UC Davis Retirees' Association
April 2021 Report
Submited by: Mike Chandler, President, UC Davis Retirees' Association
COVID19: I again start with this because this pandemic has resulted in many changes for our Association as I am sure it has with yours. This past year we have had no in-person meetings. We have also been forced to suspend monthly bus outings as well as in-person Brain Food presentations and special gatherings. However, we continue to meet via Zoom on a monthly basis, which has proven to be a very valuable tool. It is our goal to incorporate the Zoom technology when we are again allowed to meet in-person. Here’s to a coming year when we can again sit down, "face-to-face."
Health Benefits/CUCRA: Little did our immediate Past President John Meyer know that his time wasn't over. John now serves on the UC Retirement Advisory Board and he is also our new CUCRA President. As an Advisory Board member he and the Board are working on retiree health benefits with an eye on keeping cost reasonable. As CUCRA president, John has had a Zoom call with UC President Drake to discuss RASC, survivor's benefits, and better ways to engage retirees.
Biannual Meetings with Chancellor, Provost and Vice Chancellor: Continuing our partnership with the Emeriti Association, we again met with the Chancellor, Provost, and Vice Chancellor of Development and Alumni Relations in the fall of 2021. During the meeting we provided Association updates and discussed recent challenges regarding RASC's inability to address retiree matters in a timely manner.
Retirtee Parking: As many of you know, UCD Retirees have received free parking privileges for many years. This round of free parking will end in June 2021. However, we have heard from good authority that our new Provost, Mary Croughan, will continue to support this great benefit come this July.
Picnic Day Retiree Honoree: Our annual Picnic Day parade has again been cancelled due to COVID. Thus, the Association will again extend recognition of our honoree, Calvin E. Handy, until the 2022 event. Mr. Handy served as the campus police chief from 1993 until his retirement in 2005. Upon retiring, Chief Handy was bestowed the title of Police Chief Emeritus.
By-Laws Update: In May, the UCDRA will ask our General Membership to approve updated By-Laws of the Association. Our existing By-Laws have not been significantly updated since the inception of the Association and they are in need of significant overhaul.
Retiree Center Staff: Director Kyle Urban and his staff continue to do an outstanding job supporting UCDRA and offering one-on-one assistance to retirees, especially regarding RASC challenges. Kyle is down to one assistant at the moment, Julian Crowley, but plans to hire a second assistant in the spring of 2022. The hiring is delayed, yes, to COVID.
Brainfood Talks/Special Presentation: We continue to offer "Brainfood Talks" and have added a Speaker Series which are open to retirees, emeriti, students and all community members via Zoom. When compared to life without Zoom, we are finding that we have a much larger audience with the Zoom format. Hence, we plan to continue to use Zoom once we start meeting in person again.
Meeting with Emeriti Association: The UC Davis Retirees’ Association continues to enjoy a very cooperative and supportive relationship with our Emeriti Association. Not only do we have joint meetings of the two Associations, we schedule joint monthly meetings of the leadership of both Associations. Currently, our Director, Kyle Urban, serves as liaison between the two Associations.