USAC recap – Sept. 2

This post was updated Sept. 23 at 2:37 p.m.

The Undergraduate Students Association Council approved a letter to the Dean of Undergraduate Education Adriana Galván in support of student services and advising professionals’ ongoing negotiations with the UC at its Sept. 2 meeting.

USAC is the official student government representing the undergraduate student body at UCLA. Council meetings are open to all students and usually take place in person at the Bruin Viewpoint Room and on Zoom every Tuesday at 7 p.m., though the council meets biweekly and virtually over the summer. Students can find the links for the meetings on the agenda posted on the USAC website or watch a livestream on the USAC Live! channel on YouTube.

Public comment:

• A third-year public affairs student voiced support for Sanjana Sudhir to be appointed to The Green Initiative Fund – a group that strives to make UCLA a leader in sustainability.
• Eli Sepulveda, the chief justice of the USA Judicial Board, said the board depends on USAC funding allocations because they cannot apply directly to USAC for funding as a USAC entity. He added that they currently do not have an operational budget due to cuts from USAC.

Funding:

• The council did not allocate any funding during the meeting.

Special presentations:

• The office of the Transfer Student Representative gave a presentation regarding the transfer student experience at UCLA and how USAC could alleviate challenges that transfer students face. Paige Zwerner, the external chief of staff of the TSR office, said in the presentation that only six out of the nine UCs offer sufficient resources for transfer students. She added that these should be expanded because transfers face financial barriers and time constraints. Transfer students have a 10% lower graduate rate than traditional students, she said. TSR Hyerim Yoon added that the Transfer Leadership Coalition, a collective of transfer allies, will be holding elections during fall quarter for its co-chairs and that all are invited to apply. Yoon also highlighted the importance of connections with the Center for Community College Partnerships, which is responsible for developing relationships between UCLA and the California Community College system. Yoon said the Transfer Student Center is hosting an event to help build bonds between transfers prior to Week Zero of fall quarter.

• A representative from the TSR office said many transfer students face “transfer shock” – a temporary dip in GPA that occurs when students transfer from one institution to another. Neta Brudner, a member of the California Community College Connections staff in the TSR office, also said transfers often face stigma around attending community college and imposter syndrome, which can cause feelings of low self-worth.

Appointments:

• The council reappointed Avantika Mohan, an incoming fourth-year microbiology, immunology and molecular genetics student, as the internal outreach chair of The Green Initiative Fund.

• The council appointed Mariah Moreno, an incoming fourth-year political science student, to the USAC Community Activities Committee.

• The council appointed Sanjana Sudhir, an incoming third-year psychology student, to The Green Initiative Fund.

Officer reports:

• President Diego Bollo said he met with campus administrators regarding the Campus Retention Committee and the Student-Initiated Outreach Committee. He added that he will attend the North Westwood Neighborhood Council meeting Sept. 3.

• Internal Vice President Tommy Contreras said he interviewed over 60 individuals for director positions at his office and added that he will also be in attendance at the NWWNC meeting.

• External Vice President Sherry Zhou said the UC Regents will be having their bimonthly meeting from Sept. 15. to Sept. 17., adding that her office will be conducting a Regents advocacy presentation at the next USAC meeting.

• General Representative Talia Davood said in her written report that her office is finalizing staff recruitment for her office. She added in her report that she met with Maia Ferdman, the project manager from the UCLA Initiative to Study Hate. Davood said she also met with various religious student groups for check-in meetings as part of her continued efforts to create an Interfaith Council. She added that she is coordinating with UCLA Housing to curate workshops for off-campus housing support.

• General Representative Jayha Buhs Jackson said her office is planning Basic Needs Fair – an event where students can learn about basic needs services on campus – during fall quarter and a Black Transfer Welcome Event, co-hosted with the TSR office. She added that she met with Steve Lurie, the associate vice chancellor for campus and community safety, about the Programs Activities Board, which is one of the largest funding bodies at UCLA for student programming.

• General Representative Brett Berndt said he has been planning the Basic Needs Fair with Buhs Jackson, adding that his office has concluded hiring for the summer.

• Academic Affairs Commissioner Cristopher Espino said in his written report that he created a new Slack workspace for his office and implemented a training program for new hires.

• Campus Events Commissioner Daniel Leal said his office is planning Bruin Bash, which is an annual concert hosted in collaboration with the Cultural Affairs Commission on Sept. 21, and is finalizing its lineup.

• Community Service Commissioner Edison Chua said his office is hosting Volunteer Day, which is part of True Bruin Welcome Week, on Sept. 27. The event supports food banks, senior centers and schools through beautification projects and direct assistance, according to the school’s community website.

• Cultural Affairs Commissioner Divine Trewick said her office is assisting in planning Bruin Bash and Basic Needs Fair. She added that she is finalizing director positions for the Arts Restoring Community, which is an undergraduate student-funded initiative that supports cultural and arts-based student organizations through events, programs and advocacy on campus.

• Facilities Commissioner Joy Huang said the public comment period for the Sepulveda Transit Corridor for the draft environmental import report closed Aug. 30. She added that her office is still seeking five appointments for the John Wooden Center Board of Governors and urged all to apply.

• Financial Supports Commissioner Nico Morrone said his office is discussing bylaw changes to the USA Board of Directors funding body, adding that he hopes to restructure the Budget Review Committee to have a more streamlined process this year. Morrone added that his office is working on hiring new applicants for positions at FSC.

• Student Wellness Commissioner Hannah Yip said her office has planned fall quarter events, including a UC student health insurance plan workshop. She also said she met with the Santa Monica Rape Treatment Center to discuss upcoming outreach efforts.

• Transfer Student Representative Hyerim Yoon said her office is still accepting applications for positions, and they will close Sept. 20. Yoon added that she is also bringing back the Administrative Affairs Committee. In her written report, Yoon said she reached out to transfer student clubs to collaborate on a Transfer Club Fair, adding that she has been advocating for transfer student inclusion on the USA Board of Directors. She added in her report that the Transfer Housing Town Hall will be held in the Tipuana apartments Oct. 16.

• International Student Representative Keya Tanna said she is still in the process of hiring for member and director positions at her office. In her written report, Tanna said that she met with Bollo to coordinate plans for the upcoming term.

Agenda items:

• The council approved a constitutional bylaw change to amend the name of the Budget Review Director to the USA/BOD funding Chair. They also approved the name change of the Assistant Budget Review Director to Assistant USA/BOD funding chair and approved the removal of the Budget Review Director from the financial responsibility oversight board.

• The council also approved changes to the bylaws that remove the Budget Review Director from the funding committee that the Financial Institutions Commission is a part of, as well as approving the renaming of the Budget Review Committee to USA/BOD Funding Committee. They also removed language that said the Budget Review Director “shall present the budget allocations to the council,” calling it an outdated bylaw.

• The council further approved a bylaw change saying that the Judicial Board will now have seven appointed justices who can serve as undergraduate students at UCLA, with a maximum of two years.

• USAC unanimously voted to support sending a letter to Dean Adriana Galván on Tuesday, expressing solidarity with student services and advising professionals as they seek a new collective bargaining agreement. The letter cited concerns over job security, wages and workplace protections amid federal funding cuts to higher education. Members of USAC noted that more than 5,000 SSAP employees serve over 40,000 UCLA undergraduates through advising, enrollment, admissions and financial aid, and argued that cuts to staff directly harm students. The council urged Galván to forward the letter to UC President James Milliken and back SSAPs in their push for fairer conditions.