Events

Drop-In Figure Drawing
2025-10-14 19:00 - 21:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Elena Baskin Visual Arts Center, Baskin Service Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Drop-In Draw provides a live model and room monitor. There is no formal lesson and only dry media is allowed (no paints).
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ADVISORIES
– These events contain mature content and nudity.
– Drop-In Draw is subject to the possibility of last-minute cancellation without notification, and sessions are not guaranteed.
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ADMISSION
– FREE and open to the public
– UCSC Art Department Room L-101
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SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
This series occurs weekly on Tuesday evenings during fall quarter, including the following:
– Tue., Sep. 30, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Oct. 7, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Oct. 14, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Oct. 21, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Oct. 28, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Nov. 4, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Nov. 18, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
– Tue., Nov. 25, 7:00–9:00 p.m.
Additional dates to be announced for winter and spring quarter.
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PARKING
– Parking by permit or ParkMobile.
– Arts Lot #126 is the closest parking lot to the event.
– Visitors with DMV placards or plates may park for free in DMV spaces, Medical spaces, or ParkMobile spaces without additional payment, or in timed zones for longer than the posted time.
– More information provided by UCSC Transportation & Parking Services (TAPS).
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law.

Festival of Monsters 2025
2025-10-15 00:00 - 2025-10-18 23:59 | Digital Arts Research Center, 407 McHenry Rd, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
The Festival of Monsters returns for the annual academic conference with public performances, installations, readings, and more. Learn more about the Center for Monster Studies here and refer to the full schedule of events, below, for individual event details.
Co-presented by the UC Santa Cruz Center for Monster Studies, Department of Performance, Play & Design, The Humanities Institute (THI), and Porter College.
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ADMISSION
– Open to the public
– Some events have required registration; refer to individual event listings in the full schedule of events
– UCSC students, faculty, and staff registration HERE
– Academic conference registration for non-affiliates HERE
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AUDIENCE ADVISORIES
– Mature themes and content
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
– Wed. Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m, Museum of Art & History (MAH): David Livingstone Smith Keynote
– Thurs. Oct. 16, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Kim Lau keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Jeffery Jerome Cohen keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 8:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center—DARC 108: Monsters Ball (previously advertised location of the Hay Barn was incorrect)
– Sat. Oct. 18, 11:00 a.m, Bookshop Santa Cruz: “Oh! The Horror” Writers Panel
– Sat. Oct. 18, 2:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m, Atlantis Fantasyworld: Cole Lemke, Horror Comic Artist
– Sat. Oct. 18, 6:00 p.m, Game Santa Cruz: “Blood on the Clocktower”
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law.

2025 Fall STEM Career & Internship Fair
2025-10-15 11:00 | Stevenson Event Center, Stevenson Service Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Here is a chance to meet tech recruiters in person!
If you are interested in pursuing a career in science, technology, engineering, mathematics or research, then take advantage of this opportunity to meet recruiters from companies looking to fill various positions (both technical and non-technical). Learn more about internships and full-time career opportunities. Undergraduate students, graduate students, and recent alumni are all welcome to attend!
PLEASE NOTE: You are encouraged to check in at the student registration table in order to participate in the career fair. Bring your student ID.
Want more support?

Visit a peer coach during drop-in hours
Schedule a career coaching appointment with a Career Engagement Specialist
For PhD students looking to pursue careers in industry, explore Beyond the Professoriate
(Scroll over "Login to Platform" at the top navigation bar and click "Through your institution")
Get career tips on demand from our Career Success YouTube video library
Stay in the loop by following Career Success on Instagram

You will receive registration and additional information in your email from Career Success via Handshake. Please make sure to check your junk/spam folder if you are not receiving any communication.

You Belong Here: The programs and services described here are open to all, consistent with state and federal law, as well as the University of California’s nondiscrimination policies. Every initiative—whether a student service, faculty program, or community event—is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and respectful of all identities.
To learn more, please visit UC Nondiscrimination Statement or Nondiscrimination Policy for UC Publications.
Questions? Send to csuccess@ucsc.edu or visit Career Success at Hahn 125 East Entrance
Need accessibility support? Let us know at slugtalent@ucsc.edu at least two weeks prior to the fair date.

