Berkeley

UC Berkeley Presents Public Service Awards

Published

8 years ago

May 9, 2017

By Public Affairs, UC Berkeley News

When she graduates in a few days, Ursula Kajani is headed to Rwanda to work with a maternal and child health program through the Peace Corps. As the new Mather Good Citizen Award winner at UC Berkeley, she knows that her experiences with the campus’s Public Service Center — as program assistant, Alternative Breaks leader and Student Advisory Committee member — have prepared her for her next stage, and a future in social justice work.

“I want to extend my appreciation to the PSC for helping us students find critical lenses while learning how to be ourselves. It was really a defining feature of my Cal career,” says Kajani, who, along with a dozen other Berkeley students, faculty and community partners accepted 2017 Public Service Awards at a joyful ceremony on Tuesday.

The annual Public Service Awards ceremony is a highlight of spring at UC Berkeley, which values public service. Chancellor Nicholas Dirks shook hands with the winners and congratulated them from the stage in the Krutch Theatre on the Clark Kerr Campus before a gathering of campus people and awardees’ friends and families.

In addition to Kajani, those honored are:

Thanh Mai Bercher, a graduating senior in public health. Thanh’s service has addressed human rights locally, nationally, and internationally, with a particular focus on sexual assault, advocating for better policies to deter it from happening, supporting survivors and helping raise awareness of the issue. She is a survivor herself, which has motivated her to take action on this issue. Thanh has also addressed many other human rights issues through her work with the campus’s Human Rights Center, and is completing field work with girls who have experienced trauma in the West Bank.

Jesús Guzmán, a graduate student in public policy who worked on immigrant labor issues. An immigrant himself, Guzmán was a founding coordinator of the DREAM Alliance of Sonoma County and an active member of the North Bay Organizing Project’s Immigrant Rights Task Force. He is working with Graton Day Labor Center serving day laborers who are largely immigrants.

Sarick Matzen and Joshua Arnold, graduate students in environmental science, policy and management. Working in the area of food security and land, Matzen and Arnold use a unique approach to their research, inviting community members and groups to participate in soil sampling for soil testing as well as empowering communities to take the lead in dealing with soils compromised by pollution.

International Refugee Assistance Project at Berkeley Law (IRAP-Berkeley). Students offer high-quality, compassionate legal assistance to some of the most vulnerable groups of refugees in the world.

AppCivist for Vallejo Participatory Budgeting, an app for democratic budgeting collaboration. In 2012, Vallejo became the first city in the U.S. to launch such participatory work, eliciting project ideas from residents who then vote on which to recommend to the City Council for funding. AppCivist, a new online collaboration platform developed by researchers at the Social Apps Lab at CITRIS, allows the community to develop proposals online, view developments and comments in real-time and submit proposals for the budgeting ballot.

Karen Chapple, a professor in city and regional planning, Chapple headed up the Urban Displacement Project, which provides policymakers with research and policy recommendations to counter displacement and promote affordability policies.

Two other students were honored with Birgeneau/Undocumented Student Awards:

Miriam Avilez, a leader in Borders and Bodies Collective, a graduate student organization that is raising awareness about the intersection of immigration and public health. She is also working with other undocumented graduate students and the Center for Latino Policy Research on a project responding to the Trump administration by providing support for the undocumented student community at UC Berkeley.

Juan Prieto, who has held positions in RISE, as a representative of UC undocumented student coalition, and in the Undocumented Student Program and Transfer Center. His writing was published on the New York Times during times of political tension on campus, giving undocumented students a voice in the media.

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Progressive Missionary Baptist Church of Berkeley Celebrates 90th Anniversary

Dr. Earl C. Stuckey, Sr., who has served as Progressive Missionary’s pastor since September 1977, said the church also delights in the fact that it has hosted only five pastors in its 90-year history, including Pastors James E. Moore, H. A. Green, F. Douglas Farrell, and Edward Stovall, who served for 37 years.

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Progressive Missionary Baptist Poster. Dr. Earl C. Stuckey, Sr., Pastor of Progressive Missionary Baptist Church in Berkeley with his wife, Kay Frances Stuckey.

