Dahle to pursue student input, inclusiveness

Dahle is 2002-03 USAC president-elect.  

By David Dahle

I am honored that the undergraduates of UCLA elected me to be
the next Undergraduate Students Association Council president.

At the same time, I recognize that the margin of victory was
very small, which tells me that a large contingency of the voting
student body supports USAC’s current focus on increasing
diversity, outreach, and the fight for students’ rights. I
too believe that USAC should be at the forefront of these issues.
The unfortunate thing about the election process is that both
parties become polarized into separate and opposing camps even
though in my opinion the goals of both groups are similar.

Many students think that my presidency will end their
groups’ access to USAC support and funding. Nothing could be
farther from the truth. I am committed to sustaining the inclusive
nature of USAC along with the educational and social mission that
student government has proudly championed.

With that said, I believe USAC must reevaluate the ways that it
works to accomplish its goals. USAC will become the open and
all-encompassing government that I believe it must be. Any group
that wishes to become more active will not be turned away. Any
individual who wants to get involved will be given an
opportunity.

When next year’s council takes office in a few weeks we
will start filling vacancies on USAC appointed committees. I invite
all students to apply for a committee that may interest you.
Applications can be picked up outside the USAC president’s
office in Kerckhoff 317. They must be completed by this Friday, May
10, by 5 p.m.

If you are interested in working in a USAC office I urge you to
contact any of the elected officers or commissioners when they take
office later this month.

To find out more about the structure and intricacies of student
government, you can go to the USAC Web site at
http://students.asucla.ucla.edu.

Next year will be a pivotal year for USAC. I believe that the
council will have to take a stand on the question of changing to a
semester system or staying with the quarter system. Council will
have to find ways to alleviate the transportation problems that
plague this campus. And council will fight to make housing more
affordable.

There are a multitude of other issues that USAC will have to
tackle as well, such as deciding if the minimum progress
requirement should be continued or not. Even though these issues
may seem distinct, every policy change impacts other areas of
student life.

Academic issues, living issues, social issues, etc. must be
evaluated holistically in order for USAC to be truly effective. A
successful council will advocate USAC’s position to the
administration, and proactively seek out solutions while
simultaneously soliciting campus opinion.

But USAC alone cannot solve all of these problems without an
active student population. If you would like to make an impact and
get involved, USAC offices are located on the third and fourth
floor of Kerckhoff Hall. It is my mission to make USAC into a fair
and representative government, but it cannot be done without
student support.