense of humor – he openly joked about his lack of mobil-ity, and he never missed an opportunity to make people laugh.

In recognition of the county’s need for a world-class, state-of-the-

art teaching and research hospital, the Spragues helped champion plans for the new Douglas Hos-pital at UC Irvine Medical Center and, in 2003, they provided a $1 million leadership gift to sup-port construction of the recently opened facili-ty. The Spragues’ support has been instrumental in

building one of the finest medical centers in the country.

The Spragues have devoted much of their lives to building an enor-mous legacy benefiting Orange County and beyond. Their generosity will live on through the countless patients, fami-

lies, students and faculty who will benefit from the research and educa-tion that their support has provided. Because of their deeply held belief in philanthropy, coupled with their compassion and desire to make a difference, the couple was honored with the 2008 National

Robert R. Sprauge UCI, medicine loses dear friend, philanthropist

W


Philanthropy Day Spirit of Philanthropy Lifetime achievement award. In 1999, they were awarded the university’s highest honor, The Medal.

Robert spent most of his career as an investment banker.

He served as director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, cofounded a savings and loan association in Los Angeles and was active in national and statewide banking associations.

A native of Los Angeles, he came from a family of physicians. His father, the late Dr. Norman F.

Sprague, served as a regent of the University of California in the 1930s and 1940s.

In talking about his passion for the campus, he said, “Because of my family background, I’ve always been interested in medicine. I’m also impressed with the high professional caliber of the faculty at UCI, and I’m excited by the accom-plishments and pros-pects of this institution.”

UC Irvine and our com-munity will greatly miss one of its closest friends – and our friend forever – Robert R. Sprague.

“I’m excited by the accomplishments and prospects of this institution.”Robert Sprauge said in talking about his long-standing support of UCI

law school receives $2M grant to start an environmental law clinicUCI’s School of Law has received a $2 million grant to start an Envi-ronmental Law Clinic, the first of several legal clinics envisioned for the new law school.

An anonymous foundation of global reach has provided $2 million to create an Environmental Law Clinic to further the public interest in areas of environmental law, environmental health and environ-mental sustainability. The clinic will give students an opportunity to do hands-on, meaningful, real-life and real-time environmental legal and policy work. Students will work under the close supervi-sion of trained lawyers and experienced professors. The legal clinic will be closely associated with the UCI Program in Public Health.

Erwin Chemerinsky, founding dean of the law school, said he is “delighted” that the law school’s first clinic will be dedicated to protecting the environment.

“This environmental law clinic will provide our students with an incomparable, hands-on experience, allowing them to learn up close what environmental lawyers do on a day-to-day basis,” said Chemerinsky. “It will also provide students with the opportunity to help protect the natural resources of southern California, enhanc-ing the contribution of law in promoting sustainability on earth.”

UCI School of Law is also considering starting legal clinics in other areas, Chemerinsky said. “The faculty has approved a clinical requirement for upper-level students as part of the law school’s innovative curriculum.”


Estate of real estate developer makes $21M gift to hospital


A $21 million posthu-mous gift from the estate of a man whose values included integrity and passion for life has en-abled UC Irvine to reach its fundraising goal for the university hospital at UC Irvine Medical Center.

The largest single cash gift in campus history comes from the estate of M.A. Douglas, formerly a resident of Orange. In recognition of the generous donation, the university’s new seven-story hospital in Orange has been renamed UC Irvine Douglas Hospital.

“Our long-held commit-ment is to deliver the finest healthcare to our Orange County com-munity and beyond; this transformative gift dramatically improves our ability to do so,” says Chancellor Michael Drake.

Terry A. Belmont, interim chief executive officer of UC Irvine Medical Center, explains: “This magnificent gift enables us to more fully tap the

power of superior medi-cal research, excellence in patient care and our incredible teaching pro-grams in medicine and nursing.”

