Inspired by each of the entries in the Chancellor’s Residence Interior Design Contest, Gary and LeShelle May have decided to draw upon all six of the ideas put forth for decorating the residence’s public spaces, including the living room and study. Therefore, each designer receives a $500 Amazon gift card for first place.

“We enjoyed all of the ideas presented,” LeShelle May said. “Each submission was carefully presented and we loved something from each of the design presentations. The final results of how we incorporate aspects of each will be truly representative of the Davis community.”

Chancellor Gary May said: “We’re thrilled that we had students and alumni eager to participate in the contest. We believe the Residence belongs to the UC Davis community, and it was important to us that the community could help shape the space.”

Congratulations to the winners: Rose Cabral, alumna, 2006 (study); Deanna Chung, student, veterinary medicine (living room); Francesca Francisco, student, psychology (study); Alyssa Fumagalli, student, communication and psychology (living room); Susie Garrison, alumna, 1978 (living room); and Lien Sanchez, alumna, 1998 (living room).

The contest also included a People’s Choice award — and the voters chose Chung’s living room design. She receives a $150 Amazon gift card and Aggie swag, on top of her $500 gift card.

The Mays hosted the contest participants at the Chancellor’s Residence on Aug. 9, in what was the first official dinner the Mays hosted since Gary May took the helm.

The living room and study of the Chancellor Residence will be finalized in the next couple of months.

Coming and going: SiteFarm and SmartSite

Information and Educational Technology announced new tools for transitioning to SiteFarm (a new platform for websites) and transitioning out of the SmartSite learning management system (which has been succeeded by Canvas).

• SiteFarm — Free to campus departments and units, this platform is based on Drupal 8 software and has the look and feel of UC Davis’ main web pages. “To help you get a strong start and make a thoughtful, organized migration (from Cascade), we’ve created a series of articles for you to read,” the SiteFarm team announced Aug. 7. “The information has been designed with the helpful assistance of your colleagues who have participated in the beta migration early testing group.” More information is available in this article: “Migration Tools Launched.”
• SmartSite — This learning management system is being retired. Your ability to create new project sites will end Sept. 1, and support for project sites will end during the 2017-18 academic year, possibly as soon as December. Several alternatives are available, but, if none is right for you, please use the new “SmartSite Project Sites Wizard” for recommendations. Read more in this TechNews article.

Office hours with Strat Comm video team

More and more of the university’s stories are being told through videos, and if you need a little help with one, the Office of Strategic Communications’ multimedia team will hold office hours next week to answer questions and give advice.

The session will be from 2 to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 30, in 345 Mrak Hall. Anyone working on an active project — whether it’s in the planning stages or being edited — is encouraged to come with questions. 

Attendees will need to bring their own equipment, and should note this is not a tutorial or presentation. Tips for creating video with a mobile phone are available in the team’s May presentation to the Communication Council.

Contact Joe Proudman with any questions by email or phone, 530-752-6397.

Nominate ‘WorkLife Champions’ among us

WorkLife and Wellness has called on the UC Davis community to nominate “WorkLife Champions” among our managers and supervisors, so they can be recognized during National Work and Family Month, observed in October.

Through this recognition, university officials seek to “normalize, encourage and model the benefits of work-life integration for UC Davis staff,” reads an article in the summer edition of the WorkLife and Wellness e-newsletter.

In considering a nomination, people should ask themselves questions like these: Does your manager/supervisor provide emotional support, show sympathy, and offer day-to-day assistance and resources to facilitate your management of your professional and personal demands? Does your manager/supervisor create flexibility around when, where and how work gets done, with a focus on outcome? Is your manager/supervisor a model of positive work-life integration?

The recognition nomination form is available online.

Campus poster calendars are here!

Happy New (Academic) Year! The 2017-18 campus poster calendars are here! More specifically, they’re at the Campus Store (Memorial Union).

Calendars are $2.49 apiece and qualify for the 10 percent departmental purchase discount when paid by recharge account or P-Card. (Please note: Recharge account payment requires a UC Davis Stores purchase order form, available online on UCD Buy (catalog No. 71461-198).

Preorders, packed and ready to go, are being held in the art and school supplies section of the Campus Store (downstairs). P-Card customers: Please bring your card with you when you pick up your order. Recharge customers: If you submitted your purchase order form on or before Aug. 14, your order is ready. If you were contacted about needing to submit the form, you need to submit it by email or bring it with you in order to pick up your calendars.

UCOP makes annual payroll disclosure

The UC Office of the President on Aug. 18 made its annual public disclosure of employee compensation for the previous calendar year. The 2016 payroll data, along with a summary analysis, is online and is being made available to news media upon request.

Officials said the release of such data is part of the university’s commitment to being transparent and publicly accountable, and is consistent with similar practices at many other public institutions.

UC officials pointed out that employee compensation at public institutions like the university is considered a public record under the California Public Records Act. UC personnel policies — PPSM-80 for staff and APM-160 for academic appointees — specify the information (such as name, position title and salary) that, in general, the university shall release upon request.

At UC Davis, questions about access to payroll data may be directed to Jana Gabby, information practices coordinator, by phone, 530-752-8715; or by email to the Public Records Office.

OptumRx out in 2018, Anthem Blue Cross in

Anthem Blue Cross will become the administrator of pharmacy benefits for all of UC’s preferred provider organization (PPO) medical plans, effective Jan. 1, the UC Office of the President announced in this UCnet article.

This change from OptumRx to Anthem Blue Cross will affect faculty, staff and retirees enrolled in the following PPO plans: Core, UC Care, UC Health Savings Plan, UC High Option Supplement to Medicare and UC Medicare PPO with Rx.

Anthem already administers medical and behavioral health benefits for UC’s PPO plans, and will continue in that role in 2018.

OptumRx will continue as the pharmacy benefits administrator for UC’s PPO plans through 2017. More information about OptumRx PPO pharmacy benefits is available online or by phone, 855-798-4682.

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