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2022 WINTER
When media cover news and events, they come to Richmond for perspective and expertise. Here's a sample of recent stories that put the university in the news: Leadership studies assistant professor LAUREN HENLEY wrote about what higher education can learn from professors like her who started their first faculty jobs during the pandemic. "Many of us who were new to academe enjoyed the relative weightless- ness of the unknown," she wrote. "Unlike our veteran colleagues, we didn't know what we'd 'lost,' because we had nothing to compare our new jobs to." SAIF MEHKARI , associate profes- sor of economics, described vaccine mandates as a mixed bag for employers because of socioeconomic polarization, noting that lower-wage workers might be more hesitant to get the shot than their corporate counterparts. MATTHEW OWARE , Irving May Professor of Human Relations, offered per- spective on Lil Nas X's challenge to gender norms in rap music, noting the genre's long embrace of boundary-pushing. "What Lil Nas X is doing by upping the ante is no different than what we see a stereotypical, heterosexual rapper do." Modern Farmer re- printed a piece from The Conversation by KRISTINE GRAYSON , associate professor of biology, on the promise of wasps for controlling emerald ash borers. "Four wasp species ... have gone through the [USDA] approval process for field release." "Just because something in the sky is strange doesn't mean it is from another planet," JACK SINGAL , associate professor of physics, noted in a story on what purported UFO videos really show. For the latest stories, go to news.richmond. edu/placements.
IN THE NEWS
A vax app for that
When Rick Klau, L'96, got his first COVID-19 vaccine shot, he put the CDC vaccination card in his wallet. Then, he realized how easily he could lose it. "To me, it appeared obvious that the paper CDC card was likely to get lost, left at home, or destroyed in the laundry - making it difficult, if not impossible, for residents to prove their vaccination status," he said. His next thought: "I can fix that." Klau, chief technology innovation officer for the state of California, and his team landed on the SMART Health Card - a digital record of health information such as test results and vaccinations. Multiple states use the system, which allows users to save their information digi- tally and print a copy if necessary. His team released a digital COVID- 19 vaccine record portal in June. The system gives Californians a digital record that includes a QR code for verifying vaccination status. Within two weeks, it delivered more than 1 million digital vaccine records. "A growing number of states have followed our lead, along with pharma- cies and health systems," Klau said. "More than 100 million Americans now have access to a SMART Health Card. Not only is it easy for residents to share their records; it's also easy for businesses and employers to verify the accuracy of those records." Klau said his time at Richmond taught him to step up and take risks. "UR encouraged me to try new things and to engage my curiosity," he said. "My time at UR paved the way for me to take ideas and shape them into impactful technological outcomes."
INNOVATION R I C H M O N D ' S S T A T U S Richmond began the spring semester hopeful that immuni- zation rates will have risen enough and community transmission rates dropped enough that it would soon be safe to lift mask mandates for the first time since spring 2020. For the latest updates on UR's COVID-19 status and response, go to richmond.edu/ coronavirus.
Rick Klau, L'96, led the development of California's app for confirming vaccination status.
QUOTATION
" We have the love to help one another and our world."
LINA TORI JAN, '20 , speaking to her classmates at delayed commencement exercises for the Class of 2020 in September. See photos on Page 42.
Illustration by Mike Domina
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