Lee explores human evolution in “Close Encounters With Humankind”  

By Lilian Tran
Student Writer, CHASS Marketing & Communications

Before becoming CHASS Associate Dean of Social Sciences and a professor of anthropology, Sang-Hee Lee was on the path to becoming a classical pianist. That is, until she was hit by a creative slump which felt like an eternity. “For me, I felt like my life was ruined because I was not going to be where I wanted to be as a worldly known classical pianist. Instead of pursuing something I did not think I was going to be great at, I decided to change directions and do something else. Archaeology for some reason caught my eye.”

She graduated from Seoul National University in South Korea with a B.A in Archaeology.

“The path I thought I wanted to go was blocked, and nothing else seemed to matter,” Lee said. “Life doesn’t happen like that. Not every decision has to be the perfect decision that will chart the rest of your life if you don’t make it right away. What makes a good decision is what you do afterwards by finding what you want. Rarely any decision is irreversible. Life would be so boring if a decision we made at the age of 18 really decided the rest of our lives.”

Read more ››

CHASS F1RST director looks forward to new challenges 

In June, Christina Acoff was named Director of the CHASS F1RST Year Experience Program at UC Riverside. With 13 years of experience in education, Dr. Acoff strives to assist first-year students in the program by providing various resources and creating strategic plans to improve higher academic success. Dr. Acoff plans to also strengthen relationships with other departments on campus and academic programs from neighboring colleges.

"Working with students to declare their major, providing that guidance, providing them support, and giving the tools for them to succeed gave me that push and passion to know that I wanted to do more within the educational field,” Acoff said.

Dr. Acoff received her doctorate in education with an emphasis in organizational leadership from Pepperdine University. Prior to working at UCR, Dr. Acoff was the Program Coordinator/Supervisor and Instructor for the First Year Experience Program at California State University, Fullerton, for more than five years.

As she starts her new position, Dr. Acoff plans to analyze each quarter's overtime to see what needs to be implemented and what are the downfalls and successes of their programs. Student assessments will ultimately allow Acoff and her team to understand the needs of the students. Her ultimate goal is to see how the program can serve and assist all students within CHASS with the help of her faculty.

NEWS

FACULTY & STAFF SPOTLIGHTS

EVENTS