KUCI: Office Hours

Graduate Student Strikes at UC Irvine

In her debut episode as a cohost, Ingrid Allen interviews two members of the uci4COLA movement and UCI grad students Courtney Echols and Nalya Rodriguez. They discuss the COLA, or Cost of Living Adjustment movement at UCI, which advocates for higher wages for graduate student teaching assistants in response to the rent burden they struggle with. They also discuss the housing crisis and mutual aid fund facing graduate students, among other issues.
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

”A Full Circle” by Mieke Rosecrans

Welcome to the second quarter of "Office Hours"! This week, we are doing a very special show. Rather than interviewing a professor or student, we are doing a dramatic reading of "A Full Circle", a short play by UC Irvine student playwright, Mieke Rosecrans. This play follows four college students in a support group, as they navigate friendship, mental illness, and grief.
Trigger Warning: This short play deals with the topics of death, chronic illness, mental illness, addiction, and suicidal themes. Please take care when listening.
The people reading the roles were as follows:
Tess: Mieke Rosecrans
Abby: Cybelle Kaehler
Daniel: Victor Bolyshkanov
Owen: Aaron Cirillo
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime", by David Ryan Harris.
The other songs used in this episode were "Out of the Woods" by Nickel Creek, "Minism" by Taylor Dupree, and "Rest of My Life" by Nickel Creek.
Though we are now producing episodes and interviewing guests remotely, the show is continuing to air new episodes every week. Our broadcast time is now Wednesdays at 8:00 AM instead of Thursdays, and we now have two cohosts instead of one- Ingrid Allen has joined Cybelle Kaehler on the "Office Hours" team.

Into the Financial Future- Economics and Science Fiction

Tune in this episode for a fascinating discussion with Dr. Jonathan Alexander, a professor of English and Gender and Sexuality Studies, on his new book, “Science Fiction and the Dismal Science”. He explains how science fiction comments on economics in society, and how both science fiction and fan fiction imagines the future.
Find out more at:
https://uci.academia.edu/JonathanAlexander
His book is available here:
https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/science-fiction-and-the-dismal-science/
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

Preventing Wildfires with an All Star Team

This week, we heard from Dr. Tirtha Banerjee, a civil and environmental engineering professor who leads a research team of professors from multiple UCs, working to develop ways to prevent and control wildfires. Using a computer simulation, he is able to track how fire will spread and affect a habitat, and work to combat it. Don't miss this exciting conversation!
Find out more at:
https://engineering.uci.edu/users/tirtha-banerjee
https://news.uci.edu/2020/02/14/uci-led-project-seeks-to-combat-wildfires/
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

Cycle of Violence: El Salvador’s Criminal Justice System

This week, we heard from Nalya Rodriguez, a UC Irvine PhD student in sociology, on criminal justice, racism, and gang violence in El Salvador. Tune in for an insightful discussion of Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele’s recent law enforcement policies.
Find out more at:
https://www.latinorebels.com/2020/02/12/elsalvadorchance/
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

Inside Student Government with UCI’s Student Body President

Today we heard from UCI's student government, ASUCI president Randy Yan! He discusses his goals and initiatives as president, as well as the purpose and inner workings of student government.
Find out more at:
https://www.asuci.uci.edu/president/
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

”They All Look The Same”- The Neuroscience of Racism

This week, “Office Hours” explores new topics in neuroscience with a PhD student in neurology, Jessica Yaros, who speaks about her research on racial bias in facial recognition.
Find out more at:
https://www.npr.org/2016/10/21/493252538/meet-fojbi-jessie-yaros-explorer-of-race-memory-and-discrimination
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

Inequalities in Public Education

This week, Office Hours interviewed former elementary school teacher, education advocate, and distinguished professor of education at the University of California, Irvine, Dr. Emily Penner. She discusses her research on structural inequality in elementary, middle, and high schools in America, and how we can create a brighter future for underprivileged students.
Find out more about her work at http://emilykpenner.com/ and https://www.faculty.uci.edu/profile.cfm?faculty_id=6281
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

Outlooks on The Coronavirus

This week, we examined a highly topical and serious issue, as we discuss the developing situation with the Coronavirus. Alvaro Zevallos, a UCI graduate student in Public Health, shares information on the outbreak and how to stay safe and avoid the transmission of the disease, as well as other research and knowledge from a public health expert. Find out more at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html
(This episode was recorded January 28, 2020, and aired January 30, 2020. Please be advised it is NOT CURRENT INFORMATION.)
Our intro song was "If I Had a Dime" by David Ryan Harris.

Rewriting the Classics in The Penelopiad

On the Thursday show, we heard from Sara Rodriguez, the director of the upcoming UCI drama production, “The Penelopiad” by Margaret Atwood. The play is a feminist retelling of “The Odyssey” centering on Odysseus’ wife, Penelope, and it features an all female cast. Join us as Sara discusses Greek literature, feminism, history, and the theatre making process.
And listen to “Odyssey and Chill”, Sara’s new podcast, here!
https://sites.uci.edu/odysseyandchill/
Our intro song was "If I Had A Dime" by David Ryan Harris.