USAC Recap ““ Nov. 29

The Undergraduate Students Association Council is the official student government of UCLA’s undergraduate students. Council meetings are Tuesdays at 7 p.m. in Kerckhoff 417 and are open to all students.

Agenda

• Contingency allocations were approved by a vote of 11-0-0.
• The council approved a resolution condemning police brutality and supporting free speech and student safety at UC campuses. The resolution was a response to recent police brutality issues during protests across the UC system. Council members said they stand in solidarity with student protesters across the UC and urged UCLA Chancellor Gene Block to issue timely statements when such issues arise. The resolution will be sent out to the student population via email by the end of the week.

Officer Reports

• President Emily Resnick said her office will be meeting with Regent Bonnie Reiss in the near future. Her office will also hold a necessity drive to donate toiletries, used clothes and school supplies for homeless students at UCLA through the end of the quarter.
• Kristina Sidrak, internal vice president, said UCLA will begin using a laptop protection software which can help students locate their laptops if they are stolen. The software uses remote GPS and audio functions to locate stolen items.
• Joelle Gamble, external vice president, said the next UC Board of Regents meeting will be held at UC Riverside in January. Gamble said it is important to continue to have these meetings at undergraduate campuses and added that the current location of the meeting at UC San Francisco Mission Bay is very inaccessible for students.
• Raquel Saxe, academic affairs commissioner, said she met with Judith Smith, dean and vice provost for undergraduate education, who informed Saxe she will be retiring in the coming year. Saxe said tutoring for introductory classes in the chemistry 14 series planned by her office will not begin until next quarter.
• Andrea Hester, financial support commissioner, said she is looking into other ways of funding her office’s textbook scholarship after surplus funds, which provide the allocated money for the scholarship, came in at levels lower than expected. Her office is considering decreasing the amount of money awarded or the number of recipients awarded to fit the projected funds for the scholarship. She is also considering using the council’s discretionary funds to maintain the scholarship.

Special Presentations

• The Presidential Intern Sustainability Committee presented its project for next quarter to make the USAC offices certified in Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. The committee aims to make all offices platinum certified through a quarter-long competition between the offices that will involve environmentally friendly trends, such as introducing recycling bins into buildings, to help them meet LEED requirements.
• The Pediatric AIDS Coalition presented on its organization and talked about Dance Marathon, an annual event to help raise funds for patients of pediatric AIDS that will take place next quarter.
• The Student Fee Advisory Committee presented about the student services fee and engaging more student input for its committee.