The 482,428-square-foot facility replaces the original hospital build-ing, which was built in 1960. Most of the 191 patient rooms are private and offer ample space for families and multi-disciplinary care teams; the 15 state-of-the-art operating rooms are 50 percent larger than those used previously. The completion of Phase II in November 2011 will add four more operat-ing rooms and 45 more patient rooms.

Dr. Ralph V. Clayman, interim School of Medi-cine dean and urology professor, says: “Our new hospital touches every person’s life in Orange County; everyone knows someone who has re-ceived care here.

“Whether it’s helping families with a birth, healing people after

an accident or provid-ing the least invasive or latest therapies, this is the place to come for the most innovative, leading-edge care.”

He adds, “I believe that the exceptional level of care we provide here is among the best in the

country. At UC Irvine Medical Center, we provide the kind of care today that others will be learning tomorrow.”

Michael Hayde, trustee of the Douglas estate and a partner and friend of the donor, said Douglas was a Colorado native

who came from humble beginnings and built a 33-year career with B.F. Goodrich, later becom-ing a successful real estate developer.

“Doug was all about commitment and responsibility,” Hayde notes. “I can’t think of a better way to honor his legacy than naming this wonderful new hospital the UC Irvine Douglas Hospital.”

“The gift from the Doug-las estate will benefit thousands of families who use this new hos-pital, and given that his business was founded in this county, it is an appropriate connection with his life,” Hayde adds.

Douglas was known for his business acumen and real estate partnerships that helped develop Orange County. While he traveled the world late in life, he spent his early years in Colorado in a tiny, dirt-floored cabin built from railroad ties. When he was 6, his family worked as migrant


laborers on the West Coast before settling in Oregon. Douglas left home at 14 and headed to Los Angeles, where he pursued his career at B.F. Goodrich.

In 1963, Douglas found-ed IPS, which developed, built and managed more than 10,000 apartment units, primarily in Orange County. His office was just a few blocks from the hospital that now

bears his name.

The $21 million Douglas estate gift has enabled UC Irvine to reach its $50 million fundraising goal for the new hospital at UC Irvine Medical Center. The UC Irvine Doug-las Hospital building, dedicated in January, will increase the medical center’s total number of patient beds to 424.

“Mr. Douglas’ generous gift caps a transforma-

tional capital campaign led by Tom and Elizabeth Tierney and embraced by so many of our commu-nity friends – even dur-ing these very difficult economic times,” says Thomas J. Mitchell, vice chancellor of university advancement. “Perhaps nothing speaks more ef-fectively about the value we place on high-quality, comprehensive health-care than this successful campaign effort.”

UC Irvine Douglas Hospital

UC Irvine Douglas Hospital is at the heart of Orange County’s only university medical center.

It has been ranked among “America’s Best Hospitals” by U.S. News & World Report for eight consecu-tive years, is one of only 33 hospitals nationally with a Leapfrog ranking for quality and safety, and has twice received the Magnet designation for nursing excellence.

It also is home to Orange County’s only National Cancer Institute-designat-ed comprehensive cancer center and was the first in southern California to receive Primary Stroke Center designation from The Joint Commission.

OF NOTE

On the shelf


T. Jefferson Parker [HUM ’76], continues the story of Deputy Sheriff Charlie Hood—the hero of L.A. Outlaws—in his 16th novel, The Renegades.

Along the desolate and dusty roads of this new frontier, Hood prefers to ride alone, and he prefers to ride at night.

At night, his headlights illuminate only the patch of pavement ahead of him; all the better to hide from the demons—and the dead outlaws—receding in his rearview mirror.

But Hood doesn’t always get what he wants; certainly not when he’s assigned a partner in Terry Laws, a County vet-eran who everyone calls Mr. Wonderful. And not when Laws is shot dead in the passenger seat and Hood is left to bear witness by someone who knew Mr. Wonderful didn’t always live up to

Parker’s 16th novel continues deputy sheriff Charlie Hood’s story

his nickname.

