January 8, 2024

Prof. Jack Pitney was quoted in an article on Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pledge to release his tax returns, but the Governor has not done so since 2020. He offered the following insight, “Governor Newsom is not on the ballot in 2024, so he does not face a great deal of political pressure to release his returns. Democrats are not pressing him on the issue. Republicans have little standing to do so, since Trump released his returns to a congressional committee only after losing a fight at the Supreme Court.”

December 21, 2023

Prof. Jessamyn Schaller was quoted in a piece on how education does not solve the pay gap between men and women. She stated, “There’s studies that show women who have a female professor in their intro-level class in sort of STEM fields or in economics are more likely to choose that class as a major. It’s important to me that, when I teach intro, I teach it in a way that kind of shows my students how interesting it can be and try to be a role model for it.

December 15, 2023

Prof. Kenneth Miller was mentioned in an article on A24’s film, Civil War, in which California and Texas are on the “same side” during the Civil War. His book, Texas vs. California: A History of Their Struggle for the Future of America was cited, laying out all the ways in which the two states’ directions have diverged. Yet on a fundamental level, he notes, the “similarities run so deep” that the two states are akin to “close siblings that became rivals.”

Prof. Branwen Williams

Prof. Branwen Williams was awarded the National Science Foundation’s Mid-Career Advancement Award. This is the second year of a new NSF program that supports mid-career faculty. The distinction will enable Williams to launch her research program at CMC’s new Kravis Department of Integrated Sciences. It will also connect the Roberts Environmental Center, which Williams directs, with collaborators at UC Irvine to learn new techniques that will further enhance our understanding of climate science.