uc davis employees making campus preparations for fall

Campus and Student Readiness

If you step inside many of the classrooms at UC Davis during the summer, you might not hear much. Most of the campus can feel barren without the hustle and bustle of students and sounds of bicycles whizzing by. But if you step inside an office or facility within FOA, you might hear a symphony of brainstorming meetings, phone lines ringing, and even construction crews adding the finishing touches on a new building.

Our entire division at FOA has been hard at work in preparation for the new fall quarter. There have been many employees behind-the-scenes working to make the university better every day. Now that summer is coming to an end and with the fall approaching, we’re eager to welcome our students back to campus in a better condition than when they left it.

Read Chancellor May's welcome back message and construction update here.

Primary Category

FOA Staff News

FOA Gets the Campus Ready for Fall 2019

Bike Circle
The Arboretum and Public Garden's grounds team is touching up the paint on all of the Gunrock “Go Ags” emblems in the roundabouts on campus.
Roof repair
This summer, the roofing team worked on 12 different buildings, including Kemper Hall, Young Hall, the press box at UC Davis Health stadium and the airport lounge. With these repairs, students and faculty can return to learning and teaching with a new roof over their heads!
Lighting project
The lighting crew replaced 192 inefficient outdoor recreation field lights with only 96 new LED lights that will need virtually no maintenance and will use 1/3 to 1/4 of the power.
Outdoor lighting at night
The Hutchison Intramural Field is now ready for a busy night game schedule!
Pedestrian pylon
Two new pedestrian pylons were installed at the Pavilion parking structure over the summer.
Yosemite Hall Redevelopment Project
After closing in 2017, Webster Hall (built in 1967) recently reopened as Yosemite Hall and is now home to nearly 400 freshman. This student housing complex features two- and three-bedroom suites with private bathrooms, a 24-hour computer center and mailroom with lockers for receiving Amazon deliveries.
Wellman Hall classroom
The Wellman second floor renovation project has improved 13 classrooms with smart classroom technologies.
Wellman Hall classroom AV
Testing the new smart classroom equipment to make sure it is ready for the first day of class!
EMS
The Fire Department has a strong presence at welcome events like Fall Welcome and the Sunset Fest with EMS standing by.
International student welcome event group picture
The Police Department hosted an event on September 13 as a welcome to our international students. Many of our community partners presented as an extension to Orientation day.
Peet's Coffee Nitro Tricycle
The University Preferred Partnership Program (UP3) and its partners support welcome events that provide a better student experience. Look out for the Peet's Coffee Nitro Tricycle at the ARC and Silo on September 26.
Peet's Coffee Nitro Tricycle close up
Enjoy a sample of cold brew coffee from the Peet's Nitro Tricycle!
UCPath Trailhead graphic
Starting on September 28, students will be able to go to Dutton Hall on if they have any pay issues once UCPath goes live. This will allow students to receive priority service during the UCPath transition.
Student Accounting
Graduate Studies is notifying students on the availability of the Graduate Transition Emergency Loan (GTEL), a collaboration with Student Accounting. The loan application period recently opened to the students with the rest of the short term and emergency loans for fall.
Fire Training
The Fire Department will soon start recruitment for the next student firefighter academy, after redesigning all aspects of the program to draw more interest from underrepresented groups and women.
Learning by Leading
Arboretum and Public Garden staff are actively preparing students participating in their environmental restoration and education program called Learning by Leading. This program welcomes over 120 students in 13 internship categories this fall.

Sprucing Up Campus

It takes a lot of work to keep UC Davis looking good! From the sidewalks to residence halls, employees of FOA were at the scene to give areas of our campus a facelift and light touch ups.

Arboretum and Public Garden:

The Arboretum and Public Garden (Grounds, Arboretum, Putah Creek Riparian Reserve) is continuing regular maintenance and landscape enhancement activities. Grounds is polishing up high-foot-traffic facilities in preparation for the beginning of school, including:

  • Residence Halls
  • UC Davis Health Stadium
  • Memorial Union
  • Activities and Recreation Center

This year the Grounds team is also re-painting all of the Gunrock “Go Ags” emblems in the roundabouts on campus. This past summer allowed them to get caught up and bring the landscapes back into a standardized level of care.
 

Transportation Services:

  • Our Maintenance unit has performed top-notch cleaning and routine maintenance at all parking structures and facilities.
     