As he sets out to find the

gunman, Hood knows one thing for sure: The West is a state of mind, one where the bad guys sometimes wear white hats—and the good guys seek justice in whatever shade of gray they find it.

Visit Parker’s Web site for more details: http://www.tjefferson-parker.com/renegades.htm

On the shelf

Newest books by UCI alumni and faculty


Minimum wage revisited New book explores how increases to minimum wage will hurt young workers, economy

Included among President Barak Obama’s plan for strengthening the economy is an increase to the federal minimum wage, a move UC Irvine economist david Neumark warns against in his new book, Minimum Wages.

The book draws upon his and co-author William L. Wascher’s more than 15 years of expertise on the topic in a comprehensive overview of the policy’s distributive effects across different population groups.

Neumark and Wascher discuss the effects of minimum wages on employment and hours, the acquisition of skills, the wage and income distributions, longer-term labor market outcomes, prices and the aggregate economy.

Arguing that the usual focus on employment effects is too limiting, they present a broader, empirically based inquiry that will better inform policymakers about the costs and benefits of the minimum wage.

“As with any one plan or policy, there are winners and losers,” says Neumark. “Unfortunately, in the case of increasing the minimum wage, there are more losers than winners,” he adds, explaining that among them are some of the very people the increased wage is purported to help.

from Anteater authors

les Herschler [SOCSCI ’79] published a new book entitled The Com-plete Guide to Student Teaching on April 2.

dac-Buu Cao [ICS ‘85], recently published a new book en-titled Criti-cal Success Factors in Agile Software Develop-ment Projects. He is cur-rently Director of Product Development & Support Systems at Siemens PLM Software in Cypress, Calif.

Carl Henry Marcoux [HUM M.A. ’88] has published his second novel, A Few Years At Sea, a story from World War II. Carl sailed in the mer-chant marine during that conflict.

steven Taylor [SOCSCI ’90] recently published a book with the University Press of New England: Voting Amid Violence: Electoral Democracy in Colombia.

In her new book, Innermost Parts: Theory of Spiritual Relativity, Law of the Abundant Life, sabra smith [BIOSCI ’92] is turning inward and going global. Published by Tate Publishing and Enterprises, the book was released nationwide April 6.

david Caron [HUM Ph.D. ’94], associate professor of French and women’s studies at the University of Michi-gan, published a new book entitled My Father and I: The Marais and the Queerness of Community.

Glen david Gold [M.F.A. ’98] published Sunnyside in May at Random House.

In his new book, Interna-tional Norms and Cycles of Change, UCI political

scientist Wayne sand-holtz and co-author Ken-dall Stiles examine how such rules against piracy and other international norms from the 1500s to the present emerge and change over time.

UCI political scientist Alison Brysk examines international human rights success stories in new book, Global Good Samaritans in which she provides a comparative look at human rights for-eign policy best practices abroad.

Mary Yukari Waters [M.F.A. ’02] pub-lished her first novel, The Favorites in June by Simoon & Schuster where she explores the complex re-lationships among three generations of women bound by a painful fam-ily history and a culture in which custom dictates behavior.

1970sEarl F. Arbuckle, III [ENG ’72] was named one of six hon-orees to receive the 2009 Broad-casting & Cable Tech-nology Leadership Award. As VP of engi-neering for Fox Television

Stations, Inc., Arbuckle has most recently been responsible for the digi-tal conversion of the 27 owned and operated Fox television stations across the country.

1980slynda Ellenshaw Thompson [HUM ’80] was visual effects pro-ducer on Cirque du Freak

which releases early 2010. She is currently working on Zookeeper starring Kevin James.

1990sArif Alikhan [SOCECO ’90] has been appointed by the Obama Admin-istration as assistant secretary for policy development for the U.S. Department of Home-

land Security.

karen devor sher-man [SOCECO ’90] was recently ordained as a Rabbi by the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion.

California Lutheran University’s Senior Pride Committee announced that Adina Nack [SO-CECO ’94], professor of sociology, is this year’s Diversity Professor of the Year.