Healthy Relationships Workshop Series
2025-10-15 11:30 - 13:00
In honor of Relationship, Dating, and Domestic Violence Awareness/Action Month (RDDVAM), join CARE for a workshop series all about relationships and boundaries. We’ll practice identifying aspects of healthy and unhealthy relationships and talk about the importance of setting boundaries with ourselves and in our relationships. Snacks and refreshments provided!
Workshop 1 | Green, Yellow, Red: Wednesday, October 15th from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. at Kerr Hall, Room 160
Workshop 2 | Boundaries & Beyond!: Wednesday, October 29th from 11:30 a.m. – 1 p.m at Kerr Hall, Room 160
All UCSC students are welcome! You can attend either or both workshops – attendance at one is not required for attendance in the other. For any questions, accessibility needs, or accommodations, please email care_pec@ucsc.edu.
You Belong Here: The programs and services described here are open to all, consistent with state and federal law, as well as the University of California’s nondiscrimination policies. Every initiative—whether a student service, faculty program, or community event—is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and respectful of all identities. Nondiscrimination Policy for UC Publications

Engineering Teaching Community (Faculty)
2025-10-15 12:00 - 13:00 | Jack Baskin Engineering, Baskin Engineering 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
During the chaos of a quarter, is it hard to find time to reflect and improve as an instructor? Would you like to be a part of an inclusive, supportive group of engineering instructors who do this in community? ETC is for sharing teaching experiences, classroom ideas, research on learning, and methods that support instructors and students. All are welcome, and lunch is provided. Please reach out to Jenny Quynn with questions.

Campus to Career: Job Talk with Kristen Amicone, Education Program Specialist
2025-10-15 12:30
Are you curious about careers in education or nonprofits? Join this job talk with UCSC Humanities alum Kristen Amicone, a doctoral student with expertise in nonprofits, educational programming, and leadership. Kristen will share insights from her academic and professional experience, from being a transfer student, to making career transition decisions, to navigating an online graduate school program.
Learn more about Kristen:
Kristen Amicone is a UCSC Feminist Studies and Kresge alumna and a lifelong Californian. Growing up in the Inland Empire, she moved to Santa Cruz to attend UCSC and then to San Diego for her first stint in grad school at SDSU. After working in the nonprofit sector for 15 years, she made the jump to education/government work with the San Diego County Office of Education. Kristen specializes in employee/volunteer engagement and educational programming. She returned to school in 2022, earning her MSNPA from Louisiana State University, Shreveport (LSUS) in 2023 before applying for and getting accepted to the EdD program at the same institution. Her research interests include employee engagement, change confidence, and leadership. She lives in La Mesa, a small town right outside San Diego, and enjoys theatre, movies, and horror novels.

Creative Interventions: Catherine Provenzano
2025-10-15 16:00 - 17:35
Since the shift to predominantly digital audio recording, manufacturers of software tools have stepped in claiming to make production work faster and easier while unlocking the artist/producer’s creative potential. In 2016, artist Justin Bieber explained to the New York Times Magazine that the way producers Diplo and Skrillex were able to manipulate Ableton on his hit Where Are Ü Now resulted in what he affirmatively coined as “expensive-sounding sounds.” More recent messaging around sounds that “stand out” is surging as most major music software outfits roll out new AI tools meant to do everything from automate the engineer’s vocal chain to help the artist quickly find and tailor samples.
Refusing to take these claims at face value, this talk will consider several songs, advertisements, and demonstration videos from the last 25 years and ask, what makes a technology “creative” in practice? And under what conditions?
This presentation is an interactive listening exercise that brings together conceptions of creative musical production and interrogates the ways software designers lay claim to and promise creativity. Participants are encouraged to assemble examples from their own listening and creative lives and present them for group discussion.
This event is presented as part of the Creative Interventions (CI) Series and is co-sponsored by the Arts Division’s Creative Technologies program and Porter College at UC Santa Cruz.
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ADMISSION
– Free and open to UCSC affiliates.
– This is an online event.
– Registration is required here.
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ADVISORIES
– Participants are encouraged to assemble examples from their own listening and creative lives and be prepared to present them for group discussion during this interactive online event.
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
– Event dates to be announced throughout the 2025-26 academic year.
– Learn more about the Creative Intervention Series here.
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ABOUT THE SERIES
Creative Interventions addresses the interconnected work of artists, designers, activists, and knowledge workers—and the intrinsic and transformative capacity of that work to cultivate a just society. More information about the Creative Technologies program.
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This program is open to all UC Santa Cruz affiliates consistent with state and federal law.

SJRC Meet & Greet
2025-10-15 16:00 - 18:00
Wednesday, October 15, 2025
4:00-6:00 PM
Oakes Academic Building, Room 231 + Zoom (register)
Please join the Science & Justice Research Center for a beginning of quarter social hour. In addition to a chance to celebrate the new academic year and enjoy each other’s company, we will welcome new members to our community, and welcome back others.
This will be a great chance for everyone to meet and foster emerging collaborations! Attendees are highly encouraged to bring and share their objects of study as it is a fun and helpful way to find intersecting areas of interest. Some previous objects shared have been: soil samples, a piece of the Berlin wall, bamboo, newly launched books, a stick, sugar, human blood, a human liver, and food.
Faculty or students interested in science and justice who want to learn more about SJRC collaborative projects, the Training Program, or would like to affiliate with Science & Justice are highly encouraged to join us in person or over Zoom.

