UCLA Spotlight




Students

Women's Water Polo: Four-Peat

Hoisting the trophyThe Women's Water Polo team captured UCLA's 101st NCAA team championship. It was the fourth championship in a row for this undefeated team.   Continue »
May 13, 2008


Here-and-now heroes: Humanitarian Award winners

These three UCLA students have a commitment to public service that reaches far beyond UCLA's borders.   Continue »
Apr 28, 2008


Headed for the Final Four

Bruin fansIt hasn't happened since the glory days of John Wooden: the men's basketball team is making its third straight appearance in the Final Four.  Continue »
Mar 30, 2008


Bruin Cody Decker

Cody Decker, baseballCody Decker was "born" a Trojan - but he ended up at UCLA, a history major and a Bruin baseball player.   Continue »
Feb 1, 2008


Math grad student Craig Citro

Math grad student Craig Citro on the Wooden Center rock wallMathematics grad student Craig Citro loves number theory, but sometimes it drives him to climb the walls. Luckily the rock wall at the Wooden Center is close by.  Continue »
Jan 7, 2008


The Human Touch

Universities across the U.S. are training doctors with a new emphasis on empathy. For many, the benchmark is UCLA.  Continue »
Aug 13, 2007


New student Regent D'Artagnan Scorza

UCLA student D'Artagnan Scorza is the new student Regent. He intends to work for diversity and affordability.   Continue »
Jul 10, 2007


Immigrant student excels in biophysics

Jose Rodriguez knew no English when he started kindergarten. Now he is graduating from UCLA with a degree in biophysics.  Continue »
Jun 14, 2007


Marwa Kaisey: from Iraq to student body president of UCLA

Marwa Kaisey is UCLA's student body president. She's also a native of Iraq, one of many UCLA undergraduates born outside the U.S.  Continue »
May 21, 2007


Women's Water Polo wins it: UCLA's 100th NCAA Championship

Women's Water Polo wins their third NCAA championship in a row. UCLA becomes the first school to win 100 NCAA team championships.   Continue »
May 13, 2007


Men's Basketball Bruins in the Final Four - again

For the second consecutive year, the UCLA Men's Basketball team has played its way into the Final Four.   Continue »
Mar 26, 2007


Undergraduate wins Marshall Scholarship

UCLA senior William Thomas Clarke is Oxford-bound, thanks to his undergraduate research experience with mentor Rachelle Crosbie.  Continue »
Jan 22, 2007


Football upsets USC, 13-9

Bruin football upset the Trojans 13-9, beating them for the first time since 1998 and ending USC's shot at the national championship. How did it go down?   Continue »
Dec 4, 2006


Manal Quota: Graduating senior from Saudi Arabia

Manal Quota has come a long way from her ultra-privileged life in Saudia Arabia. The graduating senior has spent her time at UCLA helping under-privileged children and working with human rights campaigns. This spotlight takes a look at this stellar student and her accomplishments.  Continue »
Jun 19, 2006


Women's Water Polo wins title, UCLA's 99th NCAA Championship

The Women's Water Polo Team won the NCAA Championship this month scoring a last-second goal against cross-town rival USC. The win brings UCLA's total NCAA title tally up to 99.   Continue »
May 15, 2006


Men's Volleyball wins title, UCLA's 98th NCAA Championship

The UCLA Men's Volleyball team won their 14th straight NCAA title against Penn State this Month. The underdogs also brought UCLA its 98th NCAA championship title.   Continue »
May 8, 2006


Women's Basketball Wins Pac-10 Tournament

The female Bruins won their first-ever Pac-10 title against Stanford last week, catapulting them into the NCAA tournament.   Continue »
Mar 7, 2006


Men's Basketball Wins Pac-10 Title Outright

Men's basketball beat Stanford for the Pac-10 title, 75-54. It is the first time the Bruins have won the title outright in nine years, something Coach Ben Howland is very proud of.   Continue »
Mar 4, 2006


Candace Coffee, graduate student and stem cell advocate

Public health graduate student Candace Coffee, who suffers from a rare disorder known as Devic's Disease, played a central role at a stem cell news conference held on campus.   Continue »
Jan 27, 2006


Stanley Rubin: returning to earn his bachelor's degree 68 years later

Stanley Rubin, an accomplished veteran of the entertainment industry, was an undergraduate at UCLA in the 30's when he opted for an early entrance into the professional world over finishing his Bachelor's. Now, 68 years later, he is returning to UCLA at the age of 88 to complete his degree.   Continue »
Jan 9, 2006


Commencement 2005

Commencement 2005 marks the graduation of some very impressive undergraduates and graduates. Here are five women who won the UCLA Alumni Association's 2005 Outstanding Senior or Outstanding Graduate Student award.  Continue »
Jun 1, 2005


