Dear Campus Community:
It is my with mixed emotions that I announce that Sam Castaneda, founding director of the Visiting Scholar and Postdoc Affairs Program (VSPA), is retiring effective Thursday, June 28th after 36 years of service to the Berkeley community. A pioneer in the nation-wide movement to bring recognition and much needed services to the postdocs, visiting scholars, and visiting student researchers who so enrich our community, Sam was recently recognized by the National Postdoc Association which honored him with its 2018 Distinguished Service Award. Sam’s creativity, vision, and commitment to this vital population will be greatly missed.
While a search is conducted to hire his permanent replacement, Andrew Green will serve as interim VSPA director. Dr. Green has collaborated closely with VSPA for nearly twenty years in his role as associate director of the Career Center and has spent the last year working as VSPA’s interim associate director. He can be reached at aegre@berkeley.edu.
Please join me in congratulating Sam on a magnificent career and wishing him well in his retirement.
Sincerely,
Randy Howard Katz
Vice Chancellor for Research
If you are a manager who supervises UC Berkeley employees without email access, please circulate this information to all.