By Oakland Post Staff

The Progressive Missionary Baptist Church of Berkeley is celebrating its 90th church anniversary on Sunday, May 18 at 10 a.m. at 3301 King Street in Berkeley.

The celebration will feature Pastor Darnell Manuel of the Union Baptist Church in Vallejo as guest speaker, along with many other special presentations.

Those who wish to share in Progressive’s history can purchase a 100-page full-colored souvenir book for $25.

The church boasts a number of notable people who either regularly attended or became members of the church since its inception, including former Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson, Oakland mayoral candidate Loren Taylor, and one of the organizers of the Gospel Music Workshop of America, Helen J. H. Stephens.

Pastor Stuckey often remarks how longevity flourishes at the church — it boasts 13 centenarians (people who have reached 100 years or more). Currently, it has one centenarian who is still surviving, Mrs. Dorothy Chambers, and 14 members who have reached 90 years or more.

Recently, on Feb.17, the pastor and his wife Kay Frances, celebrated their 73rd wedding anniversary.

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Faces Around the Bay: Author Karen Lewis Took the ‘Detour to Straight Street’

“My life has been a roller-coaster with an unlimited ride wristband! I was raised in Berkeley during the time of Ron Dellums, the Black Panthers, and People’s Park. I was a Hippie kid, my Auntie cut off all our hair so we could wear the natural styles like her and Angela Davis.

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Karen Lewis. Courtesy photo.

By Barbara Fluhrer

I met Karen Lewis on a park bench in Berkeley. She wrote her story on the spot.

I got married young, then ended up getting divorced, raising two boys into men. After my divorce, I had a stroke that left me blind and paralyzed. I was homeless, lost in a fog with blurred vision.

Jesus healed me! I now have two beautiful grandkids. At 61, this age and this stage, I am finally free indeed. Our Lord Jesus Christ saved my soul. I now know how to be still. I lay at his feet. I surrender and just rest. My life and every step on my path have already been ordered. So, I have learned in this life…it’s nice to be nice. No stressing, just blessings. Pray for the best and deal with the rest.

Nobody is perfect, so forgive quickly and love easily!”

Lewis’ book “Detour to Straight Street” is available on Amazon.

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Golden State Warriors Program Is Inspiring Next Generation of Female Engineers

Breaking down barriers and biases that deter young girls from pursuing STEAM subjects is essential for creating a level playing field and ensuring equal opportunities for all. By challenging stereotypes and promoting a culture of inclusivity and diversity in STEAM fields, experts believe young girls can be empowered to pursue their interests and aspirations without limitations confidently. Encouraging mentorship, providing access to resources, and celebrating girls’ achievements in STEAM are all crucial steps in creating a supportive environment that fosters success.

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Front Row: UC Berkeley Steel Bridge Team Back Row: Girls, Inc. Participants. Photo courtesy of the Golden State Warriors.

By Y’Anad Burrell

The Golden State Warriors and e-commerce giant Rakuten are joining forces to inspire the next generation of female engineers through Building STEAM Futures, part of The City Calls campaign.

Organizers say the initiative is founded on the idea that science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) are crucial fields for innovation and progress, and empowering young girls to pursue careers in these areas is more important than ever. Studies consistently show that girls are underrepresented in STEAM fields, resulting in a gender disparity that limits potential and hinders diversity.

On Saturday, March 8, International Women’s Day, the Warriors and Rakuten hosted 20 middle school girls from Girls Inc. of Alameda County at Chase Center’s Above the Rim for a hands-on bridge-building experience. The young girls from Girls, Inc. of Alameda County had an opportunity to design, build and test their own bridge prototypes and learn the fundamentals of bridge construction from the Engineering Alliance and the UC Berkeley Steel Bridge Team.

This STEAM experience for the girls followed the first session in January, where they took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Golden Gate Bridge, learning about its design and construction from industry experts. The City Calls campaign, tipped off with the unveiling the Warriors’ new bridge-themed City Edition jerseys and court design earlier this year.