Jan. 18, 2012 – Four college leaders, including UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, gathered at a public forum on Jan. 11 to discuss the challenges that their institutions are currently facing. At the heart of several issues that were addressed was the impact of repeated budget cuts and tuition hikes on the future of higher education. Larry Mantle, who hosts KPCC's news talk show, "AirTalk," moderated the event. USC president Max Nikias, California Community Colleges Chancellor Jack Scott, and the president of Pitzer College, Laura Skandera Trombley, also participated. The forum was recorded and played on AirTalk the next day.

[4:30]

Jan. 12, 2012 – Analyzing wolf DNA goes far beyond a stroll through the forest with a field journal. It involves lab work, processing data and computer science. The Wayne and Novembre Labs in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department are sequencing the wolf genome to observe how natural selection has impacted the wolf's behavior and appearance. The project gives students an opportunity to use new, affordable sequencing technologies. [3:46]

Dec. 1, 2011 – Professional choreographer Peggy Hickey has worked extensively in theater, film and television productions across the country. She has choreographed musicals and operas from New York to Los Angeles, won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Choreography, and worked with some of the biggest talent of this generation. She is currently teaching theater dance at UCLA on Mondays and Wednesdays. Hickey is battling stage two breast cancer and has become an advocate of a treatment option called Penguin Cold Caps; gel skull caps worn during chemotherapy that prevent hair loss.

[4:26]

Nov. 23, 2011 – Fourth-year economics student José Angel Manaiza Jr. reflects on what he’s learned over the years from Toastmasters, a global organization focused on teaching communication and leadership skills through public speaking. UCLA Bruin Toastmasters is a certified President’s Distinguished Club, which is the highest level of excellence that a Toastmasters club can achieve.

[5:51]

Nov. 21, 2011 – Bruins for Israel and the Armenian Students’ Association co-hosted an ethnic cultural exchange on Nov. 16. The event, “Shalom Aper,” draws its name from the Jewish word Shalom, which means "hello," and the Armenian word Aper, which means "brother." [3:22]

Note: Razmig Sarkissian is a third-year english student. Molly Cornfield is a fourth-year environmental science student.

Nov. 18, 2011 – Sex and Cookies is a program run by medical, public health and social work students at UCLA that aims to teach undergraduate residents about safe sex. The “cookies” aspect ties in by creating a fun atmosphere for discussion about relationships and sexuality. A group of graduate students started Sex and Cookies in 2009 with help from David Gere, an associate professor in the world arts and culture program, and Dr. Gail Wyatt, a professor in the psychiatry and biobehavioral science program. Sex and Cookies has since expanded to include more than one hundred members who meet with undergraduates four or five times per quarter. [4:42]