Festival of Monsters: David Livingstone Smith Keynote
2025-10-15 17:30 - 20:00 | Museum of Art & History, 705 Front St, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, United States
David Livingstone Smith, author of Making Monsters: The Uncanny Power of Dehumanization, opens the 2025 Festival of Monsters with a free public keynote talk 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 15 at the Museum of Art and History (705 Front Street). A philosophy professor at University of New England in Maine, Livingstone Smith writes about the ways in which we dehumanize one another — creating our own monsters through pogroms, genocide and massacres. He asks “How do some people come to believe that their enemies are monsters, and therefore easy to kill?” The Festival of Monsters is hosted by the UC Santa Cruz Center for Monster Studies.
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ADMISSION
– FREE and open to the public
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AUDIENCE ADVISORIES
– Mature themes and content
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
– Wed. Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m, Museum of Art & History (MAH): David Livingstone Smith Keynote
– Thurs. Oct. 16, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Kim Lau keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Jeffery Jerome Cohen keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 8:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m, DARC 108 (No longer at the UCSC Cowell Ranch Hay Barn): Monsters Ball
– Sat. Oct. 18, 11:00 a.m, Bookshop Santa Cruz: “Oh! The Horror” Writers Panel
– Sat. Oct. 18, 2:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m, Atlantis Fantasyworld: Cole Lemke, Horror Comic Artist
– Sat. Oct. 18, 6:00 p.m, Game Santa Cruz: “Blood on the Clocktower”
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The Festival of Monsters returns for a three-day academic conference with public performances, installations, readings, and more. Learn more about the Center for Monster Studies here.
This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law

2025 Business, Arts, Social Sciences & Humanities Career & Internship Fair
2025-10-16 11:00 | Colleges Nine and John R. Lewis College Multi-purpose Room, 615 College Nine Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Undergraduate and graduate students and recent alumni interested in pursuing careers in business, arts, social sciences & humanities industries are welcome to attend. Get the chance to meet recruiters from many industries/firms seeking to fill internship, full-time, and part-time roles. Come take essential steps toward laying the foundation for your future career and potentially even land an interview!
PLEASE NOTE: You are encouraged to check in at the student registration table in order to participate in the career fair. Bring your student ID.

Want more support?

Visit a peer coach during drop-in hours
Schedule a career coaching appointment with a Career Engagement Specialist
For PhD students looking to pursue careers in industry, explore Beyond the Professoriate
(Scroll over "Login to Platform" at the top navigation bar and click "Through your institution")
Stay in the loop by following Career Success on Instagram

You will receive registration and additional information in your email from Career Success via Handshake. Please make sure to check your junk/spam folder if you are not receiving any communication.

You Belong Here: The programs and services described here are open to all, consistent with state and federal law, as well as the University of California’s nondiscrimination policies. Every initiative—whether a student service, faculty program, or community event—is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and respectful of all identities.
To learn more, please visit UC Nondiscrimination Statement or Nondiscrimination Policy for UC Publications.

Questions? Send to csuccess@ucsc.edu or visit Career Success at Hahn 125 East Entrance
Need accessibility support? Let us know at slugtalent@ucsc.edu at least two weeks prior to the fair date.

Eat Well, Live Well: Preventing Prediabetes & Type 2 Diabetes
2025-10-16 12:00
If preventing or delaying prediabetes or type 2 diabetes is a top priority for you—you are not alone. We know that carbs are key players when it comes to controlling blood sugar, but did you know that healthy fats and lean proteins are also just as important when it comes to managing blood sugar? Join our next workshop on how to make smart nutrition choices to support a healthy metabolism. We will also explore how lifestyle habits like physical activity, stress management, and sleep connect with nutrition for a holistic approach to type 2 diabetes prevention. If you have been seeking guidance on how to eat more nutritiously and make lasting lifestyle changes to reach your health goals, this workshop is for you.
To register, please fill out the registration link.
For more information, please visit the Wellness Events Calendar.
For questions, please contact Health and Well-being Specialist, Ashley Parker, at aseparke.ucsc.edu.

Archives 101 for Graduate Students
2025-10-16 13:00 | McHenry Library, 1156 High St, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Feeling the archival impulse? Come get some hands-on experience with our collections, chat about archives with your fellow grad students, and get your questions answered about archival research at UCSC and beyond.