Nadia P. Bermudez [SOCSCI ’98] became a partner at Garcia Calde-rón Ruíz, LLP in the firm’s San Diego Office on May 1. Bermudez is a gradu-

ClAssNOTEs


Laura Peralta ’04 has earned the prestigious dis-tinction of being one of 100 nationwide students selected to intern in the White House under Presi-dent Barack Obama. She is one of only two interns serving in The Presidential Office of Cabinet Affairs.

Peralta transfered to UCI from Santiago Canyon Community College, completing a bachelor’s of arts in sociology in 2004. Currently, she is working toward a master’s of public administration degree at the University of Southern California.

“It’s interesting because President Obama wanted to have a very diverse cabinet, and he wants people who are going to be challenging him and bringing in fresh ideas, and not just people who say, ‘Yes, yes,’ Peralta explains. “And so for me, planning to go into public administration/management, it was really im-portant to see how different people work together. So I thought this was a very valuable opportunity.”

The White House Internship Program mentors young leaders and gives them a hands-on under-standing of the executive office. In addition to typi-cal office duties, interns attend weekly lectures by senior White House staff, assist at White House social

events and participate in community service.

The White House intern-ship is not Peralta’s first glimpse of the inner workings of govern-ment. As part of the

UCDC intern program, she interned with Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) in Washington, D.C., and worked for two years as a congressional case-worker for Rep. Lucille

Roybal-Allard (D-Calif.) in Los Angeles. She also recently completed an internship in Mayor An-tonio Villaraigosa’s Office of Education, Youth and Families.

Alumna goes to Washington

“I first fell in love with

Washington D.C. when

I participated in the

UCDC Program through

UCI in 2002 and

interned on The Hill.”

updates from anteaters

ClAssNOTEs


Alumna goes to Washington

ate of Stanford Law School, and specializes in business litigation and employment law.

2000sdanielle kushner [BIOSCI ’04] received her Doctor of Medicine degree on May 17 from University of Southern California.

david J. Uyan [SOC-SCI ’06], Ensign, United States Navy, graduated from the Basic Qualifi-cation Course at Navy Supply Corps School in Athens, Georgia on May 29, 2009. He has orders

to the USS Bulkeley (DDG-84) home-ported in Norfolk, VA as the Assistant Supply Officer in charge of Retail Op-erations and Disbursing Management.

IN MEMOrIAMsusan (Olson) Maitino [HUM ‘70], public school teacher and principal; married to John Maitino [HUM ‘69] for 39 years ; 4 children; passed away May 14 from cancer. She was 60 years old.

sean Baker [ENG ’93] passed away on June 8. He was 37 years old.

A-MAZE-ING AnteaterFind your way through the maze shaped by UCI’s beloved mascot, Peter the Anteater.

begin

end

The UC Irvine chapter of Tau Beta Pi, the engi-neering national honors society, celebrated a milestone five years in the making with the in-stallation of the Tau Beta Pi Bent monument in the Engineering Gateway Plaza on April 22.

The Bent, the official symbol of Tau Beta Pi, is a watch key in the shape of the bent of a trestle, the load-bearing part of a bridge. The Bent monu-ment is both a sign of prestige for the chapter and a tool for increasing

awareness of the chapter on campus.

“The monument serves as a reminder of the importance of integ-rity in the engineering profession,” says Sabeen Cochinwala, outgoing treasurer.

The UCI chapter, founded in 1982 with nearly 200 members, is open to all engineering disciplines. Students must be in the top eight percent of their junior class or top five percent of their senior class, and display exemplary character and integrity to be eligible to

join Tau Beta Pi.

In addition to a strong academic background, members engage in community service, help with fund raising, and attend social events designed to build a sense

of community among engineering students.

