New annual tradition launched with Founders Day

Billed as “the beginning of a new annual tradition,” the Founders Day dinner October 18 commemorated the founding of UC Santa Cruz and the “rebels and visionaries” who established its innovative small college-centered approach to undergraduate education within the framework of a large research university. More than 350 people celebrated the founding principles of UC Santa Cruz and the achievements of four outstanding individuals at a gala dinner at the Cocoanut Grove. [More]

Prof reveals, revels in NorCal kitsch

How does a 2,000 year-old tree at Big Basin State Park trace the history of imperialism? What's the deal with the two giant white stone cats built by Highway 17 in Los Gatos? And what is the real story behind the Beaux Arts style Pulgas Water Temple on the San Francisco Peninsula? These questions and more are revealed in "Local Girl Makes History: Exploring California's Kitsch Monuments," a new book focusing on four landmark Northern California sites by UC Santa Cruz historian Dana Frank. [More]