Curious undergrads are welcome, too!

Space is limited. Please RSVP so we can get an accurate headcount.

Learn more about the Center for Archival Research and Training (CART) and Special Collections & Archives.

Archives 101 for Graduate Students
2025-10-16 13:00 - 14:00 | McHenry Library, 1156 High St, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Feeling the archival impulse? Come get some hands-on experience with our collections, chat about archives with your fellow grad students, and get your questions answered about archival research at UCSC and beyond.

Curious undergrads are welcome, too!

Space is limited. Please RSVP so we can get an accurate headcount.

This event is co-sponsored by the Center for Archival Research & Training (CART) in Special Collections & Archives, and the Humanities Institute.

Sesnon Salon: History of Art & Visual Culture
2025-10-16 16:00 - 17:00 | Mary Porter Sesnon Art Gallery, Baskin Service Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
The Arts Division welcome students, faculty, staff, and the general community to a salon-style gathering presenting the work of UC Santa Cruz’s History of Art and Visual Culture (HAVC) Department.
Assistant Professor Clementine Bordeaux, an enrolled member of the Sičáŋǧu Lakóta Nation (Rosebud Sioux Tribe), grew up on the Pine Ridge Reservation (South Dakota). Bordeaux received her Ph.D. in Culture and Performance from the World Arts and Cultures/Dance Department at the University of California, Los Angeles. She works across multi- and interdisciplinary fields and collaborates with artists, cultural bearers, and community activists, and employs Lakota concepts of ikčé, the everyday, and ingenuity, to illustrate a continuum of Očéti Šakówiŋ artistic engagements.
This presentation offers a brief overview of her research, which methodologically and theoretically utilizes relationality as the primary tool to communicate the interrelatedness of Lakota kinship values, a cultural connection to other-than-human beings, and creative practice, as demonstrated through storytelling, poetry, and material culture.
The event will take place outdoors by the Porter Koi Pond. Light refreshments will be served.
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ADMISSION
Free and open to the public.
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Oct 16: History of Art and Visual Culture Department
Nov 20: Music Department
Jan 15: Art Department
Feb 19: Film and Digital Media Department
April 16: Creative Technologies
May 21: Department of Performance, Play & Design
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PARKING
Lot 124 & 125 are the closest parking lots to the event.
Parking via permit or ParkMobile.
See TAPS for parking information.
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law.

All UCSC Student-Led Health Organizations Meeting!
2025-10-16 16:30 - 17:30 | Social Sciences 1, Social Sciences 1, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
📞 Calling all Student-Led Health Organizations!
📆 Join the Global and Community Health Program on Thursday, October 17th at 4:30 – 5:30 PM in Social Sciences Building 1, Room 261.
🔑 Key purpose: To meet and greet representatives of other student-led health organizations + share announcements + coordinate events/resources, as is possible.
😊 Please join us! We look forward to seeing you and supporting your club!

Alumni Awards Celebration
2025-10-17 17:00 | University Center, University Center, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
UC Santa Cruz recognizes and honors those who have demonstrated outstanding professional achievements, made distinct contributions to society and UC Santa Cruz, and have embodied the values and spirit of the University.

This year’s five esteemed recipients will accept their awards at the UC Santa Cruz Alumni Awards Celebration, scheduled to take place on campus on Friday, October 17, 2025.

Evening festivities include:
5:00 p.m. Welcome Reception
6:15 p.m. Awards Ceremony
7:30 p.m. Champagne Toast & Dessert Reception

8:30 p.m. Event Conclusion

2025 UC Santa Cruz Alumni Awards Recipients

Fiat Lux Award – Barry J. Bowman (Professor Emeritus, molecular, cell, and developmental biology)

Alumni Achievement Award – Terri McCullough (Oakes ’90, politics)

Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award – Chanda Prescod-Weinstein (M.S. ’05, astronomy and astrophysics)

UCSC Ethos Award – Daniel Nane Alejandrez (Merrill ’81, community studies)

Outstanding Recent Alumni Award – Aviv Elor (Crown ’19, robotics engineering; Ph.D. ’21, computational media)

If you are unable to attend the event, you may choose to honor one of the award recipients by making a gift to support UCSC Alumni Programs, noting the award recipient’s name. We will notify the award recipient of your generous gift.

