CNAS Scholars (UCR)

  He llo Highlanders! This week's blog post will focus on the UCR Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC).  For more than 50 years, the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC) has been dedicated to the mission of promoting an inclusive educational experience for UC Riverside students through the advocacy of equal access, disability and ability awareness, and empowerment. The  SDRC is designated to receive requests for accommodations, approve services, and coordinate support for students with disabilities to ensure access to the university's educational programs.  Students with disabilities are able to receive the appropriate accommodations , which include accomodations such as extra time on exams, priority registration, distraction-free testing environments, class notes through a note-taker, accessive/ assistive technology, and more.  A personal consultation allows the SDRC to individually tailor a plan to meet your disability-related needs, based on cu...

  Hello everyone! We hope you are having a great Valentine's Day and start to your Week 7. Today we will be discussing the  CA Teach-Science & Mathematics Initiative (CalTeach-SMI) program here on campus of STEM undergraduates preparing to become future STEM educators. It is a UC systemwide program and patterns with local school district to provide future STEM teachers access into middle and high school classrooms where they have the opportunity to be mentored by current California science and math teachers.  CaTEACH-SMI provides four general areas of services for their program participants. These areas include early pedagogical training, pre-service advising and mentoring, professional networking, and financial support. For current UCR students, they must first attend an SMI Informational Session (which require RSVP in advance) in order to start the process of becoming an active program participant.  This program provides a vast array of resources for students...

  Hello everyone, we hope that your Week 5 is off to a good start. Today we will be discussing the CNAS Scholars Peer Programs. The application to join is currently open, and closes February 4 at 4 PM. There are three different roles within this program - Peer Mentors, Peer Academic Leaders, and Peer Advisors. In order to be eligible to apply for any of these positions, you are required to have completely a full year in a CNAS Learning Community, and be a sophomore, junior, or senior in Fall 2022. You should display involvement in on and off campus activities, ability to be a team player with strong interpersonal and communication skills, and being able to multitask and being self-motivated. The minimum GPA to be a Peer Mentor or Peer Advisor is a 3.0, and a 3.2 to be a Peer Academic Leader. Peer Mentor is a year-long paid position, and the responsibilities include: serve as a paid employee for the 2022-23 academic year, serve as a resource to current students in the Freshman Scho...

  Hello everyone, we hope you all have had a smooth transition to winter quarter so far. Today we will be discussing the UCR CARE (Campus Advocacy, Resources, and Education) Program, which is an intervention and prevention support program committed to ending sexual violence on our community.  CARE was developed to provide the UCR community with an office of advocacy and support, a safe and supportive environment for survivors, and creating social change through training and educational resources related to violence prevention.  They provide confidential support and advocacy services for victims of sexual assault through safety planning, accompaniment, and crisis intervention. They are also able to help coordinate with Case Management, receiving accommodations if needed, and referrals to the appropriate on and off campus services. Additionally, they can help connect individuals to various 24/7 online chat supports . Through Safety Planning, CARE advocates help individuals ...

  Hello everyone, welcome back! We hope everyone had a refreshing Winter Break and are excited for Winter quarter! Today, we will be discussing The Well at UCR. The Well promotes students' well being and health, and have maintained active throughout the pandemic.  Students are able to receive COVID-19 wellness kits as well as masks/ face coverings from the Well by making an appointm ent with this link , and then picking the supplies up in person at HUB 248. Students are also able to stop by The Well Tuesdays-Thursdays from 10am-12pm or 1pm-3pm to pick up N-95 Masks without an appointment, but are required to complete this  form  and the Daily Wellness Survey before arriving to The Well. Students are also able to use the appointment link to make appointments to have a virtual meeting with a Mental Health Educator, Wellness coaching, or to receive peer-to-peer coaching if that is something they would be more comfortable with. Additionally, the Well offers the GO! Prog...

Hello again, everyone! Welcome back to the blog. Hopefully during finals week, case management can be of great assistance with your problems as an undergrad at UC Riverside. We will discuss this on campus resource more in detail in this blog post. Here is their website:  https://casemanagement.ucr.edu/ . The Student Affairs Case Management Office is associated with the Student Health and Wellness Services (SHWS) and the main objective to support the well-being of all UCR students. The Office provides the necessary resources, expertise, and education when students bring questions to their highly experienced Case Managers. Keep in mind, conversations with Case Managers are private but not confidential; this means that they can share information with different university personnel to help resolve any problems that may arise but will not share this information outside of the university employees under  FERPA guidelines . As a part of the SHWS cluster, there are other resources tha...

Hello Highlanders, welcome back to the blog! We hope that everyone's Fall Quarter has been going well so far. Today we will be going over the CNAS Scholars program , the student success program for the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences here at UCR. The program is comprised of faculty, professional staff, and undergraduate student staff who are all committed to the retention, graduation, and lifelong success of students. They have mentorship programs for first-year students and transfers and also host workshops open to all students.  One group of undergraduate students within the CNAS Scholars programs are the Peer Advisors. Part of their responsibilities include holding weekly drop-in hours where students can have their general questions answered. The Zoom ID for these hours is 963 1532 4033, and this is the link . Additionally, academic advisors are also currently holding their drop-in hours over Zoom for more specific questions. The drop-in hours can be accessed throu...