2005 NCAA Women’s Water Polo Championship

The UCLA Women's Water Polo team won their third NCAA championship this month in Ann Arbor, Michigan, bringing UCLA's total NCAA title count up to 96. Take a look at some the pictures from their win and read what the women have to say about it.  Continue »
May 1, 2005


Men's tennis team wins NCAA title

The UCLA Men's Tennis Team won the NCAA Championship this month for the first time since 1984. In addition to breaking the the 21 year no championship streak, the men also gave UCLA its 97th NCAA title.  Continue »
May 1, 2005


Bruins Win 2004 NCAA Men's Water Polo Championship

In the most thrilling men's water polo championship in recent years, UCLA scored the winning goal over Stanford with only thirteen seconds left in the second overtime period. Here are some of the images from the exciting victory.  Continue »
Dec 1, 2004


Lisa Nevins, African American Studies

Lisa Nevins has been obsessed with hip-hop since the age of 12, but it wasn't until her college years that she realized that her obsession could be an academic reality. Now she is writing her master's thesis on it and has founded a group that combines political action with hip-hop.  Continue »
Sep 1, 2004


Phuong Tang, Asian American Studies & Social Welfare

Graduate student Phuong Tang is studying in a program that will get her a master's in both Asian American studies and social work. Find out what this Vietnamese New yorker thinks of the west coast and how she would like to use her degrees.  Continue »
Aug 1, 2004


Donnie Knips, Class of 2004

When Donnie Knips arrived at UCLA, he immediately felt a burn to get involved, and that's exactly what he did. Through his involvement, this undergraduate got to meet the likes of George Bush, Gray Davis, and Mexican President Vicente Fox. He was selected as commencement 2004's student speaker and has a lust for UCLA rivaled by few.  Continue »
Jul 1, 2004


Nadine Bermudez, Education

UCLA graduate student Nadine Bermudez is writing her dissertation on the groundbreaking Mendez versus Westminster School Board case that lead to the desegregation of California Schools and the end of "Mexican Schools". Her dissertation maybe the first study to research the case in depth. Find out how she is personally connected to the case and how she feels it is relevant to today's world.  Continue »
Jul 1, 2004


Golf, Softball, NCAA Champions

A pair of UCLA women’s teams captured national championships in May: golf and softball. Both teams started the month ranked number two, and ended their seasons hoisting NCAA trophies.  Continue »
Jun 1, 2004


UCLA Gymnastics

UCLA Gymnastics takes the NCAA championship for the fourth time in five years. In addition they set the record for most points ever gained in a NCAA championship.   Continue »
Apr 1, 2004


Dalia Yasharpour, Near Eastern Languages & Cultures

When an Jewish-Iranian collector brought graduate student Dalia Yasharpour an old manuscript, she had no idea it would inspire her dissertation topic. The 17th century manuscript is written in Persian using Hebrew script for a Jewish audience. To Yasharpour it lends insight into the historical criss-crossing of Persian and Jewish culture.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2004


Jason Hsu, Doctoral student in Finance

Taiwan native Jason Hsu is doing some ground-breaking research on consumer spending in relation to stock market fluctuations. His real passion, however, lies in teaching. Take a look at what Hsu has to say about his work, his motivations, and about coming to America.  Continue »
Feb 1, 2004


Jodi Lynette Anderson, UCLA Graduate Student

This month's student spotlight takes a look at graduate student Jodi Lynette Anderson who will be serving as a student regent next year. See what she plans to do and hear what she has to say about her last year serving as a non-voting member.  Continue »
Jan 1, 2004


Saul Villeda, Physiological Science

UCLA senior Saul Villeda has won an award for his research on the spinal cord and is publishing his findings in major scientific journals. Born in east Los Angeles to Guatemalan parents, Villeda also serves as a role-model for other minorities who want to seek out a career in research. Find out more about what this super-student has to say about his research and role.  Continue »
Dec 1, 2003


Eileen Anderson-Fye, Center for Culture, Brain and Development

Eileen Anderson-Fye found her research calling while vacationing in Belize. She was curious why the adolescent girls in towns filled with Western tourists and Western media were not suffering from the same disorders that Western adolescent girls do. The interest would lead her to UCLA's Center for Culture, Brain, and Development.  Continue »
Sep 1, 2003


ChiChi Nnadi,Theater, Film and Television

When ChiChi Nnadi told his parents, both computer engineers, that he was planning to go to Los Angeles to pursue a career in theater, they did not like what they heard. Now the recent UCLA grad is going to work for MTV; maybe his parents shouldn't have worried so much.  Continue »
Aug 1, 2003