Slugs Campout
2025-10-17 18:30 - 2025-10-18 09:00 | Upper East Field
Have you ever wanted to camp under the stars, after enjoying s’mores and smiles around a cozy campfire? Here’s your chance! Adventure Rec warmly welcomes UCSC students to join the 5th annual Slugs Campout on the Upper East Field!!
Sleeping bags and sleeping pads are provided on a first-come, first-served basis. Join us and enjoy s’mores, hot chocolate, laughter, new friends, sunrise yoga, and a light breakfast! You are welcome to bring your own sleeping gear, musical instruments, campfire games, and friends who have never camped before. No tents please (to protect the irrigation system).

No registration required. Just show up! Check in starting at 6:30 p.m. at the Adventure Rec tent by the sand volleyball courts to receive your camping gear.

This program is open to UCSC students only.

You Belong Here: The programs and services described here are open to all, consistent with state and federal law, as well as the University of California’s nondiscrimination policies. Every initiative—whether a student service, faculty program, or community event—is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and respectful of all identities.
To learn more, please visit UC Nondiscrimination Statement or Nondiscrimination Policy for UC Publications.

Someone Always Dies (SAD): An Improv Comedy Show
2025-10-17 19:30 - 21:30 | Theater Arts Center, 453 Kerr Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Someone Always Dies (SAD) is UC Santa Cruz’s premier long-form improv team. We do funny things, enjoy the show.
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ADMISSION
– General admission
– Tickets issued online through Eventbrite; follow Dept. of Performance, Play& Design on Eventbrite for notifications and updates.
– Free for UCSC undergraduate students (ticket required).
– General admission “Pay What You Like” options $5–20
– Doors are scheduled to open 30 minutes prior to event start time.
– Ticket holders not seated at least 10 minutes before the advertised start time may forfeit their ticket/seat and no refund will be issued.
– A limited number of tickets/seats may be available at the door, even after online ticket sales end or reach full capacity.
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PARKING
– Parking by permit or ParkMobile.
– Arts Lot #126 is the closest parking lot to the event.
– Visitors with DMV placards or plates may park for free in DMV spaces, Medical spaces, or ParkMobile spaces without additional payment, or in timed zones for longer than the posted time.
– More information provided by UCSC Transportation & Parking Services (TAPS)
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law.

Fall Harvest Welcome
2025-10-18 11:00 - 15:00 | UCSC Farm, 152 Farm Rd, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Join the American Indian Resource Center, People of Color Sustainability Collective, UCSC Agroecology, and the Sustainability Office for a day of fun at the Farm Center!
This Fall Harvest Welcome will be all about community building, learning about flora/fauna indigenous to Santa Cruz County, Native storytelling, and will feature a land blessing.

Festival of Monsters: Oh, the Horror!
2025-10-18 11:00 - 21:00 | Bookshop Santa Cruz
Authors Alma Katsu (Fiend), Nat Cassidy (When the Wolf Comes Home) and Gretchen McNeil (They Fear Not Men in the Woods) come together 11 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 18, at Bookshop Santa Cruz (1520 Pacific Ave., downtown Santa Cruz) for “Oh, The Horror!”, a panel where they will talk about monsters, horror, and why they write stories that scare. Professor Renée Fox of the UC Santa Cruz Center for Monster Studies moderates. RSVP for the free panel at https://bookshopsantacruz.com/2025-festival-of-monsters. Part of the 2025 Festival of Monsters public offerings. Learn more about the Center for Monster Studies here.
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ADMISSION
– FREE and open to the public
– Registration required
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AUDIENCE ADVISORIES
– Mature themes and content
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
– Wed. Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m, Museum of Art & History (MAH): David Livingstone Smith Keynote
– Thurs. Oct. 16, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Kim Lau keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Jeffery Jerome Cohen keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 8:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m, DARC 108 (No longer at the UCSC Cowell Ranch Hay Barn): Monsters Ball
– Sat. Oct. 18, 11:00 a.m, Bookshop Santa Cruz: “Oh! The Horror” Writers Panel
– Sat. Oct. 18, 2:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m, Atlantis Fantasyworld: Cole Lemke, Horror Comic Artist
– Sat. Oct. 18, 6:00 p.m, Game Santa Cruz: “Blood on the Clocktower”
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law