Facilities Management:

  • Staff were on-site for Move-In Day to ensure a smooth process for students. They monitored the elevators, were on-call for any mechanical issues, and kept up the floors and restrooms. Over the summer, they successfully completed utility projects to maintain normal operations for the new school year.
     
  • This summer, the roofing team worked on 12 different buildings, including Kemper Hall, Young Hall, the Press Box at Aggie Stadium and the Airport lounge. With these repairs, students and faculty can return to learning and teaching with a new roof over their heads!
     

Design and Construction Management:

  • A street bike path improvement for students located from Russell to 3rd Street was completed prior to the beginning of the Fall Quarter.

Providing Services and Programs

New additions and modifications for different services and programs are available to both students and staff. Take advantage of these campus opportunities starting this fall!

Finance:

  • Graduate Studies is notifying students on the availability of the Graduate Transition Emergency Loan (GTEL). The loan application period recently opened to the students with the rest of the short term and emergency loans for fall. Direct Deposit will be a new option this year and is available if the students would like the funds transferred to them.
     
  • The Cashier’s Office prepares quick turn-around processing and response for new incoming international students who make wire transfer payments at all hours of day and night and are looking for assurances that payments have been processed properly.

Transportation Services:

Permit Sales/Enforcement

  • TAPS now offers online printable A and C permits to members of bargaining units in status quo, eliminating the need to visit the TAPS office each month.

  • Stack parking is a form of complementary valet and will be offered in high-traffic parking areas at the beginning of fall quarter. Anyone with a valid UC Davis parking permit will be eligible to use this service. Read more about Stack Parking here.

  • The Mobility Assistance Shuttle offers rides on UC Davis golf carts to eligible students, staff and faculty members with documented disabilities. For this upcoming year, they have issued new routes and a full schedule. View their map here.

Sustainable Transportation/Engagement
  • The Yolo-Aggie Connect is a grant-funded program that will pay Yolobus to transport 50 staff/faculty Woodland-resident commuters to UC Davis. These efforts will reduce GHG emissions, introduce participants to Yolobus commutes/multi-modal commuting and gather feedback for bus routing.
Bike Program

Supply Chain Management:

  • From lab supplies for the Scientific Store to specialty food items for Dining Services, Strategic Sourcing helps departments get the best value on the products they need.

UCPath Trailhead:

  • Starting on September 28, students will be able to go to Dutton Hall on campus if they have any pay issues once UCPath goes live. This will allow students to receive priority service during the UCPath transition.

New Buildings and Renovations

We are proud to deliver new, high-quality buildings at the forefront of green building design and transform existing facilities using state-of-the-art materials, systems, and furnishings.

Facilities Management:

  • With 30 different sports offered, the Hutchison Intramural Field is the home to many outdoor games. Over time, the lights around the field were getting old, unreliable, and inefficient. Because the field is in constant use, the Lighting team had to wait until students were gone for the summer to get the work done. The crew replaced 192 inefficient lights with only 96 new LED lights that will virtually need no maintenance, and will use 1/3 to 1/4 of the power. They also come with new controls to dim and adjust lighting as desired.
     

Design and Construction Management:

  • The Wellman 2nd floor renovation project will has improved 13 classrooms with smart classroom technologies.

  • Roadwork can be seen throughout campus and Dateline has been running weekly announcements of roadwork, and ran a full story on the La Rue Road, with parking, bike lanes, and bike boxes. Read more here.

  • Join Chancellor May for a public celebration of the groundbreaking of the new Teaching and Learning Complex (TLC) on the morning of October 31. Scheduled to open in spring 2022, the new TLC will feature state-of-the-art classrooms and study spaces, with classroom seats for nearly 2,000 students.

  • RecFest 2019: The fest on Sept. 23rd celebrated the openings of the newly expanded ARC and fully renovated Recreation Pool. Chancellor May and the UC Davis community gathered at the ARC ceremony at 10 a.m. and the Rec Pool ceremony at 11:30 a.m. for giveaways, food, games, and a live DJ!

  • After closing in 2017, Webster Hall (built in 1967) is now ready to house nearly 400 students. Reopened as Yosemite Hall, this student housing complex features two- and three-bedroom suites with private baths, a 24-hour computer center, and mail room complete with lockers for Amazon deliveries. Read more about the new facility here.
     
