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. At UC Davis, we are dedicated to working with communities to develop solutions for the greater good of society, and our students are leaving with the tremendous capacity to make a difference. A degree from UC Davis signifies the educational successes and preparation for greater opportunity and provides inspiration and meaning to our graduates and their communities. We hope they leave with a deeper understanding of their potential for possibility, creativity and excellence. We are so proud of each and every one of them and look forward to their continued success.

In the spirit of acommplishments, each year the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences honors several students for their exceptional accomplishments in the areas of academic excellence, distinctive leadership and community service. These awards include the College Medal for scholastic excellence, the Mary Regan Meyer Prize for serving humanity, the Charles Hess Community Service Award for outstanding public or community service and the Dean’s Circle Award for outstanding academics and community service. Read about this year’s stellar award winners.

This month’s Highlights is full of engaging research on air quality, awards and celebration. We have a story on how fish and birds have the potential to influence air quality and rice production, research regarding increased air pollution from the Salton Sea’s exposed lakebed, a new department chair in plant sciences, and several stories featuring student researchers including the Insect Scholars program and the Iron Brew winners. 

We also celebrated the groundbreaking for the Lynda and Stewart Resnick Center for Agricultural Innovation. The new facility was made possible by the Resnicks’ historic $50 million gift to UC Davis in 2022, which directed $40 million to the center while setting aside $10 million for annual competitive research grants to investigate new uses for agricultural byproducts from California’s iconic specialty crops. This building was designed to give us the flexibility to try new ideas and scale up research quickly so that we may better understand which concepts have the potential for commercial success. It will house areas dedicated to hands-on experiential learning and student participation in research including a digital, AI and big data lab, student design and collaboration hub, robotics testing lab and fabrication shop.

I hope you all join me in celebrating our students and the close of another successful school year! Enjoy the change in pace that comes with summer and the opportunity to take a break. Thank you for your commitment and contributions to the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences! 

Go Ags!