USAC Recap – March 11

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

Agenda

• USAC approved contingency allocations with a 9-1-0 vote.

• The council unanimously voted to not meet during finals week and spring break.

Special presentations

• Members of the Armenian Students’ Association gave a presentation calling for councilmembers to refrain from associating with lobbying organizations. They specifically criticized Internal Vice President Avi Oved’s decision to recently attend an annual conference hosted by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee. Members said they think the committee has a history of marginalizing the Armenian-American community.

• Community Service Mini Fund Chair Elliot Gomez said the mini fund, which is geared toward funding undergraduate student groups involved in community service, currently has up to $3,500.

• Finance Committee Chair Cynthia Jasso presented to council about the Student Organizations Operational Fund and the Student Government Operational Fund. Jasso said she thinks USAC unfairly allocated money in the Student Organizations Operational Fund this year by distributing the majority of its funds during fall allocations. Jasso also recommended that councilmembers apply for funding for their offices because allocations from the Student Government Operational Fund often go unspent.

Officer reports

• President John Joanino said he plans to meet with members from Associated Students UCLA Friday to discuss selling clothing from Homeboy Industries, an organization geared toward helping former gang members. He added that Charles E. Young Research Library will be open 24 hours during 10th and finals weeks.

• Internal Vice President Avi Oved said the his office and the Student Wellness Commission have raised about $12,000 in funding so far to pay for the creation of a UCLA-specific safety app. He added that the Spring Activities Fair will be held during during the first week of spring quarter and Ally Week will be held during the third week of spring quarter.

• External Vice President Maryssa Hall said her office plans to host a panel to discuss possible ways to reform Proposition 13 during the first week of spring quarter. She also encouraged councilmembers to have conversations about Islamophobia with their staff.

• Academic Affairs Commissioner Darren Ramalho said his office will be co-sponsoring a Stress Free Day at Bruin Plaza on Wednesday. He added that his office plans to hold a town hall during spring quarter to talk about the creation of a diversity-related general education requirement.

• Student Wellness Commissioner Savannah Badalich said her commission plans on creating an online map where students can mark locations where street harassment occurs. She added that she plans to send the map to university police.

Compiled by Janet Nguyen, Bruin contributor.