Van Anderson, Extension’s program director for leadership, entrepreneurship, marketing, and international trade & commerce, has been appointed VP of Marketing & Communications for the National Human Resources Association (NHRA). Established in 1951, NHRA is focused on advancing the development and leadership of human resource professionals. In addition, Anderson is president of the Southern California American Marketing Association, the Los Angeles-based chapter of the largest marketing organization in North America.

William R. Goodin, director of the technical management program and engineering short courses, was awarded the 2011 McDonald Award for Excellence in Mentoring and Advising by Tau Beta Pi, the National Engineering Honor Society. The award recognizes Goodin “as an exemplary mentor and advisor, who has significantly and consistently supported the personal and professional development of others,” and notes that his achievements exemplify the “diverse contributions engineers make to society”, his unselfish activity, care, and concern for others.

Laurel Hummel Scholarships for International Students were recently awarded to Paul Damen of the Netherlands (Cinematography Certificate); Andrey Kochkin of Russia (Directing Certificate); and Maud Ferrari (Directing Certificate) from France. Awarded four times a year, each $1,350 award is available to foreign citizens studying on an F-1 visa student status who have completed at least 12 units in an approved certificate.

Nurit Katz, UCLA Extension Instructor, UCLA Sustainability Coordinator, and Anderson graduate (08), has been selected as one of the 100 most influential UCLA Anderson School of Management graduates from the past 75 years. Considered inspirational, Katz was chosen from among Anderson’s 37,000 alumni.

This October at City Hall, Chancellor Block conferred the Catalyst Award to the Pathway Program at UCLA Extension, which was named the UCLA Community Program of the Year. Begun in 2006, Pathway offers a two-year postsecondary education and enrichment program for young adults with intellectual disabilities. The program’s goal is to prepare students to be self-supporting and able to live independently in their community. Pathway represents a UCLA and UCLA Extension partnership, with advisory members from the UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, UCLA Office for Students with Disabilities, UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, UCLA Neuropsychiatric Hospital, UCLA Career Center, and the UCLA Center for Community Learning.

Janet Wilcox, Entertainment Studies Instructor, has published Mastering Monologues and Acting Sides: How to Audition Successfully for Both Traditional and New Media (Allworth Press, October 2011). Mastering Monologues is targeted to actors and shares scripts, tips, techniques, exercises, and expert advice from casting directors, agents, managers, and other actors. An industry veteran writer, producer, and actor, Wilcox has written and produced promos for HBO, ABC, The History Channel, and others. Noted Wilcox,“I realized that the monologue is a benchmark throughout an actor’s career. First, it’s an elusive challenge. Then, it’s a comfortable conversation, and finally, it can be a powerful showpiece for any actor.”

UCLA Extension’s Writers’ Program just announced ten winners of their newly-formed annual scholarship, designed to attract writers from diverse backgrounds and cultures. The winners Zora Bikangaga, Hyun Chung, Allison Counasse, Derrick Coy, Giancarlo Fusi, Kimberly Hazel, Gillian P. Herbert, Pamela Jorrick, Elizabeth Oh, and Jessie L. Wilson come from California, Oregon, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and receive three full-length Writers’ Program courses, a value of approximately $1700.