“Being a member means not just being a good student in the classroom, but trying to be a good student for the commu-nity as a whole,” explains

Monumental step for UCI’s engineering honor societyBy Erin knapp The Henry Samueli School of Engineering

Tau Beta Pi officers are all smiles after the installation of the Bent monument. Left to right: Christopher Dao, Ricardo Komai, Kenneth Wong and Sabeen Cochinwala

Ricardo Komai, incoming president.

The Bent project involved past and present Tau Beta Pi officers, including:

Jeffrey Sawyer ’05, 2004-05 President

Adam Halbardier ’06, 2005-06 President

Henry Chu ’07, 2006-07 President

Adam Ebnit ’08, 2007-08 Presi-dent

David Lai ’08, 2007-08 External Vice President

Sabeen Cochinwala, Outgoing Treasurer

Christopher Dao, Outgoing Internal Vice President

Kenneth Wong, 2008-09 President

Ricardo Komai, 2009-10 Incoming President


Set for Life!

save on car insurance through UCIAA

MEMBErsHIP MATTErs

UCIAA partners with GEICO to offer alumni association members a special discount off the company’s already low insurance rates. Go to geico.com or call 1-800-368-2734 for a free rate quote and don’t forget to mention the UCI Alumni Association to receive your member discount.

AddITIONAl BENEFITs UC libraries: Catch up on your summer reading. Don’t forget that UCIAA members receive free book borrowing privileges at all UC campuses. Excludes off-site access to electronic resources.

UCI summer Camps: UCI Alumni Association members save $10 off registration fees for UCI Summer Camps if the parent/guardian paying for the camp is a member of the association. For more information, visit: www.ucirvinesports.com/camps or call 949-824-6120.

For a complete list of benefit offerings, visit UCIAA’s Web site: www.alumni.uci.edu

Membership Rates UCIAA offers invidivual and joint membership options as well as installment payment plans. Contact UCIAA for more information: 949-824-ALUM (2586). Annual / life

Alumni $50 / $500

Student $30 / $400

Recent Grad* $30 / $400

Associate $55 / $600

* Recent graduate is defined as having graduated in the last two years.

Benefits

The following alumni became life members of the UCI Alumni Association between April 16 and June 15. UCIAA would like to thank all of our members for their support.

Ricky Armas ‘07

Susan Berkman ‘74

Leah Buencamino ‘09

Troy Campbell ‘09

Angeline Chan ‘09

H. Gordon Cox ‘73

Jeanette Eash M.B.A. ‘95

Steve Garretson ‘72

Catou Greenberg ‘84, M.D. ‘88

Ismael Guerrero M.D. ‘82

Allison Hicks ‘07

Julianne Hoang ‘09

William Howden Ph.D. ‘73

James Hsiao ‘09

Daniel Humphreys ‘82

John Hung ‘89, ‘90

Kajal Kalra M.B.A. ‘96

Ankur Kheni ‘09

Chi Kim ‘09

Hyungjin Kim ‘09

Anthony Kline ‘09

Virany Kreng ‘95, M.D. ‘01

Michelle Lee ‘08

Cameron Lewis ‘09

Christine Lin ‘00

Victor Luk ‘88

Steven McCarty-Snead ‘09

Francis McEldowney ‘82

W. Brad McGee

Kendra Mirasol ‘88

Sherry Musurlian-Bauer ‘97

Kazuki Okamura ‘09

Min Pae ‘09

Henry Pandes ‘86

Amanda Phillips ‘09

Kelly Porter ‘09

Roxanne Rhoades ‘79

Eugene Rogolsky D.O. ‘60, M.D. ‘62

Shinichi Shibahara

Chiung-Jue Sung, Ph.D. ‘93

Eddie Tanaka ‘09

Evelyn Tokuyama ‘09

Victor Velazquez ‘09

Jay Wong ‘95

Edward Wong ‘09

Helen Wong ‘02

Hamilton Yang ‘09


As a proud Anteater from day one of setting foot on campus in 1981, joining the UCI Alumni Association as a lifetime member just prior to graduation was automatic for me. Simply, being a member makes a commitment back to the school that made the same to me as a student. I knew I wanted to stay in touch with campus doings after receiving my degree and starting a career in public safety. This organi-zation was an obvious avenue to do so.

