UCLA in the Community

Campus faculty, staff, students, and alumni came together today in Wilson Plaza to salute current military service members and veterans for their service. In other news, UCLA has received recognition recently for being among the friendliest campuses for veterans.

UCLA volunteers headed for the Veterans Home of West Los Angeles on Sunday for a day of stripping, sanding and re-staining wood patio chairs and tables so that veterans who are living at the assisted-living and skilled-nursing facility can continue to enjoy being outdoors.

Ric Ryan, a Vietnam veteran who has raised thousands of dollars for UCLA Operation Mend, will walk with veterans, doctors and nurses from the program in America's biggest Veterans Day parade in New York City.

For over 15 years, the Senior Fellows Leadership Program has been helping to prepare UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs students for careers as change agents in the world by pairing them with leaders in their fields as mentors.

Two scholars — one from UCLA and another from Chapman University — discuss the importance of train transportation in L.A.'s history and whether or not rail will play an integral role in the city's future.

Kelly Schmader, UCLA assistant vice chancellor for facilities management, served 28 years as an officer in the U.S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps.

Tigon Abalos, a dental student at UCLA, a Army veteran and former refugee from Vietnam, will draw on her deep appreciation for her service experience when she speaks at UCLA’s annual Veterans Day ceremony Nov. 10.

UCLA officials went downtown on Wednesday to recognize campus programs that serve communities throughout Los Angeles County and, together with volunteer ambassadors, met with local officials to discuss UCLA's public service efforts in each of their respective districts.

Charitable giving in Los Angeles County has yet to return to pre-recession levels, according to a report released Tuesday by the Center for Civil Society at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

The new Parent Worker Project, run out of the UCLA Labor Center in partnership with SEIU United Service Workers West/Building Skills Partnership, helps janitors become effective advocates in their children’s education, starting with pre-school through third grade.

Nearly 1,100 students from Washington Preparatory High School, located in southeast Los Angeles County, heard senior leaders from UCLA deliver a simple but inspiring message: A UC education is within your reach.

After 10 years of research at UCLA, the first mobile website to function as a storytelling trail guide to help people explore the past, present and future of certain downtown L.A. neighborhoods —  as they walk, bike or skateboard in those locations — was unveiled.

At a “Thinking L.A.” event copresented by UCLA and Zocalo Public Square, a panel that included two UCLA professors discuss the transformation of downtown L.A. and whether it lives up to the current hype.

Harriet Kerr is the director of prevention and community education at UCLA's Rape Treatment Center. She has been helping children and adults cope with the trauma of sexual assault for more than 20 years.

Elijah Ozuna is one of 13 new Bruins who were admitted after completing UCLA's highly successful Vice Provost Initiative for Pre-College Scholars program. To date, 97 percent of the program’s 250 core participants have enrolled in four-year colleges.

Brian Taylor, who directs the Institute of Transportation Studies at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, joined three other transportation experts to address questions about the state of traffic in L.A.

Volunteers worked at more than 40 schools, veterans centers, public parks, senior centers, community centers and homeless service providers.

The Burkle Global Impact Initiative, which was created at UCLA to educate the public about international and humanitarian affairs by working within the creative community, helped produce a video for the United Nations Climate Summit that took place Tuesday in New York.

For UCLA's sixth annual Volunteer Day on Sept. 29, 7,300 Bruins will blanket Los Angeles County helping out at schools, veterans' sites, senior centers, shelters, parks and more, before classes even begin.

UCLA experts will engage with city leaders from around the world to create smarter cities.

About 50 UCLA health care workers ranging from nurses to cardiologists and ophthalmologists, volunteered at this year's free health clinic for the poor and underserved sponsored by Care Harbor.

As the UCLA Community School nears its fifth anniversary, the college going rate for students in the area has increased dramatically. Ninety-five percent of last year's graduating seniors plan to go to college this fall.

A Q&A with Allison Carruth, associate professor of English at UCLA, who is helping to lead a massive effort that launches this Saturday to draw the public to the Los Angeles River.

Six proposals led primarily by UCLA units are vying with 261 others for grant funding by the Goldhirsh Foundation, which is hoping to jump-start projects that will make L.A. the best place to play, to connect, to live, create and learn by 2050.

An off-duty lifeguard was rescued after being struck by a bolt of lightning at Venice Beach. He recently reunited with his rescuers, including staff from Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.