USAC candidates debate campus issues, council problems

Undergraduate student government candidates debated Saturday about ways to improve upon the current council’s efforts to address campus climate problems and serve ethnically and socially diverse communities.

About 450 students hissed and cheered as they watched the 30 Undergraduate Students Association Council candidates, running as independents or with one of four slates for positions, debate campus issues.

Gabrielle Scheder-Bieschin, the Election Board external relations chair, moderated the debate, which was held in De Neve Auditorium.

There are more candidates running this year than usual, with the addition of two new slates – FIRED UP! and ¡Bruin Satyrists! There is only one candidate for ¡Bruin Satyrists!, Sachin Medhekar, who is running for general representative 1 satirically.

During the discussion, LET’S ACT! and Bruins United candidates said they think in-house experience implementing USAC initiatives is an important quality for councilmembers to have. All of the Bruins United candidates and some LET’S ACT! candidates were office staff members in USAC this year, while most FIRED UP! members have little experience within USAC offices.

Many candidates said their experience working directly with student groups and community leaders makes them more qualified to lead the student body. Additionally, multiple FIRED UP! candidates questioned the efficacy of current USAC initiatives and criticized current councilmembers for not following through on their goals.

When asked to identify institutional changes they plan to make if elected, candidates from all slates repeatedly mentioned the need for increased student engagement.

The USAC internal vice president is expected to serve as a liaison between USAC and student groups on campus, connecting them to funding and resources.

LET’S ACT! candidate Negeen Sadeghi-Movahed said USAC members failed to communicate effectively with members of the undocumented communities on campus and the Queer Alliance this year. To engage further with students, Sadeghi-Movahed proposed a bylaw change that would allow student groups to sponsor their own resolutions.

Avinoam Baral, the Bruins United representative for internal vice president and the current office’s chief of staff, said he thinks some groups have been underrepresented in USAC this year, but he questioned the feasibility of Sadeghi-Movahed’s proposal.

“A simple bylaw change is not going to be enough,” Baral said.

The performance of this year’s USAC councilmembers was further criticized when Rohit Maharaj, who spoke on behalf of the FIRED UP! presidential candidate Miriam Rodriguez, said he thinks there needs to be more transparency in USAC’s fiscal management. Rodriguez couldn’t attend the debate because of medical reasons, he said.

Maharaj said USAC councilmembers demonstrated poor leadership by voting to increase their stipends last summer when a majority of the students weren’t on campus.

In response, Devin Murphy, the LET’S ACT! candidate for president, said he aims to get various communities more involved in USAC’s decisions by communicating with certain councilmembers.

Sunny Singh, the Bruins United candidate for president, said regular conversations with not a few, but all councilmembers are necessary for the council to increase student involvement in USAC.

Although candidates disagreed in their opinions of this year’s USAC initiatives, they all supported programs that would improve campus climate and increase outreach to underrepresented communities.

All Academic Affairs commissioner candidates said they would help students and faculty advocate for a diversity-related general education requirement, which a new committee of UCLA professors plans to draft and propose to the College of Letters and Science Faculty Executive Committee before the end of the quarter.

Every candidate for external vice president said they hope to create more opportunities for students to collaborate with local communities and organizations in Los Angeles through internships and partnerships.

Conrad Contreras, the LET’S ACT! candidate for external vice president, said he plans to institutionalize efforts to bring more racial and ethnic diversity to UCLA by expanding the Invest in Graduations, Not Incarceration, Transform Education, or IGNITE, campaign.

IGNITE pushes for the creation of retention and campus outreach programs and resource centers for youth who were previously incarcerated at UC schools. It was adopted by the University of California Student Association this year.

Angel Garfio, the external vice president candidate for FIRED UP!, said the IGNITE campaign has not led to tangible change on campus since it was passed by USAC councilmembers in a resolution proposed last fall. Garfio said he will advocate for the reintroduction of affirmative action and will reach out to build partnerships with Los Angeles community members.

The debate also included a discussion about a referendum that would increase student fees by $1.55 per quarter to fund student groups’ cultural and arts-related programs.

Carlos Quintanilla, the Bruins United candidate for Facilities commissioner, said the referendum is necessary because art-related programs often need the most funding to be organized.

“You’ll ensure that diverse communities on this campus will have an outlet for cultural expression,” Quintanilla said.

At the end of the approximately four-hour debate, members of Bruins United, LET’S ACT! and FIRED UP! showed support for their candidates by cheering and chanting in a standing ovation.

Students in the audience who weren’t a part of a slate said they found the debate interesting because the candidates were passionate about promoting and defending their platforms.

“All of the platforms here were relevant issues to students (who) go to UCLA. All of them hit me in some way,” said Amy Shao, a first-year political science student.

Aliya Kamalova, a second-year global studies student, said she found the topics discussed during the debate repetitive and said her opinion on the candidates didn’t change after the discussion.

Voting opens on MyUCLA on Tuesday at 9 a.m. and will close on Friday at noon.