I’ve always looked forward to receiving its publications and event notifications — more recently, by the effective use of e-mailing and the UCIAA Web site. Having attended many of its functions over the years, each one reinforces how grateful I am to be an alumnus of UCI. The variety of events it puts on every year for its members and guests are wonderful. Each event I’ve attended has been thor-oughly enjoyable. Having a passion for sports, activities associated with the Athletic Department are especially appreciated. Hopefully, these events will grow as the successes and visibility of our teams have.

Bringing alumni back on campus as often as possible is very important. To see all the cutting edge and futuristic work the faculty, staff and students do toward advancements to benefit society are simply amazing. UCIAA pro-vides scholarships to students so they can contribute in these efforts. And, the association also has opened the doors for alumni to look in and stay connected to this distinguished institution. I eagerly anticipate having the opportunity see even more.

A Thankful UCIAA Member,

John White ‘86 Deputy Fire Marshal, Anaheim Fire Department

Tell us your storyLet us know why you are a member or how your membership has benefited you and your story may end up profiled in a future issue. Be sure to send along a recent electronic photo: [email protected].

My member story.My member story.

ArOUNdTHECIrClEEvents taking place on campus and in the community


July 2009Monday 13 Extension. Social Media: Audience Profiling and Measurement. Login anytime, online. $540. Continues through Aug. 23. More: 949-824-5414.

Thursday 16 Film. Last Year at Marien-bad. 7 p.m., HIB 100. Free. More: 949-824-5493.

Friday 17 Barclay. Men Alive – Wicked to Oz. 8 p.m., Barclay Theatre. $37.50. Continues July 18. More: 949-824-4646.

Thursday 23 Film. The Prestige. 7 p.m., HIB 100. Free. More: 949-824-5493.

August 2009Monday 3 Extension. Paralegal Admissions Meeting Webinar. Login anytime. Online. Free. Continues through Aug. 9. More: 949-824-5414.

Extension. Oracle Database 11g: Introduc-tion to SQL – Part 2. Login anytime. Online. $795. Continues through Sep. 6. More: 949-824-5414.

Thursday 6 Film. Wall Street. 7 p.m., HIB 100. Free. More: 949-824-5493.

Monday 10 Extension. Oracle Data-base 11g. Program with PL/SQL – Part 2. Online $795. Continues through Sep. 13. More: 949-824-5414.

Extension. Oracle Administration 11g: Administration Workshop I – Part 2. Online. $795. Continues through Sep. 13. More: 949-824-5414.

Thursday 13 Film. Glengarry Glen Ross. 7 p.m., HIB 100. Free. More: 949-824-5493.

Thursday 20 Film. Trading Places. 7 p.m. , HIB 100. Free. More: 949-824-5493.

Friday 21 Women’s soccer at Ari-zona State Tempe, Ariz. 7 p.m.

saturday 22 UCI Observatory. Visitor night at UCI. 8-10 p.m. Free. More: 949-824-6911. Thursday 27 Film. American Psycho. 7 p.m., HIB 100. Free. More: 949-824-5493.

sunday 23 Women’s soccer at Ari-zona Tucson, Ariz. 7 p.m.

Friday 28 Women’s soccer vs Texas State. Anteater Stadium. 7 p.m.

Women’s Volleyball vs California, Reno, Nev. 4:30 p.m.

saturday 29 Women’s Volleyball vs Connecticut, Reno, Nev. 2 p.m

Women’s Volleyball vs UC Berkeley, Reno, Nev. 7 p.m.

sunday 30 Women’s soccer at Nevada, Reno, Nev. 7 p.m.

september 2009Friday 4 Women’s soccer vs Fresno State, Anteater Stadium 7 p.m.