Festival of Monsters: Artist Cole Lemke
2025-10-18 14:00 - 17:00 | Atlantis Fantasyworld
Santa Cruz monster artist Cole Lemke will sign copies of his graphic novel Savior: The Day the Devil Saved the World from 2:00–5:00 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18, at Atlantis Fantasyworld (1020 Cedar St., downtown Santa Cruz). Lemke is the artist behind squid banana and many of the colorful monster stickers found around town. No reservations are needed for this free event, which is part of the 2025 Festival of Monsters public days. The Festival is hosted by the UC Santa Cruz Center for Monster Studies. Learn more about the Center for Monster Studies here.
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ADMISSION
– FREE and open to the public
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AUDIENCE ADVISORIES
– Mature themes and content
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
– Wed. Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m, Museum of Art & History (MAH): David Livingstone Smith Keynote
– Thurs. Oct. 16, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Kim Lau keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Jeffery Jerome Cohen keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 8:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m, DARC 108 (No longer at the UCSC Cowell Ranch Hay Barn): Monsters Ball
– Sat. Oct. 18, 11:00 a.m, Bookshop Santa Cruz: “Oh! The Horror” Writers Panel
– Sat. Oct. 18, 2:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m, Atlantis Fantasyworld: Cole Lemke, Horror Comic Artist
– Sat. Oct. 18, 6:00 p.m, Game Santa Cruz: “Blood on the Clocktower”
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law

Festival of Monsters: Blood on the Clocktower
2025-10-18 18:00 - 19:00 | Game Santa Cruz, 1101 Cedar St, Santa Cruz, CA, 95060, United States
It’s a game full of monstrous intentions. Join players 6:00 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 18, for Blood on the Clocktower at Game Santa Cruz (1101 Cedar St., downtown Santa Cruz). In this bluffing game, a demon is on the loose, murdering by night and disguised in human form by day. Some players have scraps of information. Others have abilities that fight the evil or protect the innocent. Who is the monster? One has to play to find out. Part of the 2025 Festival of Monsters, hosted by the UC Santa Cruz Center for Monster Studies. Learn more about the Center for Monster Studies here.
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ADMISSION
– Open to the public
– Tickets $20; purchase HERE
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AUDIENCE ADVISORIES
– Mature themes and content
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FULL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
– Wed. Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m, Museum of Art & History (MAH): David Livingstone Smith Keynote
– Thurs. Oct. 16, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Kim Lau keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 9:00 a.m.–6:30 p.m, UCSC Digital Arts Research Center (DARC): Conference Panels, Jeffery Jerome Cohen keynote
– Fri. Oct. 17, 8:30 p.m.–11:30 p.m, DARC 108 (No longer at the UCSC Cowell Ranch Hay Barn): Monsters Ball
– Sat. Oct. 18, 11:00 a.m, Bookshop Santa Cruz: “Oh! The Horror” Writers Panel
– Sat. Oct. 18, 2:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m, Atlantis Fantasyworld: Cole Lemke, Horror Comic Artist
– Sat. Oct. 18, 6:00 p.m, Game Santa Cruz: “Blood on the Clocktower”
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This program is open to all members of the public consistent with state and federal law

Trans & Queer Fall Mixer
2025-10-18 19:00 - 22:00 | Porter/Kresge Dining Hall, 411 Porter-Kresge Rd, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
The Trans & Queer Fall Mixer is UCSC’s annual welcome event for new and returning students. Join us to learn more about the Lionel Cantú Queer Resource Center and to connect with the rainbow community at UCSC and in Santa Cruz. You’ll have the opportunity to learn about resources, make new friends, and enjoy music and drag! Our hope is that you will have the opportunity to interact, build community, and experience a sense of belonging.

You Belong Here: The programs and services described here are open to all, consistent with state and federal law, as well as the University of California’s nondiscrimination policies. Every initiative—whether a student service, faculty program, or community event—is designed to be accessible, inclusive, and respectful of all identities.
To learn more, please visit UC Nondiscrimination Statement or Nondiscrimination Policy for UC Publications.

OLLI at UCSC Sunday Speaker Series
2025-10-19 10:00 - 12:00 | Colleges Nine and John R. Lewis College Multi-purpose Room, 615 College Nine Road, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Julie James, Founder Jewel Theatre, presents “Jewel Theater Company: Behind the Curtain”
Hosted by OLLI at UCSC (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute). Public invited to join OLLI for a social hour and presentation.
Julie James has been a member of Actors’ Equity for 28 years and has acted and directed in several plays. She holds a BA in Theatre Arts from Santa Clara University and graduated from the Drama Studio of London at Berkeley.
OLLI at UCSC is a community of adults from diverse educational, occupational, and geographic backgrounds who are devoted to the pursuit of learning.
Come and bring a friend. Coffee and nibbles will be served. Directions and free parking information found at OLLI at UCSC, Sunday Speakers.

