Office of the President

Introduction

Welcome to the Office of the President!

The Associated Students Office of the President is committed to:

• Advocating for the retention of student services and supporting campus sustainability efforts.
• Organizing to hold the UC accountable to its mission of providing an accessible, affordable, and quality education for the people of California.
• Ensuring that every single student voice is heard, amplified, and actively represented at the campus and system-wide level.
• Implementing programs and campaigns that enhance students’ university experience while building community between students, staff, and faculty members.

Meet & Greets

This year the AS Office of the President did a series of meet-n-greets to breakdown how AS works, discuss the importance of student power and get new folks involved, especially 1st years!

Sexual Assault Awareness Action

During Fall Quarter the Office of the President partnered with the campus groups Students Stopping Rape and Men Against Rape to sponsor an action to call attention to the fact of sexual assault in our campus community. Students gathered in the bike circle next to Storke Tower to send their message. People were generally receptive, though participants were also subjected to jeers by a few, which is exactly why these kinds of actions continue to be important!

 

Book Exchanges

Sponsored by the A.S. Office of the President and Academic Affairs Board, the Textbook Marketplace was inaugurated on the A.S. Annex lawn on January 9, 2013.  The marketplace was a one day event where students could buy and sell their used textbooks directly to each other. The goal is to provide an alternative to sky high text book prices and cut out the middle man—textbook resale companies and the Bookstore—that pay relatively little for used titles and then still sell them at prices that are a challenge to many students on a budget, who don’t want to be burdened with excessive student loan debt when they leave the university.

The exchange is an example of students taking charge of a situation and building a program to respond to an identified need. The goal is for the marketplace to take place quarterly and become part of the beginning-of-quarter routine for students.

The Book Exchange returned at the beginning of Spring quarter with more books and a more central location in front of the UCen. Time will tell how successful the service is, but some students certainly benefited from fairer pricing.

Student Input, Day of Action

The AS Office of the President created a space for those in charge of the University to hear directly from students. This meant collaborating with several campus groups to hold a Town Hall on Diversity in Corwin Pavilion during Spring Quarter, where students voiced their experiences and grievances about the University’s commitment to diversity directly to the UCSB Administration, since those who make policy and can make change.

Students had the rare opportunity to address marginalization and diversity at UCSB. They raised their voices on issues facing students including representation, resources, sexual violence and violence at large, and retention and recruitment.

The meeting featured two panels, one made up of students and one of upper level Student Affairs and other University officials, including Vice Chancellor Michael Young. The student panel included Anisha Ahuja, Yoel Haile, Gloria Campos, Melba Martinez,  and Katlen Abuata. In addition to Dr. Young, the administration panel included, Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) Academic Director Lupe Navarro-Garcia, Senior Associate Dean of Enrollment Services Mary Jacob, Associate Dean of Student Life and Activities Katya Armistead, Senior Associate Dean of Student Life Debbie Fleming, Acting Associate Vice Chancellor of Diversity, Equity and Academic Policy Anna Everett and Executive Assistant to the Chancellor Kevin McCauley.

Students were encouraged to ask questions of the panelists. According to the Daily Nexus, Dr. Young emphasized the significant funding cuts to Student Affairs of about $11 million over the 23 year’s that he’s been Vice Chancellor. At the same time, although he sympathized with student’s concerns and supports their efforts, he also stressed the need to work together, rather than approaching the real challenges we all face in an adversarial manner with students on one side and Students Affairs seen as the enemy.

The event was co-hosted by: Student Commission on Racial Equality (SCORE), Student Lobby, UCSB I.D.E.A.S., Muslim Student Association, Students for Justice in Palestine, Pacific Asian Coalition, Office of Student Advocate General, South Asian Students Association, MCC Council, BPRO, Black Student Union, Human Rights Board, Arab Student Group.