Women’s Volleyball vs Montana, Crawford Court 1 p.m.

Women’s Volleyball vs Northeastern, Crawford Court 7 p.m.

Free summer Film seriesUCI Extension and Summer Session will again offer a free film series during July and August for the UCI community. Alfred Hitchcock’s “Rear Window” kicked off the series on July 2.

The series will be hosted in the Humanities Instructional Building, Room 100. Park-ing is available in the Mesa Structure for $5. Free snacks provided to enjoy during the film and attendees can participate in a group discussion after the film.

For more details, visit: http://www.summer.uci.edu/calendar/filmseries.aspx

James Stewart in “Rear Window”

For more events information, visit: today.uci.edu/calendar


I N C L O S I N G

C O M M E N T A r Y

hen I started my journey as president of the UCI Alumni As-sociation, my first goal was to strengthen our Board of Directors by recruiting volunteers with immense talent, energy, focus and stature. My second goal was to strengthen our alumni voice by

seeking opportunities to increase the visibility and relevance of our board, our association and our community.

Through the support of past president and former UC Regent Martha Newkirk, M.A. ’76, Ph.D. ’81, UCIAA hosted a reception where for the first time ever, the chair of the UCI Foundation, the chair of UCI’s CEO Roundtable and the UCIAA Board of Directors gathered to engage with one another and learn about the ef-forts of our respective organizations.

Through the support of volunteers and staff, UCIAA has attracted board members who are strong leaders within the community, representing a wide and varied spectrum of talent and influence — including one of our newest board members, Dennis Nguyen ’94, who has recently provided a most generous gift to benefit the School of Humanities.

Through the support of UCI alumni leaders including California State Assembly Member Jose Solorio ’92 and former Santa Ana Council Member Mike Garcia ’93,

the first breeding pair of Giant Anteaters to inhabit Orange County has arrived at the Santa Ana Zoo. And, the male anteater will be named … you guessed it … Peter!

I’m very proud of what alumni have been able to accomplish over the past two years. And now as California maneuvers through some of the most difficult budget challenges in its his-tory, UCI and the larger UC system have some very tough times ahead, where tough decisions will need to be made. But if there’s one thing I know to be true, Anteat-ers are a tough breed. As we all seek to move forward during these difficult times, I choose

Outgoing president sees much success ahead for UCI, alumni

to do so with a focus on the power of alumni. We are 120,000-strong and growing. We are success-ful. We are constant. We will never go away.

The long-term success of UCI will depend on our ability to authentically engage with our grow-ing alumni community. Alumni have much to celebrate and be proud of. I look forward to many more years of volunteer service for my beloved alma mater … a campus where outstanding fac-ulty taught me to think critically, care deeply and speak courageously … especially during difficult times.

Fiat lux,

W

At the end of the journey, there is light

Non Profit Org.

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SANTA ANA, CA

UCI Alumni Associat ionPhineas Banning Alumni House University of CaliforniaIrvine, CA 92697-122508

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A note to parents: If this issue is addressed to a daughter or son who has established a separate permanent residence, please notify us of that new address by sending an e-mail to: [email protected]. Please include your child’s alumni ID number found on the mailing label to the right.

Receiving duplicate copies? If you are receiving more than one copy of Your UCI please forward the mailing label panel from each issue you receive to:

Phineas Banning Alumni HouseUniversity of CaliforniaIrvine, CA 92697-1225

The Anteaters are here! The pair of breeding Anteaters that will be a part of the Tierre de las Pampas exhibit at the Santa Ana Zoo have arrived from Guyana. The six-year old male and female Giant Anteaters are happy, healthy and adjusting to their new home while still in quarantine.

Alumni generously supported the building of the habitat and have pledged additional support to name the male anteater, Peter, after the UCI mascot. Alumni and the general public will get an opportunity to meet the pair later this summer when the zoo introduces them late Summer / early Fall.

4 - Your UCI, Summer '09 Issue

Documents

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alumni relations coordinator

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