Heather Lueck, Student Commencement Speaker

When this year's College of letters and Science commencement speaker was first thinking about transferring to UCLA from community college she was scared it would be too impersonal. Her UCLA experience has been anything but impersonal: she has been conducting cutting-edge psychology research alongside prominent professors.  Continue »
Jun 1, 2003


Erika Bustamante, Richard L. Weiss Prize Winner

When Erika Bustamante came to the United States from Columbia in 1997 she could read and write it, but not speak it. Now she is graduating UCLA with honors and attending a Ph.D. program at Stanford in the fall. She credits UCLA with giving her much of the resources needed to succeed.   Continue »
Jun 1, 2003


Natasha Watley, Honda-Broderick Cup Winner

UCLA senior shortstop Natasha Watley has been named the NCAA Woman Athlete of the Year. here's why she definitely deserves it.  Continue »
Jun 1, 2003


Student Engineers

A concrete canoe? Not only did these engineering students build one, they physically trained to race it against others. That's one of the many engineering feats completed by competing UCLA engineering students this month.  Continue »
May 1, 2003


Undergraduate Researchers

Even though they were studying three very separate topics, these three undergraduate researchers were chosen by the National Council on Undergraduate Research to present their findings on Capitol Hill.   Continue »
May 1, 2003


Kynna Wright, Public Health

Kynna Wright is busy—teaching, running a program, advocating for maternal and child health, and seeing patients as a certified pediatric nurse practitioner. Oh, and she also finds time to meet the rigorous demands of a UCLA School of Public Health doctoral student.   Continue »
Mar 1, 2003


Yasser Aman, Public Health

Just a few years ago, Yasser Aman was a UCLA undergraduate intending to enroll in medical school. But something happened along the way: he began to volunteer at the University Muslim Medical Association free clinic. Since then, his plans have changed drastically.  Continue »
Jan 1, 2003


Dominguez Law Students

The Dominguez siblings, two brothers and one sister, all enrolled at UCLA School of Law. After losing their father nineteen years ago, Pepita, their mother, raised them all by herself. Working three jobs, she provided them with the necessary care and resources to sculpt their impressive academic careers.  Continue »
Aug 1, 2002


Gina Fatone, Ethnomusicology

It was in a class at the New England Conservatory of Music that Gina Fatone realized that one's ability to sing a note correlated into his or her ability to play that same note on an instrument. She is now finishing her dissertation on the connection between vocal and motor skills. Read on for details on her innovative work work.  Continue »
Aug 1, 2002


Tung Ngo, Physiological Science

It was after their 13th attempt that UCLA graduate student Tung Ngo's family finally escaped from Vietnam. Ngo then spent 4 years in refugees camps before finally arriving in Southern California in 1997 and enrolling in High School at the age of 17. Now he is receiving his Ph.D. from UCLA, take a look at Ngo's fascinating story.  Continue »
Jul 1, 2002


Elena Hsieh and Gilmer Youn, Undergraduate Research

These two super students were part of a 68-student undergraduate group chosen from across the nation to present their findings on Capitol Hill. Find out why their professors said they were better researchers than many postdoctoral students.  Continue »
Jun 1, 2002


Munir Shaikh, Islamic Studies

Munir Shaikh's master's degree in Islamic Studies has already led to some interesting jobs. The flashiest was tutoring the cast of a movie about boxing legend Muhammad Ali. Shaikh showed actor Will Smith, who plays the title role, how to perform prayers and recite Arabic.  Continue »
Jun 1, 2002


Cory Evans, Molecular Biology

Growing up in a working-class neighborhood of Southeast Los Angeles, UCLA graduate student Cory Evans valued the opportunities he had. It was this appreciation that pushed him at school, and ultimately made him excel. Currently he is researching enzymes that may lead to DNA waste and autoimmune disorders. take a look.  Continue »
Apr 1, 2002


Rob King, Critical Studies

Scouring the archives of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, graduate student Rob king analyzes aspects of early cinema in the cultural context they were created. But evidence for his dissertation is not all he's found, take a look at this Spotlight to see what other rarities turned up.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2002


Alejandro Simone, Economics

As young Argentine, UCLA graduate student Alejandro Simone was constantly confronted with recession, as his country suffered from it often. His ceaseless interaction with recession motivated Simone to come to UCLA and write his dissertation on different aspects of economic recession. Take a look at what he has to say about his research.  Continue »
Mar 1, 2002


Michelle Wehling-Henricks, Physiology

Graduate student Michelle Wehling-Henricks was majoring in business at Pepperdine when she made the switch to physiology and came to UCLA. Now she is researching the causes of Muscular Dystrophy and is making some serious gains. Hear what she has to say about how her experiences at UCLA have shaped her life decisions.   Continue »
Feb 1, 2002


