When beginning my time at UCLA in 2020, I had few ways to connect with my new Bruin community. With online learning, I was limited in the number of new people I could meet or professors I could interact with – the experiences I was most eager for.

Nobel Laureate Andrea Ghez gave her Last Lecture on May 14 to an auditorium filled with Bruins, her former students and fellow faculty.
Thousands of Bruins voted for Ghez – who was one of 260 faculty nominees – to be honored with the Marty Sklar My Last Lecture award, said Jamie Cheung, vice president of the Alumni Scholars Club, which hosted the event.

Local small businesses set up shop on Broxton Avenue on Saturday evening to celebrate Mother’s Day with the Westwood community.
The Mama Palooza Broxton Nights Market brought mothers and their children from across the community together to indulge in specialty foods, browse artisan goods and enjoy live music.

Bruins on the Hill are now enjoying midnight meals.
De Neve Late Night relaunched this quarter, offering build-your-own pizzas in the dining hall from 10 p.m.

This post was updated April 23 at 9:58 p.m.
The UCLA Blood & Platelet Center celebrated its 15th anniversary with a fitting tribute – a daylong blood drive.

This post was updated April 9 at 9:34 p.m.
The UCLA community celebrated Los Angeles culture Thursday at April’s First Thursdays block party.
Roller skating, skate performances, a live mural painting and food trucks were featured on Broxton Avenue for “LA Vibes,” drawing in more than 2,200 attendees, said Eddie North-Hager, interim executive director of UCLA Media.

This post was updated March 13 at 10:54 p.m.
Thousands of people from across Los Angeles gathered in Dickson Court on Sunday for the Farhang Foundation’s 14th annual celebration of Nowruz, the Persian New Year.

With nearly a thousand Bruins and community members in attendance, March’s First Thursdays event livened up Broxton Avenue and Westwood Village with sports, art installations and food.

A $24.5 million pledge from “The Big Bang Theory” co-creator Chuck Lorre’s foundation is set to create a new universe for Bruins in STEM.
The Chuck Lorre Family Foundation has provided scholarships, mentorship and support to incoming freshmen with financial need via The Big Bang Theory Scholarship since 2015.

The United States Postal Service honored former UCLA men’s basketball coach John Wooden last Saturday with a ceremony dedicating a Forever Stamp that is now on sale.