Go Red for Women It was great seeing all the red on campus on February 3 and the many A & F folks that showed their support and came out to increase
awareness about heart health!
WiFi on campus gets a boost! Eleven locations on campus were recently upgraded to improve our WiFi on campus including the following buildings Schulz, the Rec center, Salazar, Student Center and Darwin. A group effort, IT was crucial in making this project come to life for our SSU community. Thanks to our Facilities Maintenance employees: Josh Gillespie, Frank Nides, Noah Fell, Ira McKern, Dan Kizirian, Jack Ell, Steve Bartnowski, and Rich Parker - Photo Just one of the 11 installed at the Student Center
Edible Landscaping Landscapers around Ives and Person are working on planting some new fruit trees for the campus community to enjoy. They are being located in currently irrigated areas, so there is no additional cost associated with maintaining them. Currently, we are planting guava, pear, and nectarine trees. In the attached picture is the first freshly-planted nectarine tree (landscape staff were camera-shy).
Women in Baseball! The Seawolves Baseball team made history in February with Marika Lyszczyk becoming the first female baseball player in school and CCAA history to appear in a game. Lyszczyk pitched the 9th inning in the Feb. 17 game.
What happens when a lamb and Rottweiler meet up?The Press Democrat recently featured a story about Kindra Kautz and her husband's farm, Forgotten Farms. It's the story of an unlikely friendship between a Rottweiler and a baby lamb... and nothing but cuteness abounds!
Sustainability on Campus
One thing that most of us do every day, that by changing can make a positive impact on the environment, is to eat less meat. Numerous studies have shown that reducing our meat consumption can reduce the greenhouse gas emissions. The Meatless Monday Movement was started in 2003, at that time not for the environmental impact, but for the health benefits of reducing meat consumption. Since then, the focus of the Meatless Monday Movement has incorporated how reducing meat consumption has a positive affect on the environment. Just look at these statistics:
Today, there are more options than ever to make plant based choices. Our campus Culinary has a wealth of vegetarian and vegan options: from plant based milks offered at Sip; salads, soups, Beyond Burger, a plant based meat alternative that taste similar to meat, and other meatless main dishes, bites, and more at Lobo's. The Kitchens has a generous salad bar with beans and grains, grill offerings, main dishes and vegetarian pizzas, just to name a few. And there are more options available at Weyden & Brewster and Toast.
Plant based recipes are at your fingertips. There are social media accounts that focus on vegetarian and plant based meals. The recipes are inventive and delicious, some more complicated and some surprisingly easy. To get access to some of these social media accounts and to check out some recipes, visit @SustainableSSU on Instagram. They highlight meatless offerings on Monday's and throughout the week.
And maybe Monday isn't the best day for you, pick another day each week where choosing meatless is easier for you. And to start, don't try anything too complicated. What if you made your favorite chili recipe, but left off the meat? Or substituted a plant based meat alternative? Is it worth a try, if you could help reduce the amount of GHG produced each year? Even just a little? Every grocery store has everything you need to create a vegetarian or plant based meal.
Won't you consider taking the challenge, one day a week?
Events and Happenings
March is Women's History Month
Learn about the origins of Women's History Month (Did you know is started in Sonoma County?), and events planned on campus this month to celebrate women on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion page devoted to Women's History Month.
Conversations with Black and Brown in Blue Speaker Series
March 8 -- Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig 7 to 9 pm
Jeff Reisig is currently one of California’s longest serving District Attorneys. First elected as the Yolo County DA in 2006, Reisig had previously worked as a deputy district attorney for almost a decade. As a career prosecutor, he has personally handled thousands of criminal cases, with a specialty in homicides and organized crime.
In collaboration with Stanford University, Reisig helped design and fully integrate a Race Blind Charging program into his digital case management system so that his office’s decisions about whether to charge someone with a crime or not could be made without any knowledge of the race of the parties involved. This ground-breaking development inspired legislation that was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom in 2022, making it a statewide requirement for all 58 county DA’s offices.
Reisig was also the first prosecutor in the nation to launch a third-party hosted data-transparency portal in collaboration with the national reform organization Measures for Justice. The portal provides the public nearly unrestricted access to criminal justice data from his office, while also giving community members a platform to directly share their findings and engage policy makers and the media on the data. As a result of this work, Reisig is widely recognized as a national leader and advocate for criminal justice transparency.
During his tenure as DA, Reisig has focused intently on advocating for victims of crime and pursuing a balanced approach to public safety through methods designed to enhance accountability while also embracing programs to reduce recidivism and the criminal justice footprint. Reisig has also developed multiple highly successful diversion programs to help those suffering from serious addiction and mental illness.
March 15 -- Petaluma Police Department Officer Jillian Van Riper -- 7 to 9 pm
Jillian Van Riper is 25 years old and was born and raised throughout Sonoma County. She spent most of her time as a kid playing for a local club soccer team, in hopes of one day playing at a collegiate level. Jillian’s interest in law enforcement was sparked at a young age, when she became an “explorer” for the Cotati Police Department in 2012. After graduating from Analy High School in 2015, Jillian attended the University of the Pacific where she played collegiate soccer. Eventually, she transferred to Sonoma State University to finish her educational journey, where she received a bachelor’s degree in Sociology in 2019. During her college years, and even thereafter, Jillian spent her spare time as an assistant coach for the SRJC Women’s Soccer team. Jillian attended the police academy in 2020, and has been employed as a police officer with the Petaluma Police Department for just over 2 years. Additionally, she was recently assigned to the Hostage Negotiations Team. Jillian is also a liaison for her department with a program called “Mentor Me”, a non-profit restorative justice program for juveniles.
Wellness Webinars
Additional wellness opportunities can be found on the Employee Wellness website.
Plant-Based Eating
March 15, 2023 Noon - 1pm
Learn how to make plant-based foods the central part of your meals. Register
Snoring and Obstructive Sleep Apnea
March 23, 2023 12:30 - 1:30pm
Learn about the causes of snoring and obstructive sleep apnea, the effects on your health, effective therapy, and benefits of treatment. Register
Living Heart Healthy
Become familiar with key healthy behaviors to reduce risk of heart attack and stroke.
Available on Demand Register
Anniversaries and newly hired
Anniversaries celebrated in January
Name
Department
M. Monir Ahmed
Office of the VP A and F
Nicholas Courter
Payables
Travis Vining
Landscaping
Violeta Murillo Gonzalez
Housekeeping
Honami Jordan
Mail and Receiving
Jeffrey Floyd
University Police
Cristian Leon
Housekeeping
Eduardo Vasquez
Financial Aid
Maria Alves
Housekeeping
Randall Stevens
Operations and Engineering
Kshatriya Colet
Payroll and Benefits
Edward Wandrey
Landscaping
John Rader III
Landscaping
Catalino Aranda
Operations and Engineering
Eanna McBrien
Operations and Engineering
James Doherty
Landscaping
Karen Leitsch
Athletics
Saul Razo Aguilar
Culinary Services
Alicia Hodenfield
Office of the VP A and F
Samantha Phillips
Housekeeping
Debra Gordon
Talent Acquisition and Workforce Administration
Erin Taylor
Employee Relations Compliance Services
Leslie Johnston
Receipts Receivables
Frank Nides
Capital Planning Design Construction
Carmen Diaz Misa
Financial Aid
Christopher Hendry
Entrepreneurial Activities
Johna Beem
Accounting/Financial Reporting
Hired in January
Name
Department
Ann-lise Fitting
Financial Aid
Kristin Hillman
Accounting/Financial Reporting
Raymond Tantarelli
Operations and Engineering
Thank you for reading...
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