Innovations in Health Care Virtual Conference
2025-10-20 09:00 - 11:00
💫 Transform Healthcare with Us! 🧬🏥
🌟 5-Day Virtual Summit 2025: “Innovation, Ethics & the Next Frontier in Healthcare” 🌟
🗓️ Oct 20–24 | 9–11AM PST
💻 100% FREE | Live Online
Meet visionary leaders shaping the future of healthcare:
✨ Prof. Henry Greely
✨ Dr. James Giordano
✨ Lisa Berkley, PhD
✨ Alice Rathjen
✨ Christine Von Raesfeld
✨ Linda MacDonald Glenn, JD, LLM
🤝 Co-hosted by Krzysztof “Kris” Laudanski, President of @SHCI
Join the movement redefining innovation and ethics in modern medicine! 🌍💫
Register at https://www.linkedin.com/company/theshci/posts/
💡 #HealthTechRevolution #EthicalInnovation #FutureOfHealthcare #MedTech2025 #SHCI
🙌 Ready to be part of the change? Drop a comment below!

ECE 290 Seminar: Biohybrid Electronics Using Extracellular Electron Transfer
2025-10-20 10:40 - 11:45 | Engineering 2, Engineering 2 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Presenter: Ben Keitz, Associate Professor, University of Texas at Austin
Description: Qualities exhibited by living systems, including self-regulation, self-healing, morphology control, and environmental responsiveness, are highly attractive for sensing and computing applications. However, it has been challenging to develop robust and programmable interfaces between living systems and electronic components. Addressing this challenge, our lab employs techniques from microbiology, synthetic biology, and metabolic engineering to control extracellular electron transfer (EET), a form of microbial respiration in which extracellular metals and metal oxides are used as terminal electron acceptors. Using the model electroactive bacterium Shewanella oneidensis, we coopt EET to link cellular metabolism and protein expression to microelectronic device behavior. Specifically, we show that S. oneidensis can interface with organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) through specific electron transfer machinery. The inclusion of living cells endows single transistors with complex logic, short-term plasticity, and other unique properties. We also establish that S. oneidensis can interact with both p-type and n-type conducting polymers to further control transistor performance. Ultimately, our work demonstrates how unique forms of bacterial respiration can be leveraged to merge the advantages of living and traditional computation.
Bio: Benjamin (Keith) Keitz received his PhD in Chemistry from the California Institute of Technology and completed his postdoctoral training at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a native of Austin, TX and is currently an Associate Professor and the Frank A. Liddell Jr. Fellow in Chemical Engineering in the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. Research in the Keitz lab focuses on the engineering of electroactive bacteria and the applications of extracellular electron transfer in biocatalysis, materials synthesis, synthetic biology, and biosensing. His work has received several awards including an NIH Maximizing Investigators’ Research Award, an NSF CAREER Award, and an Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Award.
Hosted by: Professor Marco Rolandi, ECE Department
Zoom Link: https://ucsc.zoom.us/j/97975378707?pwd=[REDACTED]
Room: E2-192

CM Seminar - "Forty-Four Esolangs: The Art of Esoteric Code"
2025-10-20 12:30 | Engineering 2, Engineering 2 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Presented by: Daniel Temkin

Description: Software art is widely accepted, but can programming languages themselves be art? The new book Forty-Four Esolangs makes this argument, collecting work by a single artist who poses code as prayer to the Greek gods, patterns of empty folders, or typed in tandem by two programmers, the rhythm and synchrony of their typing determining commands. Temkin will share projects from the book in the context of thirty plus years of esolangs, showing the poetic possibilities of this medium.
Bio: Daniel Temkin makes photographic and computational art exploring logic and human irrationality. He began interviewing other esolangers and code artists in 2011, creating the blog esoteric.codes. ZKM exhibited the blog and commissioned videos of Temkin explaining esolang history for their Open Codes show in 2018–19. Esoteric.codes earned an ArtsWriters.org grant and a residency at New Museum’s NEW INC, the first museum-led cultural incubator. Temkin has written about esolangs for Hyperallergic and Leonardo, and his aesthetic theory of the form was published by Digital Humanities Quarterly. You can see his work at danieltemkin.com.
Hosted by: Professor Katherine Isbister
When: Monday, October 20 from 12:30PM to 1:30PM
Location:
IN-PERSON @ UCSC Main Campus, E2-280.
Viewing room @ SVC 3212.
LUNCH WILL BE PROVIDED AT BOTH LOCATIONS! Faculty and students are highly encouraged to attend.

