Gabriella Montinola received the 2026 Pi Sigma Alpha James Lengle Advisor Recognition Award for helping to re-launch the UC Davis undergraduate political science honor society Delta Upsilon, with club members planning an ambitious future.
Beatriz Cortez, a multidisciplinary artist and professor of Chicana/o/x studies at UC Davis, has been named a 2026 Joan Mitchell Fellow, which includes $60,000 in direct, unrestricted funding distributed over five years alongside learning, peer engagement and network-building opportunities.
Beatriz Cortez, a multidisciplinary artist and professor of Chicana/o/x studies at UC Davis, recently spoke with UC Berkeley Professor Ronald Rael at Aspen Ideas Festival 2026. Their panel, Ancient Futures: from Mud to Machine, was moderated by Nora Lawrence, executive director of Storm King Art Center in New York.
Five researchers from the University of California, Davis, including two from the College of Letters and Science, were listed among recipients for the inaugural awards through the U.S. Department of Energy’s, or DOE, Genesis Mission — a national program leveraging artificial intelligence to accelerate breakthroughs in energy, discovery science and national security.
From creating personalized maps of Alzheimer’s risk and designing next-generation cancer therapeutics to advancing AI-driven materials discovery and recovering nitrogen contaminants from water resources, the five projects that received this year’s Incentives for Large Grant Awards from the College of Letters and Science exemplify how UC Davis research is transforming science and society.
Artist Beatriz Cortez, professor of Chicana/o/x Studies, has work featured in "Aztlán: Tunel del Tiempo," an exhibition at the national galleries of the Museo del Palacio de Bellas Artes. The exhibition brings together a comprehensive installation of Latinx contemporary art from Los Angeles to Mexico City.
Seven early career faculty members at UC Davis are being recognized with awards from the university and the UC Office of the President that highlight their research and creative exploration.
Renowned performance artist Cassils has been appointed to the Maria Manetti Shrem Endowed Chair in the Maria Manetti Shrem Art Studio Program at the University of California, Davis. Cassils is a Canadian transgender artist who makes their own body the material and protagonist of powerful performances that examine the histories of LGBTQI+ violence, representation and struggle while illuminating narratives of resilience and empowerment.
With support from a UCOP Early Career Faculty Research Excellence Award, sociologist Tina Law is constructing and analyzing a database of more than 50,000 YouTube videos to learn how they contribute to the general public’s understanding of AI and the potential for broader oversight.
David E. Olson, a professor of chemistry, and biochemistry and molecular medicine at the University of California, Davis, was recently appointed editor-in-chief of ACS Chemical Neuroscience, a transdisciplinary publication of the American Chemical Society that focuses on the use of chemical and molecular tools for understanding the nervous system and identifying new neurotherapeutics.
