USAC recap — May 18

Public Comment:

• Radha Patel, the chair of the California Public Interest Research Group Students UCLA chapter, said the organization recently elected its new board of directors and executive committee. She added that the organization finished its quarterly pledge drive a few weeks ago, which gives the organization the ability to train staff and support campaigns. One of the campaigns includes a ban on plastic bags in California to protect the ocean, Patel said. She said, in California, more than 30,000 students pledged their support of a campaign to move the state to 100% clean energy by 2030. At UCLA, CALPIRG raised 354 new student pledges this quarter, Patel said.

Allocations:

• The council allocated $270.95 to UConsulting, a student consulting organization, for its UC General Meeting.
• The council allocated $1,025.60 to the Asian Pacific Coalition for its Asian Pacific Islander Desi American History Month speaker event.
• The council allocated $339.58 to Project Lux, a student volunteering organization that focuses on health care and homelessness, for its member T-shirts.
• The council allocated $749.98 to Vietnamese Community Health at UCLA for its summer virtual retreat. The organization serves to alleviate the health care disparities that exist in the Vietnamese community and other underserved communities in Orange County and Los Angeles County.
• The council allocated $1,100 to HOOLIGAN Theatre Company, a student-run theater company, for its production of “Little Women.”
• The council allocated $62.25 to Shenanigans Comedy Club, a student-run comedy organization, for its end-of-quarter show.
• The council denied an allocation of $5,000 to Grupo Folklórico de UCLA, a student-led nonprofit organization dedicated to the promotion of cultural diversity at UCLA, for its Fiesta Mexicana 2021 event.
• The council allocated $1,200 to 1 Student at a Time, a student organization that supports underserved students in the LA college community, for its Bruin Wellness Kits.
• The council allocated $50 to the Japanese Animation Club, a student organization dedicated to Japanese anime and culture, for its Spring Quarter Raffle.
• The council allocated $30 to Roosevelt Network at UCLA, a nonprofit public policy think tank, for its social and farewell to seniors.
• The council allocated $100 to Pilipinos for Community Health, a service project under the USAC Community Service Commission, for its active membership awards. PCH advocates to provide better health services to socioeconomically disadvantaged communities in LA.
• The council allocated $400 to UCLA UniCamp, an organization that offers summer camps to LA youth, for its DIY plant kit incentives and sustainable tote bag event.
• The council allocated $14.60 to the Pre-Pharmacy Society, a student organization dedicated to supporting students pursuing pharmacy-related careers at UCLA, for its spring 2021 mentorship raffle.
• The council allocated $250 to the USAC Finance Committee for its spring transition retreat.
• Community Service Commissioner Mominah Subhan allocated $1,500 from the Supplemental Funds for Service to the Afrikan Student Union, an organization dedicated to serving Black students, staff and faculty.

Special Presentations:

• Guillaume Chantereau, the 2021-2022 Daily Bruin campus politics editor, said members of the council should contact him with stories related to student government and the UCLA administration. He also emphasized the separation of the Daily Bruin News and Opinion sections with regard to their journalistic procedures.
• Maxine Dimalanta, Eric Ngo and Athina Rosure presented on behalf of the Mother Organization Coalition to request support from the council in their calls for increased accountability and transparency from the UCLA administration. Dimalanta, a third-year education and social transformation student, introduced the Mother Organization Coalition, a collection of student organizations that serve historically marginalized communities on campus. The Mother Organization Coalition is entirely funded by student fees, she added. Dimalanta added there is a lack of transparency from the administration regarding allocations of these student fees. Ngo, a first-year human biology and society student, said student leaders are taking on more than they are being compensated for and asked for solidarity from USAC. Rosure, a second-year philosophy student, asked USAC to support the Mother Organizations in demanding accountability from the administration.

Appointments:

• President Breeze Velazquez appointed Campus Events Commissioner Maya Sanghavi as chair of the Constitutional Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed General Representative Hailey Valles to the Constitutional Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Facilities Commissioner Jane Ni to the Constitutional Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Internal Vice President Cassandra Gatica to the Constitutional Review Committee and as chair of the Appointments Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Transfer Representative Herman Luis Chavez to the Appointments Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Student Wellness Commissioner Tayloneei Jackson to the Appointments Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed External Vice President Sarah Wang as an alternate to the Appointments Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Cultural Affairs Commissioner Promise Ogunleye to the Budget Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Financial Supports Commissioner Emily Klarissa Yu to the Budget Review Committee.
• Velazquez appointed Subhan to the Budget Review Committee.

Reports:

• Velazquez said her office released office applications this week. She added that she attended the COVID-19 Response and Recovery Task Force meeting for the first time in which they discussed collaboration with the council in spreading messages to students in the future, Velazquez said. She added that she had a meeting regarding the Congressional Advisory Board about the transition with the new chair.
• Gatica said her office is working on transitioning with the previous internal vice president. Her office released the executive staff applications which are due Wednesday. She also said she had a committee meeting May 18 with an education workgroup to discuss plans for fall quarter.
• Wang said her office also released applications due Sunday. She also said she has been scheduling meetings with external vice presidents from other University of California campuses and with UC Student Association leadership. Her office will also be publishing the application for the appointed officer positions for UCSA, Wang said.
• Jackson said in a written report that her office hired its leadership team and is working through the transition process. She added the SWC Bruin Necessities hosted Dental Care Disparities Event with the Pre-Dental Student Outreach Program on May 18. She also said event highlights from the SWC Body Image Task Force event, Body Image and Media Representation of LGBTQ+ and Disability with Annie Segarra, will be posted on Instagram soon.
• Ni said in a written report that her office began hiring and that executive and project director applications would be posted May 19. Ni also said she is scheduling meetings with past project directors and executives as well as the administration to aid in the transition process.

The Undergraduate Students Association Council is the official student government representing the undergraduate student body at UCLA. Council meetings take place every Tuesday at 7 p.m. during spring quarter and are open to all students. Spring quarter meetings will take place virtually on Zoom; links for the meetings can be found on the internal vice president’s Facebook page. Watch a livestream of the meetings on the USAC Live! channel on YouTube.