Block gains transfer interest

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block ended a fall quarter series of community college visits on Thursday at Merritt College in Oakland, Calif.

The purpose of the visits was to recruit transfer students, according to Keith Parker, assistant vice chancellor for government and community relations.

With the Nov. 30 University of California application deadline approaching, Block traveled to community colleges and high schools across California encouraging students to pursue a higher education, whether at UCLA or not.

Block also visited Evergreen Valley College in San Jose and West Los Angeles College in Culver City as part of his recent tour.

“When you have a UCLA chancellor come to colleges and high schools, it really does have an impact,” Parker said.

Block met with the colleges’ presidents to talk about each campus’ challenges in applying to UCLA. He also spoke to student groups and addressed vital topics such as admission requirements, financial aid and UCLA student life, Parker said.

Prospective students also had the chance to ask the chancellor questions.

At Merrit College in Oakland, Block opened his meeting with a student group by answering a question from a student interested in electrical engineering, Parker said.

“It has been a priority for Chancellor Block to make UCLA more visible as a resource,” he added.

Parker said Block motivated students by recounting their personal stories in higher education and emphasizing the impact of recruiters.

Block’s Oct. 30 visit to West L.A. College marked the first time a UCLA chancellor has visited the college since its establishment in 1969, according to a university statement.

Although UCLA’s Student Affairs Department staff often travels to colleges and high schools recruiting students, Chancellor Block’s personal involvement reinforces what student affairs does, Parker said.

About 44 percent of upper division students are transfer students and graduate with the same level of achievement that first-year freshmen do, he said.

According to an Undergraduate Admissions and Relations with Schools Office preliminary profile, approximately 90 percent of the admitted transfer students for fall 2008 came from California community colleges.

The profile is due to be updated with final statistics this month, according to the office’s Web site.

With transfer student admissions increasing each year, the chancellor’s visits to community colleges focused on addressing the challenge of competitive admissions as UCLA strives to admit the most qualified applicants, Parker said.

Chancellor Block’s next scheduled visit is at a community college in the Sacramento area in February, though specific details are yet to be worked out, Claudia Luther, a university spokeswoman, said in an e-mail statement.

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