ANGIE LEVINE Los Angeles mayor Jim Hahn
(left) meets with Chancellor Albert Carnesale to
discuss the university’s role in the greater L.A. area.
By Maegan Carberry
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
Chancellor Albert Carnesale met with Los Angeles mayor Jim Hahn
Thursday to discuss the existing and expanding role of UCLA in the
greater Los Angeles community.
“There were two purposes for the meeting. The first was to
make it clear that UCLA stands ready to be of service to the mayor
and the city in general. The second was to inform him of our
initiative, UCLA in L.A., which will further strengthen the bonds
between UCLA and the greater Los Angeles area,” Carnesale
said.
Hahn was elected in June, and the meeting was conducted as the
first of what both men hope to be the beginnings of a supportive
working relationship between UCLA and the new administration.
One of the first steps of the relationship will be the UCLA in
L.A. initiative, which is a catalogue of UCLA groups working to
improve the university’s role in the greater Los Angeles
area. The goals focus on youth, economic development and arts and
culture. Carnesale noted that a significant number of these efforts
are headed by student-run clubs and organizations as a part of
student-initiated outreach.
Hahn has already declared Oct. 25, “UCLA in L.A.
Day,” and is supportive of the university’s desire to
extend itself into the city.
“UCLA is a city within this city. So much is already being
done in the community, but nobody seems to know about it,”
Hahn said. Carnesale agreed, saying the university wishes to
further publicize its current involvement.
Other topics of discussion at the meeting were K-12 education,
the relationship between UCLA and the Westwood Village community,
and the new seminar series on the Sept. 11 attacks. The mayor
expressed particular interest in the seminars, which Carnesale said
were an essential addition to the UCLA curriculum.
“In times like these, UCLA should serve as a beacon of
tolerance and respect, setting an example for institutions and
people everywhere, and at the same time serve as a leading venue
for rational discourse,” the chancellor said.
Carnesale considered the meeting a success.
“We got to say what we wanted to say, and the mayor was
very much engaged and receptive,” he said.