Hello Highlanders! Welcome to this week’s edition of the blog! Today, we will be discussing about Summer Sessions at UCR. This year, Summer will be offered remote but will still offered the same amount of class variety as previous years. Current students at UCR as well as students outside of UCR are eligible to enroll in Summer Sessions; for currently enrolled students, it is as easy as going into R’Web and creating a course schedule without a term plan.  As a transitioning first-year student or undergraduate student, students are recommended to enroll in a maximum of 10 units for each session with the actual maximum being 15 units for the whole summer. Students can choose from a variety of CNAS-related courses such as the CHEM 001 series, BIOL 005 series, CHEM 008 series, and PHYS 002 series along with other available breadth courses. Also, please speak to your Academic Advisor if you need further help developing a summer course schedule. There are many important dates and deadlin...

  Hello Highlanders! Welcome back to the Blog! We hope everyone has had a great Spring Quarter thus far. Today we'll be talking about R'Pantry- UCR's official food pantry!  Who is eligible for R'Pantry services? Any official student at UC Riverside may utilize R'Pantry services! Students are allowed one visit per week , via appointment online. Not only can students receive free food packages, but can be directed to on and off-campus resources and workshops! When is the R'Pantry open? The R'Pantry is open by appointment on Tuesdays and Fridays at HUB 269! When shopping, students have 10 minutes to shop using their 20 points. How do I schedule an appointment with R'Pantry? You can schedule an appointment through this link . For more updated information, you can follow R'Pantry's Instagram and Facebook . When booking an appointment, TAPS instructions will be included in the reservation details. Make sure to wear a face mask and wash hands prior to ...

  Hello, everyone! Welcome back to the blog. Today, we will be discussing about two different programs today, UCDC, the University of California District of Columbia Program, and UCCS, Sacramento Academic Internship Program. If you are interested in gaining hands-on experience as an intern or gain professional experience, these programs may be a good fit for you. UCCS is located in Sacramento and UCDC is located in Washington, D.C. where undergraduate students of any major can apply and learn through these opportunities. If interested, there are various information sessions available to learn more about each particular program. UCDC/UCCS information sessions will be held on March 31st, April 7th, April 14th, and April 15th found here .  Specifically for UCDC, students in the program will have the opportunity to enroll in 12 to 16 units that consist of an internship, seminar, and potential elective course of their choosing during the academic school year, During the summer, stu...

Welcome back to the blog Highlanders! Happy first week of Spring Quarter! We hope that you’ve enjoyed your Spring Break and are ready for the last quarter of this academic year. Today, we’ll be talking about R’Courses!  What are R’Courses? R’Courses are UCR courses designed and initiated by UCR undergraduate students. They are often created to highlight more recent topics and studies that other UCR courses may not touch on. Students in these courses are seen as all equals and are able to talk more about recent topics such as social justice and respect. These courses are 1 academic unit and offer SN/C grading.  What are some of the R’Courses offered? For this upcoming Spring 2021 quarter, some of the courses being offered are ( full list :):   SYC 198: A Psychological Perspective into the Popular World of Social Media  EDUC 198: Healthy Living as a College Student  EDUC 198: Practicing the Art of Self-Care  EDUC 198: HIV and Public Health (in co...

Hello, everyone! I hope everyone's end of winter quarter is going well. In today's blog, we will be discussing about the UCR Botanic Gardens, a living plant museum. The UCR Botanic Gardens holds 40-acres of live plants that include thousands of plant species as well as many from around the world. The landscape of these Gardens are focused the Mediterranean climate and how that is representative throughout California. Approximately one-third of the Gardens is kept untouched with various native plant communities like coastal sage scrub and California sagebrush. Overall, the Gardens provide as a valuable place to conduct research, teach, enjoy, and use for demonstrations. More information on the UCR Botanic Gardens can be found here . Currently, the UCR Botanic Gardens has been reopened with reduced hours. It is open Monday to Friday from 9 AM to 12 PM and the 1st and 3rd Sundays of each month from 8 AM to 12 PM. However, please note, the Gardens will be closed on March 26, 2021 a...

  Hello everyone! Welcome to Week 9. This blog post will discuss the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC) , an office on-campus dedicated to providing free and equal accessibility needs to those temporarily and permanently disabled. For over 50 years, the office has strived to not only help those lacking the fundamental abilities of average students but to empower them and promote their stories, impacts, and abilities.  If you believe that the accommodations that the SDRC provides may aid your experience at UCR, this blog may be for you. The SDRC is available for students needing extra assistance and provides accommodations such as extra time on exams for those with mental disabilities and transportation between classes for those with physical disabilities affecting their mobility. To obtain this free aid, a student must have an interactive, case-by-case meeting with an SDRC representative to be evaluated on SDRC needs. Paperwork/evidence is required to obtain these reso...

