Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi gives her State of the Campus address to the Academic Senate’s Representative Assembly, this Thursday (Feb. 25).

The meeting, open to the public, is scheduled to begin at 2:10 p.m. in the multipurpose room at the Student Community Center. Katehi’s address is the first item on the agenda.

Phishing scam alert issued

A sure sign of spring is the emergence of tax-related phishing scams in your email inbox. Get your delete button ready.

One bogus email that surfaced at UC Berkeley and UCLA this week purported to come from UC's president and asked for "all our employee's reference copies of 2015 W-2 wages and tax statement." Its implausibility, language problems and request to send sensitive data via email mark this as a classic phishing fraud.

There will be more such messages, about taxes and otherwise. UC Berkeley has a page of examples. Here's a recent scam at UCLA. Here's one at UC Davis we marked up for an educational flier in 2009 — these things have been around forever.

Spam filters block most phishing messages, but when one reaches you anyway, just delete it. Be skeptical about any message that asks for private data, even if it seems to come from someone important to you. If you have doubts about a message at UC Davis, consult your department IT or the IT Express Service Desk, 530-754-HELP (4357)

Hot deal for research freezer trade-up

This deal is so hot and yet so cold at the same time: new energy-efficient, ultralow-temperature freezers for your research samples, for $9,650, less than half of the list price of $22,904. And you get free shipping and haul-away and recycling of your old freezer, provided it’s ready to go the day you receive your new one.

“Energy savings is also a deal,” said Kay Cole, a buyer in UC Davis Contracting Services, noting that the Thermo Scientific TSX freezer — with 600-box capacity in 28.6 cubic feet — uses less than 10 kilowatt hours per day, less than half what older freezers require. “Not only does it support carbon-neutrality goals but it also costs less in utility costs for the university to operate one of these freezers.”

The UC Office of the President negotiated the deal with Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., and all the campuses are getting the word out. The trade-up deal is scheduled to expire April 30. Fliers from UC Davis Contracting Services advise interested researchers to contact Thermo Fisher Scientific representative Mindy Cole, by phone, 650-269-2609, or email, mindy.cole@thermofisher.com.

Aggies step up consistently for Peace Corps

UC Davis retains its 14th-place ranking among large schools in the Peace Corps’ annual list of top volunteer-producing colleges and universities. UC Davis has been in the top 25 for 15 consecutive years.

In the latest statistics, UC Davis has 35 alumni in the Peace Corps, among 1,467 Aggies who have volunteered for the Peace Corps since its founding in 1961. The total number puts UC Davis in the top-20 volunteer-producing colleges and universities of all time.

Read more.

UC Davis Extension information sessions

UC Davis Extension is taking signups for a series of information sessions for extension programs for working professionals, to help them advance in their careers. A new program, “Fundraising and Development,” is led by Shaun Keister, vice chancellor, Development and Alumni Relations, and taught by members of his team.

The information sessions are free and open to the public. UC Davis staff and faculty, if they decide to enroll, are eligible for the same discount they receive on all UC Davis Extension programs: 20 percent to 50 percent, depending on time of enrollment.

Half of the information sessions are webinars, the other half are held at UC Davis Extension at Sutter Square Galleria, 2901 K St., Sacramento. “Fundraising and Development” has one of each, both on Tuesday, March 1: a webinar from 11 a.m. to noon, and an in-person session from 5:30 to 7 p.m.

Read more about the “Fundraising and Development” program.

Here is the rest of the schedule:

• Supervisory Skills and Management Development (webinar) — 2-3 p.m. Thursday, March 3
• Autism Education (webinar) — 9-10 a.m. Tuesday, March 8
• Web Development (webinar) — noon-1 p.m. Wednesday, March 9
• Health Informatics and Health Care Analytics (webinar) — 9-10 a.m. Thursday, March 10
• Environmental, Health and Safety (webinar) — noon-1 p.m. Wednesday, March 23
• Construction Management Mixer (Sutter Square Galleria) — 5:30-7 p.m. Tuesday, March 29
• Paralegal Studies (Sutter Square Galleria) — 6:15-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 6
• Project Management (Sutter Square Galleria) — 6:15-7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 7
• Business Analysis (Sutter Square Galleria) — 6:15-7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 7
• Professional Coaching for Life and Work (Sutter Square Galleria) — 5:30-7 p.m. Tuesday, April 12

The sessions give participants the opportunity to network with peers, meet program representatives and instructors, and learn how certificates from UC Davis Extension can help professionals grow their careers.

Space is limited for the information sessions at Sutter Square Galleria. Parking is free.

Registration can be arranged online, for the Sutter Square Galleria sessions and the webinars.

Rio Olympics: Who's going?

UC Davis News and Media Relations is compiling a list of UC Davis afilliates — students, alumni, staff and faculty — who may be participating in the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro as athletes or coaches, or in other ways, say, as officials, trainers. medical or veterinary staff, or volunteers. Please let us know, so we can share with the campus community and the general media. Send emails to dateline.ucdavis.edu.

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