April is a month of traditions here at UC Davis. First and foremost, our campus’s longest-running annual event returns this year. That’s right, Picnic Day is now 108 years old. There will be a variety of activities, as there always are, and while some of the details are still in the final stages of planning and preparation, you can find more information on the picnic day website.

UC Davis Give Day coincides with picnic day again this year, too. And, just like in previous years, the college has a wide array of areas to support. From undergraduate travel and research experiences, to initiatives focused on bolstering diversity, equity and inclusion in the college, there are funds for every interest area and level of giving. Take a look at the college’s Give Day 2022 challenges, and help support life sciences at UC Davis with a gift.

This is also the time each year when prospective students are notified of their admission status. It’s been a happy and welcoming time over the last few weeks, during which those of us at UC Davis have welcomed the class of 2026 with messages and videos on social media. In fact, I joined one of the college’s communications interns, Hansinee, for a short Instagram welcome video to one of our newly-admitted students.

This month there are also in-person Storer Lectureship events. Bryan Dewsbury of Florida International University, Nieng Yan of Princeton University and Erich Jarvis of Rockefeller University are all on the schedule, and will be delivering their talks between now and the end of April. The Storer Lectureship is one of the oldest and most prestigious lecture series at UC Davis, and I’m always thrilled to welcome its speakers to our campus.

We’re into the month of April and spring quarter, and while there’s still quite a bit left in this academic year - not least of which will be in-person, campus-wide commencements for the class of 2022 - the time will undoubtedly pass quickly.

Until then though, there’s plenty to keep us busy.

Go Ags!

Featured image: The snipefish, an ocean-dwelling relative of the seahorse, has a very long, skinny snout ending in a tiny mouth - they feed with an elastic-boosted head flick. Lasting as little as two milliseconds, this flick is among the fastest feeding events ever recorded for fish. (Shutterstock)

A complete sequence of the human genome has finally been published by an international consortium of scientists, including researchers in the Department of Evolution and Ecology and the Genome Center.

Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology researchers provide an unprecedented glimpse into the process of meiosis, and shed light on questions about homolog pairing and how to prevent errors.

The BioLaunch program includes a mentor collective that pairs new and returning students, and a course that familiarizes new students with the college. The program helps students explore career opportunities and develop professional skills.