At UC Davis and all around the UC system this week, students, faculty and staff are invited to make or renew their acquaintance with the U.S. Constitution, in celebration of Constitution Day, Thursday (Sept. 17).

UC’s Constitution Day website includes the Constitution, of course, along with the Bill of Rights and other amendments (11-27), plus many other resources.

“I hope this brief exploration will spark your curiosity and broaden your knowledge of and appreciation for this historic and important document,” UC President Janet Napolitano writes in a message to students. She encourages them to go outside their majors to take Constitution-related courses, and to take advantage of the UC's print and electronic library holdings on the Constitution.

Survey informs strategic planning on diversity

Do you coordinate any UC Davis programs, initiatives or services that address, promote or support diversity and inclusion?

If so, the Strategic Planning Committee on Diversity and Inclusion wants to hear from you, via an online questionnaire, to help inform the planning process in 2015-16.

Coordinators are asked to complete the brief questionnaire for each program, initiative or service. Each form should take no more than 10 minutes. The committee is asking for responses by Wednesday, Sept. 23.

The committee is encouraging broad participation, so as to get as complete a picture as possible of diversity and inclusion efforts around the university. If you know of someone who should be filling out the questionnaire, please share the link.

The committee invites emails from people who wish to participate in the discussion on diversity and inclusion planning, but who wish to do so outside of the survey format.

Vet school aids animals in Valley fire

The School of Veterinary Medicine is taking emergency cases from the Valley fire and assisting in other ways as well on animal welfare issues associated with the blaze in Lake and Napa counties.

As of Monday afternoon (Sept. 14), the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital had received several farm animals for treatment of burns.

Claudia Sonder, a veterinarian and director of the Center for Equine Health, is heading up the school’s response to fire. She has been helping to triage animal health needs at the Napa County Fairgrounds in Calistoga.

The Veterinary Emergency Response Team, led by Professor John Madigan, also has been activated. Under the supervision of fire officials and utilities managers, team members are prepared to enter areas that are under evacuation orders, to check on animals that might have been left behind.

Resources for animal owners.

Follow the veterinary school’s fire-related efforts on Twitter and Facebook.

Wellness Garden to be dedicated at student health center

The Student Health and Wellness Center plans a brief dedication ceremony at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday (Sept. 15) for the center’s new Wellness Garden — another way the center addresses people’s overall wellbeing, encompassing a healthy body, a sound mind and a tranquil spirit.

The garden includes a majestic, heritage oak, and a broad variety of native plants, with consideration give to those that attract wildlife and are drought tolerant.

Other features include a ceramic mural and gardens within a garden: the Sensory Garden (including aromatic herbs, tasty fruits and soft-textured foliage) and the Harvest Garden (an organic plot cared for by Health Education and Promotion student staff and volunteers). The Harvest Garden lives up to its name by providing vegetables, fruits, herbs and edible flowers.

The garden is behind the Student Health and Wellness Center at the southwest corner of La Rue and Orchard Road. Everyone is welcome to attend the dedication, which will come amid an in-service training day at the center.

More information, including a video.

Welltopia website earns national award

The Welltopia website, a project of the UC Davis Institute for Population Health Improvement and the California Department of Health Care Services, is the recipient of a 2015 Digital Government Achievement Award.

The award is from the Center for Digital Government, a national research and advisory institute.

Launched in February, Welltopia is a one-stop resource on issues that affect physical, mental and emotional health.

“In only a year, Welltopia has grown from an uncertain idea to an award-winning and trusted source of information for thousands of Californians,” said Kenneth W. Kizer, director of the Institute for Population Health Improvement. “Welltopia is a great example of how partnerships between the University of California and state government agencies can benefit all Californians.”

Welltopia includes links to free resources that can help Californians with job training, substance abuse issues, tracking meals and physical activity, relationship communication, stress relief and an array of other issues that can impact health. The site even has resources to help with housing, food, transportation and utilities.

Registrar’s office has new home

The Office of the University Registrar is open for business in 3100 Dutton Hall, after moving out of the basement of Mrak Hall. The registrar’s office joins Financial Aid and Scholarships, Student Accounting and the Cashier’s Office in Dutton Hall.