Foothill community raises $1M to fight cancer

Like most communities, Auburn has seen its share of cancer. But this Gold Rush-era town has done something perhaps no similar-sized city has accomplished. In a little less than four years, the community has raised $1 million dollars for cancer research.

"What made it work was a just cause and a committed community," says Virgil Traynor, an Auburn veterinarian who spearheaded the fund-raising effort with his good friend, Dick Azevedo, an Auburn-based businessman. Traynor was successfully treated for prostate cancer at UC Davis Cancer Center years ago.

"This is a first," says Ralph deVere White, director of the UC Davis Cancer Center. "The generous people of Auburn are a model for how fund-raising can become a community effort."

It took a community to raise the money, but a few individuals worked especially hard. For instance, professional football Hall-of-Famer Jim Otto, who moved to Auburn after retiring from a storied career with the Oakland Raiders, joined the effort after he completed treatment for prostate cancer at UC Davis Cancer Center.

Organizers have now set a new goal: to raise the fund total to $1.5 million. That will fund, in perpetuity, a faculty chair in basic cancer research at the cancer center.

The endowed chair will be named in honor of the Auburn Community Cancer Endowment Fund. That, too, will be a first. Other endowed chairs at UC Davis have been named after individuals and corporations -- but never a whole community.

Workshop to examine conflict of interest issues

Campus community members are invited to learn more about navigating challenging conflict of interest issues during a video workshop set for March 16. The workshop runs 8:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., in Room 6 of Olson Hall.

The "Conflict of Interest Management" video shows a panel discussion presented by the National Council of University Research Administrators. A question and answer session will follow, and representatives from UC Davis Sponsored Programs, Extramural Accounting, and Technology Transfer will be on hand.

The video offers tested methods of conflict of interest management. There will be an overview of law, institutional obligation and policy requirements, identification of risk categories, and management strategies, such as the practical application for managing financial interests in research, start-up companies, and managing financial interests in research with human subjects.

To register or for more details, contact rfmcclure@ucdavis.edu or (530) 752-6484.

Testimonies, inauguration keep leaders busy

This was a particularly high-profile week for UC leaders.

On Monday and Tuesday, UC President Robert Dynes was slated to testify on UC's budget needs before the California Senate and Assembly budget subcommittees in Sacramento.

In addition, UC Provost M.R.C. Greenwood testified Tuesday on issues related to the Master Plan for Higher Education.

The inauguration of Marye Anne Fox as chancellor of UC San Diego was set to take place Thursday.

And today, Dynes was to make an advocacy trip to the Imperial Valley, including visits with local educators, students, parents, growers, transportation planners and UC alumni.

UC researchers earn National Medal of Science

President George W. Bush announced in February that three UC researchers were among the eight recipients of the National Medal of Science, the highest national honor accorded to a scientist. The medals are scheduled to be awarded at a White House ceremony on March 14, 2005. The new laureates are:

• J. Michael Bishop, chancellor of UC San Francisco and a Nobel Prize laureate (medicine, 1989), honored for his achievements in the biological sciences.
• R. Duncan Luce, a behavioral scientist at UC Irvine, honored for his achievements in the behavioral/social sciences; and
• John Prausnitz, a professor of chemical engineering at UC Berkeley, honored for his achievements in engineering.

Established by Congress in 1959, the medal recognizes scientists whose pioneering research in the areas of physical, biological, mathematical, engineering, behavioral, or social sciences have led to a better understanding of the world.

Of the 409 National Medals of Science presented since the program's inception, 51 of them have been awarded to researchers affiliated with UC.

Slots on advisory committee boards are available

Members of the UC Davis community are invited to become involved in issues affecting the campus by applying to join an administrative advisory committee for the 2005-06 academic year. Applications should be submitted by March 7.

Membership is available on committees advising on topics including: arts and lectures, athletics, campus unions and recreation, child care, disability issues, the status of women at Davis, animal use and care, chemical and biological safety and conflict of interest. See http://chancellor.ucdavis.edu/aac/ for details.

Children's hospital plans Change Exchange event

This year, UC Davis Children's Hospital is launching its new Change Exchange Secret Agent program, in which participants agree to collect spare change from friends, family members and colleagues to donate to the Children's Miracle Network. UC Davis Children's Hospital is the local affiliate that benefits from CMN funds.

Donors to the program will be invited to bring their change to a Community Day on April 9, which will include a reception featuring snacks, music, door prizes, representatives of the UC Davis Police Department's K-9 unit, the UC Davis Fire Prevention office, fingerprinting and other community programs.

For details, contact (916) 734-9192 or jacquelyn.kay-mills@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu.

CAAA looks to recognize outstanding alumni

The Cal Aggie Alumni Association is accepting nominations for its 2005 alumni awards. The awards honor six alumni whose accomplishments reflect well on their alma mater. Nominations are due by March 21.

The CAAA will select winners in April, and awardees will be notified in May. The awards ceremony is slated to take place Oct. 8 in the ARC Ballroom. For more information, see http://www.ucdavis-alumni.com/AWARDS.htm.