Tuohey-Mote joins Small Farms Network 

Claire Tuohey-Mote joined UC Agriculture and Natural Resources on Jan. 6 as a staff research and extension associate for the Small Farms Network in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. 

Tuohey-Mote, whose deepest roots are in San Luis Obispo where her family settled in 1999, will support small- and medium-scale farmers in the region with grant and incentive program application technical support. She will collaborate with academics and staff within the UCANR Small Farms Network to link small-scale growers in the region to additional resources such as support with regulatory compliance and on-farm production challenges. 

Tuohey-Mote earned her bachelor's degree in food science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo where she minored in Spanish and studied abroad in Santiago, Chile. She then worked in the food science industry for seven years where she specialized in natural ingredient applications.  

After leaving the food science industry, Tuohey-Mote attained her master's degree in sustainable food systems from Prescott College in Arizona in an effort to bolster her ability to serve sustainable agriculture and healthy communities.

She immediately applied that degree to her work in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties as she managed a farm-to-school program hosted by a local nonprofit. During her four years doing that work, Tuohey-Mote, who speaks Spanish fluently, built strong relationships with small and medium-scale farmers, as well as local school districts and community partners.

“This work provided a firm understanding of the challenges small-scale farms face, and I am excited to address many of these through my work with the Small Farms Network team,” Tuohey-Mote said.

“My career work has opened my eyes to the complexity of our local, regional and state food systems. Navigating through it all is no easy task, and farmers also have to grow food!” she said. “I am honored and humbled to assist in whatever way I can to make processes as smooth as possible for them, so that they can do what they do best – feed the community.”

Tuohey-Mote is looking forward to working directly with small-scale farmers in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties to connect them to the knowledge, informational resources and technical assistance of UC ANR.  

Based at the UCCE office in San Luis Obispo, Tuohey-Mote can be reached at ctuoheymote@ucanr.eduo or (805) 704-9098. 

Fisch named UCCE director for Placer, Nevada, Plumas, Sierra counties 

Michele Fisch was named UC Cooperative Extension area director for Placer, Nevada, Plumas and Sierra counties on Dec. 2, 2024.

Fisch brings more than 20 years of experience delivering education, managing programs and fulfilling programmatic and organizational goals for UCCE.

Fisch began her UCCE career in 2001 as a community educator and over the years built her career and strong relationships within Placer and Nevada counties.

“Being a lifelong resident of Placer County has given me insight into the unique needs and resources of our foothill and mountain communities and a deep commitment to our UCCE programs,” Fisch said. “Moving forward, I am eager to build new relationships in Plumas and Sierra counties and look forward to supporting our local teams of advisors, educators, staff and volunteers as they deliver high-quality educational programming throughout all four counties.”

She earned a bachelor's degree in dietetics from California State University Sacramento and has continued her education with UCCE focusing on health, youth education, horticulture, school gardens, people management and leadership.

“I feel privileged to have come this far in my UCCE career and am excited to support the coordination and growth of our programs in Placer, Nevada, Plumas and Sierra counties in cooperation with our county governments and local partners.”

Fisch is based in the UCCE office in Auburn and can be reached at mafisch@ucanr.edu and (530) 889-7385.

Hauptman joins CIWR as project scientist in water management 

Hope Hauptman joined UC ANR on Nov. 1, 2024, as an assistant project scientist at the California Institute for Water Resources, where she contributes to sustainable water management practices across California through applied research and extension.

Based in Merced, she focuses on interdisciplinary approaches to water resource management and addressing critical water issues in regions impacted by drought and climate change.

At CIWR, her projects include analyzing drought impacts on water utility finances. She is using network modeling to assess drinking water vulnerabilities in State Water Project-dependent systems south of the Delta as part of the COEQWAL initiative (Collaboratory for Equity in Water Allocations), which promotes equitable water distribution. Hauptman also is examining urban water management through studies on turf removal programs and the effects of water conservation on wastewater processing. 

“I'm looking forward to contributing to research initiatives on nitrogen management and irrigation efficiency in agricultural water management and exploring the use of community-based participatory research methods to address drinking water quality and access in marginalized California communities,” said Hauptman, who actively participates in UC ANR working groups, including the Nitrogen Irrigation Initiative and the Water and Environmental Justice Workgroup.

Before pursuing her academic career, Hauptman taught high school chemistry and environmental science in the Bay Area and served as a Peace Corps volunteer science educator in Kenya. In addition to teaching, she collaborated with local communities and national parks to restore old-growth forests, improve water quality in protected swamplands and address issues of land degradation.

Hauptman holds a bachelor's degree in microbiology and molecular genetics from UCLA, a Secondary Science Teaching Credential from UC Davis, a master's degree in instructional science and technology from California State University, Monterey Bay, and a Ph.D. in environmental systems from UC Merced.

Her dissertation research investigated drinking water contamination in California's Central Valley, where she applied machine learning to analyze 1,2,3-Trichloropropane (TCP) contamination and evaluated the effectiveness of point-of-use filters and almond shell biochar for TCP removal. As a graduate student, she also studied the effects of urbanization on the Argan forest and the sustainability of Argan oil production in Morocco.

Hauptman can be reached at hhauptman@ucanr.edu, at @hauptman.bsky.social on Bluesky and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/b-hope-hauptman.