UC Davis has just appointed Ron Mangun and Amanda Guyer co-directors of the Center for Mind and Brain (CMB). As co-directors, they will lead the center for the next three years.

For Mangun, a distinguished professor of psychology and neurology, this appointment extends his leadership of the research center he founded. Guyer, a professor of human ecology in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, has served as CMB associate director since 2017. 

Silver Oak Cellars, a family-run business known for its cabernet sauvignon and pinot noir wines, donated $100,000 to the University of California, Davis, to support research on how characteristics like soil chemistry and location affect wines that we enjoy and attribute to specific places, including but not limited to Napa Valley. 

The money will help fund Department of Viticulture and Enology research to better understand how the same grapes planted in different locations can result in wines that have distinctive flavor, texture and other sensory attributes. 

Congratulations to the class of 2024! We are so happy to celebrate the amazing accomplishments of our students. This year, the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences is graduating approximately 1,700 undergraduates and 193 graduate students. Undergraduate commencement will be held June 14-16 at the Golden 1 Center, and for graduate students it is June 13 at the University Credit Union Center. Our graduating class always inspires me. This week we celebrate their efforts and incredible achievements.

Warren Winiarski, renowned Napa Valley winemaker, grape grower, land preservationist, and philanthropist, passed away on June 7, 2024 — the grapes of what would have been his 60th harvest still ripening on the vines. Winiarski devoted his life to elevating the heritage of wine and its cultural importance in the United States and around the world, and preserving the agricultural land of his beloved Napa Valley.

If you asked students what it’s like to take a managerial economics or other class with Kristin Kiesel, they will tell you she is kind, empathetic, a role model and so much more. 

The associate professor of teaching in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics is being awarded the Excellence of Education Award from the Associated Students of the University of California, Davis, or ASUCD.

Winners are nominated by students and the award honors teaching faculty for their dedication to students and undergraduate education.

Dan Potter is the new chair of the Department of Plant Sciences, overseeing graduate and undergraduate programming, 60 faculty members, several emeriti professors and many greenhouses, labs and teaching facilities. 

Construction officially began on the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation Wednesday with a groundbreaking event celebrating the future $64.4 million facility at the University of California, Davis.

May has been an absolute whirlwind of activity—the college is thriving and full of people teaching, conducting cutting edge research, and engaging with communities. I have had the pleasure of speaking at several events this month. We welcomed admitted transfer students at Aggie Day, celebrated members of our community at the Walker Advising Awards and Bradford Rominger Award ceremonies, met with current and potential donors and attended and hosted several events on agriculture innovation and sustainability.

Patsy Eubanks Owens, associate dean of the UC Davis College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and a professor of landscape architecture, has been elected to the American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA) Council of Fellows. This prestigious honor recognizes her exceptional contributions to the profession and broader communities. Owens is one of this year’s 40 ASLA fellows, one of the highest honors the ASLA bestows on members.

The University of California, Davis, a leader in the development of world-class strawberry varieties for the California and global markets, is terminating all strawberry licensing agreements with Eurosemillas S.A., which has been a master licensee for older UC Davis strawberry varieties in countries outside of the United States.