GAUCHO GRADUATION 2011 - UCSB Division of Student Affairs ...

21st-Century Communication with a Vintage Look
UCSB’s 3,000 graduate students are vital
to the core of UCSB’s mission as a research
university and Student Affairs has strengthened
its partnership with the Graduate Division to
find ways to best support them as they work to
complete their degrees.
The 2010-11 academic year brought a new resource
to our graduate community – the UCSB Graduate
Post. The “GradPost,” as it is commonly called, is a
graduate student-oriented blog where current and
prospective graduate students can find up-to-date
news, events, tools, and other useful content. The
site can be accessed both directly and via social
media like Facebook, Twitter, and RSS feeds.
Paradoxically, the GradPost’s branding is designed
to honor the bygone era of the small-town
newspaper, which is reflected in its typewriter-font
logo and the décor of its headquarters. Among its
catchy displays is a beautiful, antique typewriter
donated by Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
Michael Young. “Our graduate student staff is
working hard to make a physical space that is
immediately recognizable as the same space students
have discovered on their phone, web browser, or
email client,” explains Acting Assistant Dean Don
Lubach, who founded the GradPost and is working
with graduate students on the project.
As an online resource, the GradPost builds on the
power of social networking and the extraordinary
curiosity and writing skills of UCSB graduate
students. At the same time, the GradPost is more
than just a nod to social media and technology
and its audience goes far beyond our enrolled
graduate students. Dr. Lubach comments that
“when the team adds content to the GradPost,
they are also thinking about prospective graduate
students, UCSB’s post-doctoral scholars, and the
families and support teams around our graduate
communities,” adding, “When Mario Galicia
and Walter Boggan posted a story about a young
chemistry student who has five children, we feared
that the high traffic to the story might break our
server. Family life is an important part of the
graduate experience at UCSB.”
Four graduate student interns who serve as
writer/reporters are funded by the Graduate
Division to contribute a reliable stream of content.
Courtney Gosnell, the funding peer, gathers
current information on grants, scholarships,
fellowships, and work opportunities relevant to
the UCSB graduate community. Mario Galicia,
the diversity peer, serves as the GradPost’s life and
diversity editor, bringing stories about his peers,
social events, and opportunities for support to his
fellow students. Lisa Tremain, the writing peer,
contributes primarily as the tools editor, with
articles that include the popular “Writing Tip of
the Week.” Indy Hurt, the academic peer, posts in
every section of the blog and is the most passionate
about the GradPost’s journalistic theme. Indy can
be seen at Graduate Students Association meetings
and campus events collecting story ideas and
jotting down the facts. In the hours after Indy sets
up a user poll or writes a long report on a campus
meeting, hundreds of readers show up on the site.
The Graduate Post benefits from one of UCSB’s
signature qualities—collaboration. It is run by
students and supported by two divisions working
together to make the most out of shrinking
resources. Although the aesthetic of the blog
and its newspaper-room headquarters contain
whimsical elements, the GradPost is providing
the accessibility and quality of support that comes
from creating a caring and engaged community—a
fact proven by its broad, quickly growing, and
dedicated readership.
To see what the Graduate Post is all about, visit
its online location at http://gradpost.ucsb.edu/
or stop by to meet graduate staff and advisors in
the Graduate Student Resource Center (1st floor,
Student Resource Building).
Gauchos Give Back: The Class of 2011 Senior Class Gift
Each year, graduating seniors have the
opportunity to leave behind a lasting legacy. Since
the early 1990s, UCSB’s graduating senior classes
have raised money through the university’s Annual
Giving Fund in support of special campus projects
or designated areas of need. This outstanding
tradition unites seniors to give back in support
of UCSB’s fundamental values of scholarship,
leadership, and citizenship.
Previous Senior Class Gift campaigns have raised
funds for the Umfundi Emergency Scholarship
Fund (2006), the development of the Student
Resource Building facility (2007), renovations
of the Recreation Center (2008), support for the
Education Abroad Program & Non-Traditional
Student Emergency Funds (2009), and vital
upgrades to the office spaces below our historic
Storke Tower (2010).
Indy Hurt, Graduate Division Peer Intern
This year’s Senior Class Gift has been generously
earmarked for the Alumni Association Scholarship
Fund (AASF) and for the establishment of the
Associated Students food bank initiative in order to
provide direct and vital support to current UCSB
students needing assistance during these tough
economic times.
We invite seniors to “Live up to the Cha’11enge”
and pay it forward once again this year. Parents are
invited to encourage their students to participate
in the Senior Class Gift and support current and
future Gauchos. Students will be contacted in the
coming months with details about how to give. In
the meantime, students can direct their questions
to Cory Calderon, Senior Class Gift campaign cochair
for the Alumni Association, at cory.calderon@
ia.ucsb.edu.
S c h o l a r s h i p L e a d e r s h i p C i t i z e n s h i p