Cal Alumni Association
A Letter from the Executive Director | Spring 2018
“It is a disturbing fact to me,” joked President John F. Kennedy in his 1962 Charter Day speech, “that the New Frontier owes as much to Berkeley, as it does to Harvard University.” Happy Birthday, Golden Bears! 2018 is an exciting year, marking the 150th anniversary of the founding of Berkeley—the shining star of public education. How […]
The Value of My Public Education
Betty Yee ’79 made her first political act at age 13: a plea before city officials not to close the local school. The move would force her to bus to school, away from her responsibilities to her family business. Her act “was about giving a voice to people who didn’t speak English,” Betty says. “That’s […]
The Thrill and Awe of UC Berkeley
Independent and driven, Linnea Norton ’19 displayed leadership talent as a toddler with her earliest phrase to her mother: “Nea do it!” she protested. Now a recipient of CAA’s Leadership Award, Linnea continues to drive her own success. Prior to entering Cal as a transfer student and molecular environmental biology major, she studied veterinary science […]
Bringing Past and Present Together
The Cal Alumni Association (CAA) named the Bowles Hall Foundation as the recipient of the 2017 Loyal Company Outstanding Volunteer Group Award. The award honors a CAA alumni chapter that has maintained a meaningful relationship to Berkeley while successfully engaging its members through events, programs, and philanthropic opportunities. In 2005, a group of former residents established […]
A Letter from the Executive Director | Fall 2017
Dear Alumni and Friends, It’s the season of giving, when our thoughts turn to all the ways in which we are blessed, and the many ways in which we can, and do, make a difference in the lives of others. As the holidays approach and we enter this season of sharing, I am inspired by how […]
Everyone Needs a Hand
Kruttschnitt Aspire Scholarship Program (KASP) scholar Pedro Flores, Jr. took the non-traditional route to UC Berkeley. An admittedly disinterested high school student, he hung out with gangs in his South Central LA neighborhood. “I had trouble staying away because my friends were gang members,” Pedro explains, who attributes much of his success to his mom. […]
Making Your Own Berkeley Way
Running and cycling. Both are fitting leisure activities for Phi Beta Kappa Cal graduate Glenn Kelman ’93, who operates at warp speed. Now the busy CEO of Redfin, an online real estate brokerage, Glenn chose Cal because “it was the best public university in the world, my best friend in high school attended, it had […]
Cal Alumni of Los Angeles Are on the Move
Cal and Stanford—besties? Yes, according to CAA’s Los Angeles chapter president Gerald Nicdao ’08. “We reached out to Stanford alumni with an invitation to join our Big Game viewing party, and a couple hundred Golden Bears and Cardinal fans got together for the Big Game. We want to broaden and deepen our connection to a […]
KASP Scholar Ups Her Cal Game
Accepted to all twelve colleges where she applied, including UC San Diego and Loyola Marymount, Frida Hernandez always had Cal in her sights. “I was used to being first in my class,” she says. “At Cal, everyone is, and some of my lectures are bigger than my entire graduating class. It means I’ve had to […]
Former Leadership Award Scholar Gives Back
Steve Sulack ’03, M.S. ’05 isn’t new to leadership. As an undergraduate, he was an outstanding Leadership Award scholar and treasurer of the Pi Tau Sigma Mechanical Engineering Honors Society. Now, he gives back to the community that supported him as a young student through the Sulack Family Leadership Scholarship he established with the Cal […]
TAAP Scholar Dreams Big and Achieves
Born and raised in Oxnard, California, an agricultural community of Hispanic and Filipino immigrants, Cesar Arroyo ’17 did not encounter the idea of a university education in his childhood. Yet, he never doubted his intent to go to college, and his sister helped pave the way. “She helped me to realize the possibility, and my […]
Cal Corporate Committee Keeps Alumni Connected at Work
Wells Fargo Cal Corporate Alumni Committee Chair Richard Zhu ’09, a graduate of the Haas School of Business and a classical pianist, believes in building community. “We know there are at least 400 Cal alumni working at Wells Fargo and we want them all to join us.” Richard and others encourage new Cal alumni hired at […]
