Dear Colleagues,



Happy Spring Quarter! Hopefully you’ve all settled into the new session with a sense of purpose, appreciation for the additional sunny weather, and perhaps a little excitement that Commencement is on the horizon. 


As you may know, I have been emphasizing the importance of transparent communication encompassing observed challenges, potential ways forward, and implemented solutions. In my latest blog post, I have also shared specific ideas from colleagues throughout UC San Diego about how our internal communication pathways could be more purposeful or effective. I hope you’ll read it with a eye to what ideas might work well for your unit or department. 


To put some of these ideas into action at our last Faculty and Research Town Hall, held in mid-March, we used some real-time interactivity tools to gain feedback from participants on a variety of timely topics. If you missed this town hall, you can see a recording of it on our YouTube channel. We hope to offer more of these opportunities to gain feedback on the issues of the day  from all participants, including those who may not feel comfortable directly posing a question or openly submitting comments. 


Finally, just a reminder that I hold regular office hours, as well as reverse office hours where I visit classrooms or research labs/studios at the invitation of faculty.  


I want to hear from you and I look forward to learning more about your celebrations and challenges through one of these communication avenues.


Elizabeth H. Simmons

Let's Chat!

Just a reminder that the easiest way for us to talk is to come in during my office hours. Click the button below to find out more and schedule a time!

More Information

Read the latest EVC blog post...


Colleagues' Ideas About Honest and Purposeful Communication


Ever since my blog post on “Honest and Purposeful Communication”, I have been visiting with groups of campus staff and leaders to talk about the post and hear their thoughts on the topic. The conversations have been very lively and productive. People offered many ideas about how their local department or the entire university could do better at communication and suggested how this could improve the campus experience for students and employees alike. 

Continue Reading... 

Tritons Belong Initiative - Upcoming Events


As part of the Tritons Belong initiative, several upcoming educational sessions will be held:


Office of Civil Rights, Department of Education: Title VI Online Training on Shared Ancestry training will be held on April 30 at 1 p.m. The U.S. Department of Education, Department of Justice Office for Civil Rights (OCR) will facilitate a training for campus leaders on the background of the OCR, a university’s legal obligations under Title VI, and examples of OCR investigations of complaints alleging Antisemitic or Islamophobic harassment. Attorneys Michael Chang and Maria Asturias will also share how the OCR can support campus leaders through these difficult times on U.S. campuses. Registration is required by April 26. 


Peacemaking in Higher Education: An online educational event facilitated by Karen Biestman, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Student Equity and Inclusion, will be held on May 9 at 9 a.m. The session will cover the roots of Peacemaking in Indigenous frameworks of conflict resolution that are designed to address harm and restore balance with the community. Participants will be encouraged to listen and speak from their hearts. Those interested should register online.

April is National Sexual Assault Awareness Month


April is designated as National Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SAAM) at UC San Diego. Sexual assault is an issue that affects our entire community. The goal of SAAM is to raise awareness about sexual violence and to educate communities and individuals about their role in prevention. SAAM has been recognized at UC San Diego since 2007 with efforts led by CARE at the Sexual Assault Resource Center and campus partners. For a full calendar of events for this month, please see the CARE webpage for SAAM.



Dial 988 for Crisis Support


Crisis support is available from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Dialing 988 from any phone will automatically route to the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Faculty and staff are encouraged to refer students to Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) which offers support services to help UC San Diego students during times of crisis. Individuals can call (858) 534-3755 to contact CAPS or go to caps.ucsd.edu. Crisis services are available 24/7. Faculty and staff should contact the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program for services.

Join Us at the CURIOSITY Forum on April 25

EVC Simmons invites all faculty to attend the CURIOSITY Forum: Cultivating Relationships & Interdisciplinary Opportunities by Sharing Intellectual Thoughts and Collegiality on April 25, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. At this forum, attendees will have an opportunity to hear five outstanding UC San Diego assistant professors talk about their research, followed by a hosted reception. This year’s forum will be held on Thursday, April 25 in the Great Hall. Please click here to RSVP today!


