UC Merced Connect: Professor wins Latino book award

UC Merced Professor Manuel M. Martín-Rodríguez recently won a 2015 International Latino Book Award for “With a Book in Their Hands: Chicano/a Readers and Readerships,” which beat six other finalists in the category of Best Latino Focused Nonfiction Book.

The book stems from research done after Martín-Rodríguez’s 2003 text “Life in Search of Readers,” in which he suggested that Chicano literature has been shaped as much by its readers as it has by its authors.

In a quest to collect hard evidence behind this idea, Martín-Rodríguez developed the Chicano Literature Intertextual Database, which includes more than 40,000 entries detailing the connection of Chicano books to other literary traditions; the Chicano Readers Oral Project, a collection of interviews with people of Mexican origin recounting their experiences with reading and print culture; and the Chicano Private Library Index to catalog and analyze private and family book collections.

“With a Book in Their Hands” pulls from the oral project by including interviews from UC Merced graduates and undergraduates. It also uses the Chicano Private Library Index to dedicate an entire chapter to the family library of New Mexico Territory Gov. Miguel A. Otero.

According to Martín-Rodríguez, the book was intended not only to hold academic significance, but also to act as an empowering text for Chicano readers in public libraries, community centers and reading groups.

Another UC Merced professor, Ignacio López-Calvo, was also a finalist in the Best Latino Nonfiction Book category and earned an honorable mention for “Dragons in the Land of the Condor.”

Campus continues to set precedents in sustainability

UC Merced is the only university in the country to have all of its buildings certified under the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program. The group’s Central California chapter honored that body of work at its spring conference, where UC Merced was recognized for having the most LEED-certified buildings in the region.

The campus, which received the chapter’s Owner With Most LEED Buildings award, now has 15 buildings with LEED certifications for new construction and one certified for operations and maintenance. Sustainability Director Colleen McCormick, keynote speaker at the conference, said the precedent set by UC Merced sends an important message.

“You can do this, and it doesn’t necessarily cost more,” she said.

Mark Maxwell, assistant director of construction and sustainability, has long been a driving force behind the campus’s sustainable building practices. The campus is now being recognized through LEED’s Operations and Maintenance: Existing Buildings rating system, which Maxwell said demonstrates a commitment to the environment and makes economic sense.

“LEED buildings provide lower operating costs, reduce energy and water consumption, and provide more healthful and productive environments for occupants,” he said.

For a campus on the cutting edge of sustainable design and construction, it’s only natural that UC Merced would begin training the next generation of leaders. That’s where the LEED Lab comes into play.

In partnership with Engineering Service Learning, the class will put students to work documenting and certifying the campus’s applications for the LEED operations and maintenance program rating system.

In addition to providing a service for the campus’s sustainability efforts, the class will prepare students to take the LEED Green Associate or Accredited Professional exams to be credentialed in managing green building projects. With new jobs specifying the need for green-building expertise, the LEED professional credential shows a clear commitment to professional growth.

“This isn’t just for engineering students,” McCormick said. “It’s for any student who wants to be marketable in sustainability-related fields.”

This story was originally published August 5, 2015 at 3:01 PM with the headline "UC Merced Connect: Professor wins Latino book award."