University of Arizona

With three campuses, 160 telemedicine sites and Cooperative Extension offices in every Arizona county, the UA has a wide-ranging impact beyond its main campus in Tucson.

A new tool is now available that illustrates the UA's significant presence across the state.

The UA Impact Map, viewable at arizona.edu/impact-map, shows the UA’s statewide impact in a variety of areas. For example, it includes data on the number of UA students, alumni and employees in Arizona, as well as the number of degrees awarded throughout the state.

Gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender adolescents who come out at school have higher self-esteem and lower levels of depression as young adults, compared to LGBT youth who don't disclose their sexual orientation or gender identity at school, according to a new study led by University of Arizona researcher Stephen Russell.

Published in the American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, it is the first-known study to document the benefits of being out during adolescence, despite the fact that teens may experience bullying when they openly identify as LGBT.

USA Today has compiled a list of the majors likely to have the highest earnings for 2015 graduates, and agricultural and natural resources comes in at number five. Their analysis uses a combination of census data and survey analysis from the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE).

University of Arizona researchers and a group of partners have developed a tool that will help utility companies better understand the long-term impact of renewable energy on the power grid and provide insight on how to integrate these resources in the future in the most cost-efficient and reliable way for consumers.

The tool — a web portal — gathers, analyzes and displays real-time data from eight Southwestern utility companies, painting a broad picture of energy sources and use across the region. The information will help companies determine what actions to take for backup power planning over the next several years as the percentage of renewable energy usage grows.

Beginning this month, the University of Arizona is hosting a series of events — a reception with celebrity chefs, an international conference, a workshop series and a study-abroad opportunity for students — to explore and share current research associated with the Mediterranean diet.

"We're showcasing the foods and helping people translate dietary recommendations to actual strategies — taking science to the plate — showing people what you can do, how to do it and where to find it," said Melanie Hingle, UA assistant professor of nutritional sciences and public health.

The lobby of the 100-year-old Forbes building at the University of Arizona is set to become a hub of interactivity for students, advisors, career counselors, faculty and business partners of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

On Dec. 11 the college staged a demolition event that was webcast from the Forbes lobby for the 31 individuals and businesses around the state who donated $1.9 million for this project to “bring the building into the 21st century,” said Shane Burgess, CALS dean and vice president for Veterinary Sciences and Cooperative Extension.

The year 2014 marked the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Smith-Lever Act of 1914, which created the national Cooperative Extension System, a unique partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the nation’s land-grant universities that extends research-based knowledge to youth and adults through a state-by-state network of extension educators.

The University of Arizona Cooperative Extension, part of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, celebrated its centennial locally through a year-long series of commemorative events and activities during 2014. Each celebration highlighted Extension’s past while focusing on the application of UA Cooperative Extension’s educational programming into the future. The last two major events took place at the V Bar V Ranch in northern Arizona and at the Phoenix Zoo.  In addition, an exhibit at the UA Science Library on the UA campus will continue until March 11, 2015.

The University of Arizona enjoys a reputation for having a beautiful campus paired with a great setting and ideal weather. At a time in the spring when much of the country is still covered in snow, students can stroll to class in flip-flops, under a grove of citrus trees in fragrant bloom. The fruit these trees produce goes largely unnoticed and unused.

While the primary function of these trees — almost 8,000 of them — is to provide beauty and shade, they serve an additional purpose: Many produce food in the form of fruit such as citrus, figs and pomegranates.