UCSA recap – Oct. 8-9

The University of California Student Association is the official voice of students at the UC system. The UCSA board of directors, composed of representatives from each campus, met at UC San Diego on Oct. 8 and 9 and discussed issues such as potential tuition increases.

Saturday

• Associated Students UC Irvine Internal Vice President Rafael Carrazco said the UC Office of the President will host a cultural competency summit in December, which all UC staff from Counseling and Psychology Services will attend. During the summit, staff will attend training and workshops hosted by other mental health practitioners inside and outside the UC. This year, students will be able to present their experience and feedback at the event.
• UCSA President Ralph Washington Jr. said he met with UC co-chair of Council of Presidents Michael Skiles to discuss greater collaboration between the two organizations. He added he facilitated several conference calls and phone interviews such as one for the Executive Conference Committee and Government Relations Director.

[Related: USAC recap – Oct. 4]

• UCSA Statewide Organizing Director Patricia Arroyos said she secured a sponsorship from the Association of Federal State County and Municipal Employees for the UCweVOTE campaign, which aims to increase voter registration and voter education. She also said she consulted Global Food Initiative staff for the Sustain Our Students Campaign. The Sustain Our Students Campaign is a campaign that encourages UC campuses to come up with strategies to provide its students with sustainable basic needs resources.
• A representative from the UC Office of the President said the office has created a survey to determine the progress each UC campus has made thus far regarding campus-specific recommendations given by undocumented students in a meeting last spring. The representative also said UC Student Affairs collaborated with UCSA Food Access and Security committee co-chairs to find ways to improve food and basic needs access across all UC campuses. The plan emphasizes creating on-campus student services and programming, off-campus partnerships and engagements and system-wide coordination, among other topics.
• The board also discussed a resolution asking the board to rename Columbus Day to Indigenous People’s Day within the organization. The board of directors voted in favor of the resolution and encouraged student governments at other UC campuses to adopt similar resolutions. The resolution also said the board supports educating student populations about the struggles of indigenous peoples throughout the years.

Sunday

• At the UC Diversity Leaders retreat on Sept. 27, UC Student Regent Marcela Ramirez met with the UC campus Chief Diversity Officers to discuss the search for new UC Davis and UC Berkeley chancellors. At the meeting, the student regents and faculty discussed the qualities they hope the next chancellor possesses. The regents said attendees wanted members of the selection committee to be informed about campus issues such as fair hiring practices. The Associated Students of the University of California and the Graduate Assembly also created a community forum to increase communication between students and Berkeley’s chancellor search committee.

[Read more: Last months’ UC Regents recap]

• The student regents also said the UC might increase tuition next year. However, Regent Eloy Ortiz Oakley said at the September regents meeting that the topic warrants further discussion, and no official decisions have been made.