John Roskovensky, Atmospheric Sciences

Ever wonder what the clouds look like from above? UCLA graduate student in atmospheric sciences John Roskovensky did, and now he studies what clouds look like from satellites. Take a look at some of the unusual cloud formations Roskovensky is looking at and what they could mean to our world.  Continue »
Jan 1, 2002


Michelle Kelly, Slavic Languages and Literature

Michelle Kelly loves rabbits. Despite trying to complete her dissertation in Slavic Language and Literature, Kelly has taken an unusually active role at the West LA Animal Shelter. Caring for its floppy-eared residents, she does everything from driving them to the vet, to cleaning their cages. What's she going to do next? Teach them Russian?  Continue »
Dec 1, 2001


Emily Daughtry and Erin Wilson, Law

UCLA law students Emily Daughtry and Erin Wilson were dispatched by the US Department of Defense to negotiate the joint clean up of an Uzbek island that was once a Soviet anthrax burial ground. And you thought law school wasn't exciting.  Continue »
Nov 1, 2001


Karina Eileraas, Women's Studies

Karina Eileraas had taken a stab at a variety of different careers before she realized what her true calling was: women's studies. Now this UCLA graduate student is pursuing one of the first Women's Studies' Ph.D.s the University is offering.   Continue »
Aug 1, 2001


Matt Jones, Mathematics

UCLA mathematics graduate student Matt Jones love math, but that's not his only passion; he also loves teaching. This graduate student tells it like it is about the math department here at UCLA.  Continue »
Aug 1, 2001


Bruno Louchouarn, Music

French citizen Bruno Louchouarn had degrees in Mathematics, Copmuter Science, and A.I. and was living in Mexico City. An earthquake and Total Recall changed all that. Now he is a graduate student in UCLA's composition program.  Continue »
Jul 1, 2001


Brian Jordan, Human Genetics

WNT-4 is a gene that UCLA graduate student Brian Jordan is researching. He thinks that there may be a preponderance of this gene in individuals who, physically speaking, are sexually ambiguous. That's not all this super-researcher is up to, take a look.  Continue »
Jul 1, 2001


Champion Gymnastics Team, 2001

The Bruins pulled their third NCAA gymnastics title, and second consecutive title this month in Georgia. The championship ended with edge-of-your-seat suspense.  Continue »
May 1, 2001


Jeremy Cholfin, Undergraduate Research

When UCLA undergraduate Jeremy Choflin was summoned to Capitol Hill to present some of his research findings, he had earned it. This past school year saw him averaging about 10 to 20 hours per week in the lab; during the summer he often spent up to 60 hours per week.  Continue »
May 1, 2001


Heidi Moneymaker, Gymnast

This spirited student is the only female Bruin to win NCAA gymnastic titles each of her four years. But that's not the only thing this history major has achieved over the years. Read on to find out more about Moneymaker's accomplishments and ambitions.  Continue »
Jan 15, 2001


Tracy Davis, Student Regent

Tracy Davis has been appointed as the 2001-2002 UC Student Regent, taking over for last month's student spotlight, Justin Fong. This UCLA graduate student, pursuing a Ph.D. in Higher Education and Organizational Change, is passionate about public education and anticipates great changes within the UC system over the next five to ten years. What does she expect to change?   Continue »
Nov 6, 2000


Candice Taylor, Black Hypertension Project

When Candice Taylor's grandfather died of hypertension, she took action. This premed undergraduate spent four years volunteering for the Black Hypertension Program - two years as director.  Continue »
Oct 16, 2000


Justin Fong, Student Regent

Newly-appointed Student Regent Justin Fong has been called a modern-day renaissance man. This 25 year-old public policy graduate student has been involved in a range of activities, but is particularly passionate about ensuring diversity through affirmative action. Find out why this stellar student was arrested.  Continue »
Oct 9, 2000


Kabir Singh, Best Buddies

Kabir Singh cares about his community. This double majoring premed has been passionate about working with disabled teens for quite some time. As co-director of the UCLA Best Buddies Chapter, Singh has implemented new programs and won the 2000 Charles E. Young Humanitarian Award. Inside: his brainchild, the "Buddylimpics".  Continue »
Sep 18, 2000


Michael de la Rocha, Outreach

Student body President Michael de la Rocha (1999-2000) feels that students must be social critics and do their part to challenge social norms. This belief is reflected in the work that he has done at UCLA helping outreach programs enroll larger amounts of underrepresented students.   Continue »
Jul 31, 2000


Joaquim Havens, Genetics

At 21, Havens was married, living in Greece, and scrubbing boat-bottoms for a living. Eight years later he designed the first gene-therapy treatment model for a genetic disorder called glycerol kinase deficiency. Read more about the unlikely path of Havens' life.  Continue »
Jul 3, 2000