  Hello everyone! Welcome to Week 7. This blog post will discuss about the California Teach-Science and Mathematics Initiative or CalTeach-SMI and what they offer to STEM undergraduates who are interested in becoming a future science or math teacher in Calfornia. In general, this program provides students with an ability to go to middle and high schools to learn from current teachers at those respective schools; more specifically, CalTeach-SMI has four areas to engage in - pedagogical training, pre-service mentoring, networking, and financial support. More information for the program can be found here . The peer mentoring program in CalTeach-SMI allows for students to ask questions and learn more about the ins and outs of becoming a future STEM teachers. These peer mentors are also motivated to become future STEM teachers and can provide a good network on the professional pathway to becoming a STEM educator; these mentors have different majors and experiences that will offer comple...

  Welcome back to the blog, Highlanders!     Happy fifth week of Winter Quarter! In this week's edition of the blog, you will have the opportunity to learn more about the CNAS Scholars Peer Program , a mentorship department for UCR students! TO VISIT CNAS Scholars ONLINE: https://cnasscholars.ucr.edu/cnas-scholars-peer-programs What are the CNAS Scholars Peer Programs?                The CNAS Scholars Peer Programs are a collection of mentorship positions created by CNAS Scholars. Their aim is to help first-years transition into college, as well as aid them to succeeding in college and the NASC093 course required for CNAS Learning Community (LC) students. The CNAS Scholars Peer positions are as follows: Peer Mentor, Peer Academic Leader, and Peer Advisor, all of which we'll be discussing today! What is a CNAS Peer Mentor?                CNAS Peer Mentors are paid, trained ...

Welcome back Highlanders to Week 3! During this strange times, there is a very important on-campus resource that will be discussed - CARE. The acronym CARE stands for Campus Advocacy, Resources, and Education. This resources is intended as a way to intervene and provide the preventive support needed to stop any sexual violence, relationship violence, and stalking at UC Riverside. All the information discussed in this blog post can be found here . With such highly sensitive topics being discussed, CARE provides the confidential resources needed for any Highlander to feel safe and ensure proper assistance. These confidential resources include CARE Advocates, Counseling and Psychological Services, and UCR Office of the Ombuds. In addition, there are other ways to receive support through the Title IX Office and the UC Police Department. For further communication, there is a 24/7 confidential online chat support. Information for the above resources' email, phone number, and or websites ...

Welcome back to the blog, Highlanders!     Happy first week of Winter Quarter! We hope everyone had a great break and New Year’s. In this week's edition of the blog, you will have the opportunity to learn more about The Well, an on-campus office here at UCR that has many benefits for students like you and me. TO VISIT THE WELL ONLINE: https://well.ucr.edu/ What is The Well?                The Well is a UCR Department that focuses on providing UCR students tools to aid in their mental/physical wellbeing. They use programs, peer mentoring, training, and resources to attain their goal of good student health. Is it true that The Well provides free face coverings and Wellness Kits?                Yes! The Well has made it possible for each student to pick up a Wellness Kit that includes: masks/face coverings, condoms, hand sanitizer, period products, a sleep kit, and more! You ca...

  Hello again, everyone! Welcome back to the blog. Hopefully during this stressful time when finals week is quickly approaching, case management can be of great assistance with your problems as an undergrad at UC Riverside. We will discuss this on campus resource more in detail in this blog post. Here is their website:  https://casemanagement.ucr.edu/ . The Student Affairs Case Management Office is associated with the Student Health and Wellness Services (SHWS) and the main objective to support the well-being of all UCR students. The Office provides the necessary resources, expertise, and education when students bring questions to their highly experienced Case Managers. Keep in mind, conversations with Case Managers are private but not confidential; this means that they can share information with different university personnel to help resolve any problems that may arise but will not share this information outside of the university employees under  FERPA guidelines . As a ...

  Welcome back to the blog, Highlanders!      We hope that you all are going strong into Week 8! In this week's edition of the blog, you will have the opportunity to learn more about UCR's Academic Resource Center and its many benefits. TO VISIT THE ARC ONLINE:  https://arc.ucr.edu/ What is the UCR Academic Resource Center (ARC)?                The UCR ARC is the place where you can find academic help for classes at UCR. They offer                          assistance for a wide range of subjects from English to Math. What specific resources does it offer?               The ARC provides assistance through the following: Supplemental Instruction Tutorial Assistance Program Undergraduate Writing Center R'Success Workshops Reading Support                 ...

Highlanders, welcome back to the CNAS Scholars blog ! I hope midterm session has treated everyone well. In this week's edition of the blog, we will be discussing a very important series of programs known as First-Gen Initiatives and what resources are available to any undergraduate students interested.  The term "first-gen" describes a student who is first in their family to study in a four-year institution. Just by the name alone, the main goal of the First-Gen initiatives is to ensure first-generation students are able to engage and stay motivated in their journey towards student success. This includes different individualized programs, specialized campus support, and available student opportunities. UCR's first- cohort was shown to have outstanding first-gen student support by the Center for First-Generation Student Success, a nationally recognized source; more information can be found here . For future reference, the links below are different sections of the Fi...