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Digest: ✅ Custodial changes, new FOA leaders and more

Plus Clare's column, 2025 review, local news coverage, police dog 5k and more

Dear Colleagues,

Over the holidays, I spent some time biking through parts of Cambodia and Vietnam, places that were entirely new to me and far outside my everyday world. It reminded me about perspective, connection and how we support one another.

The biking itself was not about distance or endurance. It was slow and often interrupted, with time built in to stop, observe and learn. That rhythm feels meaningful right now. Progress doesn’t always come from moving faster or pushing harder. Sometimes it comes from paying attention and staying grounded in why our work matters.

Read more and see pictures from Clare's travels.

Clare Shinnerl smiles, wearing a bike help standing in front of red and gold structures
Clare Shinnerl, FOA Vice Chancellor, takes a break from her bike ride to take in the sights.

/to-do list

  • ⚪ Be aware of custodial adjustments

  • Starting Jan. 20, Custodial Services will reduce the frequency of cleaning services in conference rooms — from daily to weekly — and in research labs too. Learn more about the changes.
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/features

Thumbnail of video of Eric O'Brien being interviewed by a Fox40 news reporter in the Memorial Union at UC Davis.

Sustainability efforts make local news

Fox40 interviewed Eric O’Brien, director of Sustainability, about the Coffee House’s new reusable container program and other initiatives that make UC Davis the “greenest” university in North America. Watch the video. 

A collage of three photos. The first photo shows a person loading a package into the back of a van. The second photo features a water tower painted with the UC Davis Athletics logo. The third photos features a person unlocking a Naloxone cabinet in the Memorial Union.

Celebrate FOA’s impact in 2025

From restoring an iconic water tower to providing life-saving medications, to improving campus deliveries and much, much more, FOA worked tirelessly through 2025 to make UC Davis better. See FOA’s 2025 year in review.

 

/fyi

  • 💡  Join the safety lighting walk

  • Walk campus to help identify where lighting improvements are needed at the annual Campus Safety Lighting Walk, hosted by Facilities Management and the UC Davis Police Department. Attend on Jan. 21.
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  • 🎬  See orchestrated movie for a discount

  • Get $10 tickets to Blade Runner LIVE at the Mondavi Center using the BEWELL staff promo code. Buy tickets for the Jan. 23 event. 
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  • 🐶  Run to support police dogs

  • Participate in the Love on the Run 5K to support the UC Davis Police K-9 Program. Register for the Feb. 14 event. 
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  • 🧒  Help with children's event

  • Have an idea for a fun activity that your unit could host to show off UC Davis to children? Submit your event for Take Our Children to Work Day. 
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  • 🌿  Nature breaks helped clean up campus

  • A successful pilot program this fall with the Arboretum and Public Garden expanded volunteer opportunities for mid-day breaks — and helped beautify campus landscaping in the process. Learn more about the Weed Out Stress program. 
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  • 🚒  Welcome new deputy fire chief

  • Cess Mercado, who started his career at UC Davis as a student firefighter, has been named deputy fire chief of the UC Davis Fire Department. Learn more about Mercado.
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  • 🤝  Meet new budget operations director

  • Jessica Lewis brings institutional knowledge, budget expertise and a collaborative spirit to her new role as budget operations director. Learn more about her experience and goals for UC Davis.

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