  • By the beginning of the fall quarter, UC Davis will have a new dining facility. Latitude, located on Bioletti Way south of Hutchison Drive, is scheduled to open with both a dining commons and a retail store with meals to-go. The eatery will feature an international flair, specializing in global dishes not available elsewhere on campus. Watch Latitude being built!
     
  • This summer has seen much activity along Hutchison Drive as the new Student-Athlete Performance Center was being constructed. The Center will include training facilities; a sports medicine center; a home for academic support and the Aggie EVO System; offices for multiple sports programs; and a multipurpose, natural grass practice field.
     
  • DCM is developing online maps for communicating project site navigation. Their website will have updated information prior to campus events and will show bicycle, pedestrian and vehicular movements around each project site, as well as fencing, signage and construction access. These interactive maps are still in the works and will be available on https://dcm.ucdavis.edu/

Campus Safety

With over 35,000 students at UC Davis on 5,300 acres, it’s important that we integrate safety measures across the university. Different units throughout FOA made improvements or provided services geared toward campus and student safety.

Transportation Services:

  • Did you know that UC Davis has cages for safe bicycle parking? Bike cage parking spots are available to any UC Davis student, staff or faculty member who is looking for a more secure way to park and store their bicycle on campus. Transportation Services has completed new secured bike parking cages in the Gateway and Pavilion parking which has the capacity for 25-30 bicycles.

  • Each year, TAPS offers bicycle safety training by conducting safety courses and training rides. This year’s training was held on September 20. Students received traditional bicycle education, toured campus mechanic stations, learned about safety including helmets, lights, tires, how to shift, brakes and bike fit focused on seat height.

  • The Segundo Residence Hall and Childhood Development Lab Pathway saw improvements to their facilities when Transportation Service's maintenance unit completed their “trip hazard” project by correcting uneven pathways.

  • The lighting and horse barn trenching project was finished, allowing students to safely tend to the horses at night.
     

Fire Marshal’s Office:

  • The Fire Marshal’s Office participates in educational presentations to incoming freshman every year. They focus on fire safety in the residence halls and encourage students to know two ways out, as well as become familiar with campus policies.
     

Police and Fire Department:

  • The Police and Fire departments are helping to ensure safety during move-in and welcome events. The Police department monitored residence halls during move-in day on September 21-22 with 74 Aggie Hosts assigned to this detail in order to keep traffic flowing in a safe manner. The Fire Department will have a strong presence at events like Fall Welcome and the Sunset Fest with EMS standing by. 

 

Student Engagement and Opportunities

Finance, Operations and Administration (FOA) has over 450 students employed throughout the organization, allowing students to gain experience where they most desire. Read more below on how we are providing opportunities that enhance the student experience:

Fire Department:

  • This fall starts recruitment for the next student firefighter academy. The Fire Department is redesigning all aspects of the program (specifically recruitment) to draw more interest from underrepresented groups and women.
  • Fire Day on the Quad takes place Wednesday, Oct. 9, from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. This fun-filled, educational day is focused on all things fire safety and prevention. The Fire Department will have all the fire trucks on display and will host Jaws of Life auto-extraction and CPR demonstrations, games and giveaways, a helicopter ambulance landing and more.  

Arboretum and Public Garden:

  • Arboretum and Public Garden staff are actively preparing students participating in their environmental restoration and education program called Learning by Leading™. This program welcomes over 120 students in 13 internship categories this fall.

Police Department:

  • The International Community Academy was designed to complement campus orientation efforts while providing your campus safety experts with an opportunity to effectively address unique safety issues often encountered in the international community. The Police Department also hosted an event on September 13 as a welcome to our international students. Many of our community partners presented as an extension to Orientation day. 

Institutional Analysis:

  • To help students progress toward a four-year graduation timeline, Institutional Analysis has developed AggieDash, which can report when a student drops below 15 credits. This will help advisors keep track of students who may graduate beyond four years.

UP3:

The University Preferred Partnership Program (UP3) and its partners support welcome events that provide a better student experience. Events include:

  •   Pepsi: Resource Fair on September 23 and Involvement Fair on October 8
  •   Peet’s Coffee: Nitro Tricycles sampling at the ARC and Silo on September 26

Transportation Services:

  • Transportation Services offered weekend on-site bike registration for residence halls during move-in day, improving convenience and reducing lines during the week.

  • Before the first week of instruction, TAPS hired a number of students and provided training to ensure a smooth process and job readiness.