This year's speakers are:

  • Alexander Bullen is a nephrologist and researcher at the VA San Diego Healthcare System and an assistant professor at UC San Diego. His overarching research interest is investigating kidney biomarkers' role in acute kidney injury. 
  • Moira Decima is an assistant professor at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Her work combines field work on global class vessels, samples from collections, and experimental manipulations to answer fundamental questions related to plankton structure and function, species distributions and diversity, and the role of zooplankton in marine foodwebs and biogeochemical cycling.
  • Kelema Lee Moses is an assistant professor in Urban Studies and Planning and trained in architectural history. Her research examines the built environment, land use, and race in the Americas and Oceania within the context of colonial, postcolonial, and decolonial discourses.
  • Alexandro Segade is an assistant professor in Visual Arts. Segade is an interdisciplinary artist whose projects in video, performance, drawing and installation span gallery, theatrical and site-specific contexts.
  • Mattia Serra is an assistant professor of Physics whose research group develops theories to detect order in chaos and understand how living systems self-organize.

Supporting Students in Distress


Case Management Services will be facilitating two upcoming training sessions for “Creating a Culture of Care: Supporting Students in Distress.” This free and interactive training is designed to assist faculty and staff in recognizing and supporting students in distress. What is a Student In Distress? A student whose academic progress or functioning in the university environment is adversely affected due to a number of indicators that are impacting their well-being and/or the well-being of others. This is an excellent training for any UC San Diego staff or faculty member that has high interactions with students.


Topics Covered:

  • Participants will know how to recognize a student in distress.
  • Participants will know how to provide support to a student in distress.
  • Participants will know how to connect a student in distress with support systems.
  • Participants will be prepared to offer the best resource to support students in distress.


The two upcoming classes to choose from will be held online on May 9, 2024 at 9 a.m. and in-person on June 6, 2024 at 9 a.m.  Register on the UC Learning Center and search keyword “Students in Distress.” For more information, please contact Chrystian Smith at cas014@ucsd.edu.

Triton Travel Program & Concur Updates - Lean, Lunch and Learn (L3) Workshop


Join us to learn more about the comprehensive suite of services and solutions to help you travel for business on behalf of UC San Diego, including payment solutions designed to reduce out-of-pocket expenses, mobile app receipt management that is now available for delegates, and the benefits that come with booking through Concur. IPPS will also talk about the updates that were made to the Concur platform. All are welcome, especially if you are involved in booking and/or reconciling business travel on behalf of UC San Diego for yourself or others. Register here or visit the Center for Operational Excellence website: L3 Workshops for more information and previous sessions.

Exploring Immigration Protection Rights for Victims of Violence


UC San Diego staff and faculty are invited to an informational session hosted by Casa Cornelia Law Center to educate themselves on options and protections for immigrants who are victims of power and gender-based violence. Hosted at the Women's Center on Thursday, April 18, from noon to 1 p.m. in the  Women's Center in Student Center West, Bldg. 290. Light refreshments will be provided. 

Casa Cornelia Law Center is a public interest law firm providing quality pro bono legal services to victims of human and civil rights violations. This offering is not affiliated with the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program (FSAP) or CARE at SARC; however, we encourage folks to utilize those campus resources as well.  If you have questions or would like to discuss further, please contact Assistant Director for Education, Hannah Aksamit at haksamit@ucsd.edu or call (858) 822-1477.

Application Period Now Open for V.O.I.C.E. Initiative


The UC National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement is pleased to share the application for the 2024-2025 Valuing Open and Inclusive Conversation and Engagement (VOICE) Initiative. VOICE provides up to $5,000 of funding for UC students, staff, and faculty who are interested in conducting research or coordinating programs that further the Center’s mission of exploring the intersection of expression, engagement and democratic learning and considering what can be done to restore trust in the value of free speech on college campuses and within society at large. Applications are due by May 24, 2024 at midnight.

Provide Feedback on the SPUR Program


The Scaling Paid Undergraduate Research, or SPUR, Program is seeking feedback on the various solutions presented for how best to tackle challenges related to increasing the number of and participation in paid undergraduate research opportunities. Please visit the SPUR Present page to see the solutions and provide feedback.

UCSD-JacobsSchool-20240322-Cortes-1200x628 image

UC San Diego Among Multidisciplinary Awards Providing $221M Nationally for Cutting-Edge Projects

UC San Diego researchers and scientists are prominent in four projects selected by the Department of Defense to develop cutting-edge technologies.

Read More

Opening Portals to the Underworld

A photographic exhibition opening the evening of Wednesday, April 24 at the Qualcomm Institute captures caves long-considered by the Maya to be entrances to the underworld.

Read More