Some of Extension's Rising Stars

Steven Bauer, Molly Carpenter and Mitch Cochran

This year, UCR Extension turns 50.

In celebrating our 50th anniversary, we have examined where we came from, where we are right now and where we are heading. We are proud of our track record, providing top-quality education that continues to evolve and change as our world does. UCR Extension strives to make our students' experiences here so worthwhile and enjoyable that they come back.

And they do.

Meet some of our loyal students: Steven Bauer, Molly Carpenter and Mitch Cochran. They are "poster people" for lifelong learning. Together, the three of them have taken more than 100 courses at UCR Extension.

All of them share an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.

Bauer, who majored in physics and works as a cost containment engineer for Southern California Edison, signed up for his first class at UCR Extension in 1978. Since then, he has earned certificates in Microcomputer Applications, Air Quality Management, Counseling Skills, and Alcohol and Other Drug Studies.

"I've always had the love of learning," Bauer said. "I like the way things are done at UC Riverside. They've always been good to me."

Bauer needs just one more class to earn his fifth certificate, this one in Geographic Information Systems.

Carpenter, who earned her bachelor's at Pomona College and her master's at Yale, took her first class at Extension in 1967. To attain her California teaching credential, she signed up for the course "Art in the Elementary Schools, Part I." Since then, she has taken classes in desert ecology, psychology, teaching English as a second language, writing, current national issues and accounting.

She and her husband, Chris Carpenter, roamed the sand together in a desert ecology class.

"We were just thrilled to find Extension," Carpenter said. "It's a wonderful way to spend time. It's just a good way to meet people."

In 1985, Carpenter had become such a regular at Extension that she took a job here. She worked in Environmental Sciences and helped create the Hazardous Materials program. Ultimately, she returned to her first love - teaching. She retired this year and has her eye once again on the Extension catalog.

"You do offer bird watching classes," Carpenter said. "Also, my friends are encouraging me to participate in the LIFE Society or the Osher Program."

Cochran started his lifelong learning journey with us when he attended UC Riverside and earned his bachelor's in statistics in 1982. He earned a master's in administration and entered the work world. When it was time to hone his computer skills in 1999, he came to us and earned a certificate in Geographic Information Systems.

"The industry I'm in is ever-changing. [Extension offers] technical training at reasonable prices," said Cochran, who is the information systems manager for the city of Monrovia. He has encouraged members of his staff to take classes here.

Like Carpenter, he has also come to work at Extension.
"I teach a class once a week. I take a class once a week," Cochran said.

Fall is a time to reap what we have sown. For our 50-year anniversary, this harvest has been bountiful.

We look forward to seeing you this year.

John F. Azzaretto
Vice Chancellor, Public Service and
International Programs; and
Dean, University Extension and
Summer Sessions, UC Riverside