CAA Announcements

Mentoring and volunteering has always been second nature to Deary Duffie MBA ’84. The son of a US Army soldier, Duffie was born in the Pacific Northwest and has lived in Mannheim, Germany; Buffalo, New York; and Atlanta, Georgia. After his father retired, the family moved to East Oakland. During his corporate career, Duffie worked in Silicon Valley, Brazil, Belgium, Switzerland, Singapore, China, and Italy. Now he spends part of the year in Tuscany.

There is a sea of information out there about how to be successful and pursue the opportunities that best align with who you are. Career coach and Berkeley alum Joy Lin ’09 stresses the importance of being selective about what you want—the true mark of a highly successful person.

Transfer students feel the pressure to set career goals as soon as they start at Cal. At the Alumni-Student Mixer during Golden Bear Orientation, alumni volunteered to help new UC Berkeley transfers feel more encouraged and less overwhelmed. This year’s diverse class of transfers includes first-generation students, student veterans, and student parents. “It’s always so great to interact with our amazing students.”

Whether you’ve just graduated or have been in the workforce for decades, you may find yourself questioning if you are on the right path. You may have days where you wonder whether your career was the right choice for you, or whether you see opportunities for growth in the future. Feeling lost on your career path isn’t uncommon, so we spoke with career coach Joy Lin ’09 to find out what advice she gives individuals standing at this crossroads.

There’s no better time than these chilly months to ensconce ourselves in comfy furniture with a book. After the year we’ve had, some quality time with a brilliant read is just what the doctor ordered. No matter what your genre of choice is, this list will hopefully introduce you to the book(s) that keeps you company during a holiday season unlike any other. Happy reading, and happy holidays from the Cal Alumni Association!

As a continuation of its partnership with Berkeley Changemaker™, the Cal Alumni Association held The Berkeley Changemaker Workshop: How Leaders Set Winning Culture! for its current Alumni Scholars. The workshop was facilitated by Rich Lyons, UC Berkeley’s first-ever chief innovation and entrepreneurship officer. Lyons, a Berkeley Changemaker faculty member, previously served as the dean of Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, oversaw Goldman Sachs University as its chief learning officer, and taught on the business faculty at Columbia University for six years.