February 2005

Dear Colleagues:

An Invitation to Community-wide Celebration

A new year is underway and the campus is once again buzzing with the varied activities of our students, faculty and staff. 2005 promises to be busy, and I look forward to continuing to strengthen the connections I’ve made in these first six months.

I hope you’ll join me on Thursday, March 3, for a university-wide event: my inauguration as UCSD’s seventh chancellor. Our theme, “Together We Achieve the Extraordinary,” captures the spirit and energy of UCSD, and I am honored to formally join this wonderful community by being installed as your chancellor. The ceremony in RIMAC Arena begins at 10 a.m. and is expected to conclude at about 11:45 a.m. Everyone is invited, as well, to a complimentary luncheon on RIMAC Field immediately following the ceremony. I hope you will attend this event that celebrates the achievements and prospects of our diverse campus community.

In my six months as chancellor, I have marveled at how a strong university mission connects us all – students, faculty, staff, alumni, supporters and constituents. The inauguration theme and the March 3rd festivities reflect that connection and focus on UCSD’s tradition of teamwork. This legacy of working together was begun by the visionaries who launched the campus and has been expanded by our partnerships throughout the region and the world. We are now poised to enter an exciting new phase. For more information about the inauguration, please watch for updates on the inauguration web site at: http://foxinauguration.ucsd.edu.

That same day, at 4:30 p.m., UCSD will host the 2005 Kyoto Laureate Symposium Basic Sciences Presentation, featuring 2005 Kyoto Prize recipient Alfred G. Knudson, a pioneer in the field of cancer genetics. The presentation in the Price Center Ballroom is one of a series of Kyoto Laureate Symposium activities cosponsored by UCSD, San Diego State University and the University of San Diego. This event is open to the public, and all are welcome to attend. In addition to the inauguration and Kyoto Symposium, here are some other news items and upcoming events:

Governor’s 2005-2006 State Budget Proposal

After four years of substantial cuts, the budget proposed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger on January 10 offers a 3.6 percent increase in state funding for the University of California, including a 3 percent increase in funding for faculty and staff compensation and a 2.5 percent increase in funding for enrollment growth. We are very pleased that the proposal fulfills the compact between the governor and the university to stabilize UC funding. The funding plan, which now undergoes review and revision in the House and Senate, includes both promising and troubling proposals for education. Please be assured that we will work with UC President Dynes, the governor and the legislature to seek restoration of critical educational funding. For more details about the budget proposal.

UCSD Black History Month: “Powerful Voices”

Our campus will commemorate Black History Month (BHM) with a full schedule of academic and cultural events, and I invite everyone to participate. The theme of our 2005 Black History Month observance is “Powerful Voices: Celebrating the Voices of the African Diaspora.” The culminating event, the Third Annual UCSD Black History Month Celebration and Scholarship Brunch, will take place Saturday, Feb. 26, and our featured speaker will be author and journalist Bebe Moore Campbell. This yearly tradition is an important way to build our community spirit and reinforce our commitment to diversity, and its educational impact on our students is immeasurable. I am pleased that the Office of the Chancellor will be a major BHM sponsor along with the UJIMA Network and the Office of the Vice Chancellor, Student Affairs. For details about this month’s events, visit the UJIMA Network’s UCSD Black History Month Calendar at: http://blackhistorymonth.ucsd.edu.

Rady Groundbreaking/Dynes Inaugural Visit

On Friday, Jan. 21, we broke ground on the first building of the Rady School of Management. This building is the first instruction and research facility at UCSD to be funded entirely by private initiatives. Upon completion of raising funds and the necessary approval from the Office of the President, the new building will be named Otterson Hall in honor of the late William Otterson, co-founder of UCSD CONNECT, in appreciation for his contributions to the San Diego business community. To learn more about this campus milestone event, and to see architectural renderings of the new facility, visit the Rady School of Management Website.

President Bob Dynes UCSD Visit

On Monday, Jan. 24, President Bob Dynes visited UCSD in the final stop of his 14-month statewide inaugural tour, a series of campus-based visits affording him opportunities to listen to concerns about and expectations for the university. In a town hall meeting for faculty, staff and students, President Dynes shared lessons he has learned about the university’s importance to California, and he answered questions about staff salaries, student fees, campus diversity and transportation. A full report on the President’s visit will be published in the new edition of “This Week @ UCSD,” our campus online newsletter. Click here to subscribe to “This Week." You can also read the current issue at This Week @ UCSD.

UCSD Scores High in Two World Rankings

For most of its 45 years, UCSD has placed among the top universities in the nation in an array of high-profile academic rankings. Now our reputation for excellence has spread around the world, as evidenced by two separate international rankings released on opposite sides of the globe. A new global ranking by The (London) Times Higher Education Supplement lists UCSD as 24th (and sixth among American public universities) in the table of the world’s 200 best universities. And an online academic ranking of 500 world universities compiled by Shanghai Jiao Tong University puts UCSD at 13th overall (and second among all U.S. research universities). Both rankings were based on comprehensive criteria that included awards and citations, research output, and quality of education. We all should take pride in these benchmarks of UCSD’s ascension on the world stage.

Campus Service to Iraq Troops, Local Needy, Tsunami Victims

In so many ways, our institutional mission of public service is carried out by individuals, by students, faculty and staff who donate their time and money to those in need. In the aftermath of the tsunami that devastated so much of coastal Asia, our campus has rallied to help the victims and survivors. Faculty in our “Experts On Demand” program have contributed knowledge to media coverage of the disaster, and UCSD medical personnel have gone overseas to care for tsunami victims. (More Details) Our campus community will continue to support national and international relief efforts.

In addition, during the holiday season, staff at UCSD Healthcare, Jacobs School of Engineering, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and other campus units participated in gift drives for U.S. troops in Iraq, including many from nearby Camp Pendleton, and for local low-income families. (More Details)

I want to take this opportunity to express my personal gratitude to all of you who have been so generous and selfless. You bring honor to this university.

As always, I encourage you to provide comments via my Web page. Please pass along any suggestions via my chancellor@ucsd.edu email address.

With warm regards,

Marye Anne Fox