A Message From the Dean

There is no way around the fact that May has been a difficult month for our community. The violent attacks on three of our community members have left us shocked and horrified. We are still grappling with the heartache we feel over the loss of UC Davis student Karim Abou Najm and Davis resident Henry Breaux whose mission in life was to define compassion. We also hold space for the third victim, Kimberlee Guillory, and hope that she is recovering well. Karim was a beloved and exceptionally bright student and he is missed dearly.

After a cold and rainy winter, it’s heartwarming to see beautiful flowers blooming and hear birds chirping. Spring is a seasonal celebration of the natural beauty around us, especially on campus where rainbow chard is being harvested at the Student Farm, ducklings are waddling around the Arboretum and new foals are getting their footing at the Horse Barn.

Early signs of spring’s renewal fed by hearty March rains are starting to bloom, adding vibrancy to the campus. These days also provide a chance to welcome the next generation of Aggies after UC Davis formally accepted thousands of new first year students. About 9,400 first year and transfer students are expected to enroll this fall.

We are two months into the new year, and our college is thriving and alive with activity. This month has been busy for our college and the entire campus! As the days slowly lengthen, the number of prospective students coming to visit us grows. I love seeing groups of families on tours, threading their way through the Arboretum, past the Eye on Mrak, and along the bike path towards the Coffee House while listening to the guides give bits of information about why they love UC Davis. 

On behalf of Dean Helene Dillard, who is taking much deserved time away from campus, happy new year to all our students, faculty, staff, alumni and partners who tirelessly work to make the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences a unique place of excellence for learning, research and community engagement.

We start this year with the promise of a fortified snowpack and welcome rain that we hope recharges groundwater and brings some relief to the prolonged drought. The new year also brings positivity and progress to campus.

At the end of the year, I like to reflect on all our college has accomplished and give thanks for the dedication and hard work of our faculty, students, staff, alumni and friends who keep the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences a place of excellence. Please scroll down to enjoy our year in review video and photographs of some of the college’s highlights from this past year. I wish you and yours a joyous holiday season and a wonderful year ahead.

The fall colors are incredibly vibrant this year with their red, orange and yellow leaves glowing against a backdrop of bright blue sky. We have so much to be grateful for this November, and I want to express my gratitude for all of our dedicated faculty, staff and students who remain focused on the mission of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

The fall temperatures are finally dropping and the campus is busy! The bike paths are packed with students heading to and from classes, the Arboretum is teeming with wildlife and people taking time to relax in the beautiful weather, and everyone is settling into the new school year.

Welcome to the start of the fall 2022 school year! Here in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, we are excited to usher in a new class of freshmen and transfer students. Last week, Student Housing and several volunteers moved in 6,500 new and returning students into the resident halls. While COVID-19 continues to move through our communities, we’ve learned to adapt, grow and accept this shift in our world, and it is heartening to see our campus humming with activity and our students and colleagues settling into comfortable routines.

We have so much to celebrate this June! The class of 2022 is graduating after a profound and successful school year, and we look forward to the first spring commencement in two years, happening June 10-12. This year, the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences is graduating approximately 1,844 undergraduates and 106 graduate students.