Coming to Davis from Colorado was a shift – the scenery, the climate (no more show shoes!) – but after almost ten years in California, it’s now a bit of a shock when things get cold. But that is exactly what it is here now. (By cold, I mean 50°F, admittedly.)

As such, the start of winter quarter has coincided with the start of what is feeling more and more like actual winter here in Davis. Of course, that hasn't stopped our students from returning with the same energy and determination they always have. (In Colorado, there would be fewer people biking across campus in the winter, that's for sure!)

Speaking of students, did you know CBS has over forty thousand alumni? Whether it’s an alum from a recent class getting that first job, or into a prestigious graduate program, or making a new discovery about life on our planet, our alumni are making a difference.

Nowhere is that more evident than with Charles Rice ’74, who won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his role in the discovery of the hepatitis C virus. Rice will join Rolf Benirschke ’77, a former star NFL placekicker, television personality and hepatitis C survivor on Friday, March 15 for a discussion about the scientific and medical breakthrough that brought them together. I hope you will join us.

In the meantime, our faculty and students are in their labs and classrooms, the parking structure beside Green Hall is full, and the eateries are busy. It’s a great time to be on campus, and a great time to be an Aggie.

Said another way, go Ags!