Zoom info:
https://ucsc.zoom.us/j/94577724433?pwd=[REDACTED]
Meeting ID: 945 7772 4433
Passcode: [REDACTED]

AM Seminar: Sampling-Based Adaptive Rank Integrators for Multi-scale Kinetic Models.
2025-10-20 16:00 | Jack Baskin Engineering, Baskin Engineering 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064
Presenter: Professor Jingmei Qiu, University of Delaware

Description: In this talk, we introduce a sampling-based semi-Lagrangian adaptive rank (SLAR) method, which leverages a cross approximation strategy—also known as CUR or pseudo-skeleton decomposition—to efficiently represent low-rank structures in kinetic solutions. The method dynamically adapts the rank of the solution while ensuring numerical stability through singular value truncation and mass-conservative projections. By combining the advantages of semi-Lagrangian integration with low-rank approximations, SLAR enables significantly larger time steps compared to conventional methods and is extended to nonlinear systems such as the Vlasov-Poisson equations using a Runge-Kutta exponential integrator. Building on this framework, we further develop the SLAR method for the multi-scale BGK equation, introducing an asymptotically accurate approach that eliminates the need for low-rank decompositions of the local Maxwellian in the collision operator. To enforce conservation of mass, momentum, and energy, we propose a novel locally macroscopic conservative (LoMaC) technique, which discretizes the macroscopic system using high-order DIRK methods. Additionally, a dynamic closure strategy is employed to self-consistently adjust macroscopic moments, enabling robust simulations across both kinetic and hydrodynamic regimes, even in the presence of shocks and discontinuities. We validate our method through extensive benchmark tests on linear advection, unto 3D3V nonlinear Vlasov-Poisson, and multi-scale kinetic problems, demonstrating its accuracy, stability, and computational efficiency. The Sampling-Based Adaptive Rank framework offers a promising pathway for overcoming the curse of dimensionality in high-dimensional multi-scale kinetic problems.

Bio: Dr. Jingmei Qiu is a Unidel Professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Delaware. Her research focuses on the design, analysis, and application of high-order structure-preserving computational algorithms for complex systems characterized by multi-scale, multi-physics, and high-dimensional features. Dr. Qiu’s work includes developing low-rank tensor approximations for high-dimensional, time-dependent problems with structure preservation, as well as Eulerian-Lagrangian high-order numerical methods for fluid and kinetic applications.

Hosted by: Professor Julie Simons

Statistics Seminar: Distance-to-set regularization for inference under constraints
2025-10-20 16:00 - 17:00
Presenter: Jason Xu, Associate Professor, Department of Biostatistics, UCLA
Description: We consider a penalty framework based on regularizing the squared distance to set-based constraints for several core statistical tasks. These distance-to-set penalties provide a simple and flexible way to cast constrained optimization problems in more tractable unconstrained forms. We will see that they often avoid drawbacks that arise from popular alternatives such as shrinkage methods. We discuss a general strategy for eliciting effective algorithms in this framework using majorization-minimization (MM), the general principle behind EM that transfers difficult problems onto a sequence of more manageable subproblems. We showcase new progress on classical problems including sparse covariance estimation using this approach, and discuss connections to Bayesian inference. In particular, analogous ideas lead to constraint relaxation and generalized profile likelihood to include optimization subproblems, leading to methods that are amenable to gradient-based posterior computation.
Bio: Jason Xu is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biostatistics at the University of California Los Angeles. Before joining the faculty at UCLA, he was a faculty member in the Department of Statistical Science at Duke University. Xu’s research program focuses on stochastic modeling and computational challenges in dynamic, dependent, and missing data settings, and he contributes tools at the interface of optimization and Bayesian approaches
Hosted by: Professor Paul Parker

Screening: Cracking the Code
2025-10-20 19:00 - 21:00 | Landmark’s Del Mar Theatre
Please join us for a public screening of “Cracking the Code: Phil Sharp and the Biotech Revolution” at the Landmark Theater on Monday, October 20. The screening will start at 7pm, with a panel discussion hosted by the UCSC RNA Center to follow.
This powerful new documentary chronicles Nobel Laureate Phil Sharp’s discovery of RNA splicing, a breakthrough that ignited the biotechnology revolution and continues to shape the future of medicine and innovation worldwide. Our city was chosen for a special screening of this film in recognition of UC Santa Cruz’s long-standing leadership in RNA research and its pivotal contributions to understanding RNA metabolism.
Register to attend
More than a film, this evening is an opportunity to reflect on Santa Cruz’s place in the future of biotechnology and life sciences innovation. After the screening, we will host a panel discussion themed “Why Not Santa Cruz?”—exploring how our region, with its scientific excellence in RNA and Genomics, entrepreneurial spirit, and vibrant community, might cultivate the next generation of discoveries, companies, and partnerships.
We expect a lively exchange among scientists, community leaders, philanthropists, and innovation builders about how Santa Cruz can play a greater role in shaping the next wave of biotech breakthroughs.
View trailer here
