NEW STAFF
AS welcomes new staff members Ed Schatz, Carmen Bautista, Chelsea Lyon, Lili Hartounian, Diana Collins-Puente, and Mathew Norton!
Ed Schatz is our new Assistant Director for Business Services. Ed has been helping students explore options for the development of new business services that will serve students and the campus. Specifically, as staff advisor to the AS Controllers Office, he helped students launch a new clicker rental program. The clickers are available to students for classroom use at the AS Cashiers and Ticket Office. More information can be found at the AS Tech Rentals website. The goal is to add more items over the coming months. Ed also works to provide students working in existing businesses with learning opportunities and makes sure those businesses follow campus policies.
Carmen Bautista joined the AS Staff this year as our new Computer Network Technologist. She works across the department to ensure that student and staff computers are up and running with the most current software installed. She collaborates with students and the Web Development team in the planning and execution of AS websites. Carmen also helps administer the AS servers providing students and staff with accounts, calendaring options, system backups, web functionality, email service, and making sure the AS system meets their networking needs.
Chelsea Lyon came to AS from the local weekly the Santa Barbara Independent. As Art Director she is the staff graphic designer and works on a steady stream of student and staff projects ranging from posters and flyers to the printed AS Annual Report. As a part of the newly established Creative Media Unit, she also directed and mentored our new AS student graphic designer Kim Tran and student videographer Isabelle Carasso. Her work gave visual expression to the AS Care to Know campaign. It was thus a crucial part of this year’s successful campaign to pass the lock-ins that must be reaffirmed in campus elections every two years to fund a variety of AS programs.
Lili Hartounian joined AS as Human Resources and Payroll Analyst at the beginning of the year. She’s the one who makes sure we all get paid and has done an outstanding job implementing Kronos the new campus wide payroll system at AS. She advises both students and staff regarding Human Resources and Payroll matters. In the aftermath of May 23rd, she worked with Community Education Outreach Coordinator Allina Mojarro to create “peace zones” around AS where students can decompress when needed.
Mathew Norton is AS’s new Box Office and Financial Enterprises Specialist. He works closely with the AS Cashiers and Ticket Office and advises student groups producing ticketed events. He can also provide ticket sellers for campus events.
Diana Collins-Puente came aboard as the AS Isla Vista Community Advisor early in the year. Her work has given the AS Pardall Center the visibility it deserves and helped turn it into a community hub in the heart of Isla Vista. She worked closely with the IV Tenants Union and the Legal Resource Center to support tenants evicted from the Abrego Apartments by the Majestic Management Group. She also advises the Commission on Disability Equality (CODE), Commission on Student Well Being (COSWB) and Commission on Public Safety (COPS). She is the secondary advisor for the Isla Vista Tenants Union.
STAFF TRANSITIONS
Sarah Siedschlag has been promoted! She is now serving students in AS as Environmental Programs Advisor after several years as Recycling Coordinator. She advises the Environmental Affairs Board, Bike Committee, Coastal Fund, and Zero Waste Committee.
Community Financial Fund (CFF) Coordinator Jose Raygoza accepted a position as Accountant with Extramural Fund Accounting in the Administrative Services Division. AS is both sad to see him go and glad that he has advanced in his career. Jose participated in AS as a student. He then served AS in a number of positions that involved record keeping and financial accounting. As CFF Coordinator Jose developed the financial literacy workshops students are required to attend when they apply for loans from CFF.
Jesse Armann accepted a position as Office Manager at UCSB Central Stores.
KCSB News Director Monica Lopez left AS at the end of the 2013/2014 academic year. She mentored students in both broadcast and print journalism. A highpoint of her time with KCSB was covering the Democratic and Republican national conventions live with two students during the race between President Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. We wish her well in her future endeavors.
VICE CHANCELLOR FOR STUDENT AFFAIRS DR. MICHAEL YOUNG RETIRES
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Dr. Michael Young
Dr. Michael Young retired this year after 25 years of service to students as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. His principled leadership made him one of the most widely admired and respected leaders in our campus community. We include him here because, although AS is an independent student-governed entity, it has a strong relationship with the Division of Student Affairs. This relationship is generally mutually supportive. But there have also been times when student initiatives and demands were at odds with the university administration. Dr. Young always worked with students in good faith and sought to support their efforts whenever possible. Under his leadership the Division’s services to students have expanded significantly despite the fact that in many of those years the Division faced serious budget cuts. It must be added that during the lean years Dr. Young’s support for staff, including AS staff, was unwavering. Throughout Dr. Young’s tenure UCSB Student Affairs has been a UC systemwide and national leader in implementing innovative programs to serve students and the campus community. Dr. Young’s service to the students of UC Santa Barbara has been, in a word, extraordinary! A heartfelt thanks from all of us at AS and best wishes in your future endeavors Dr. Young!
NEW PROGRAM BOARD PROGRAMMING
A series of events, including the Deltopia riot, Halloween, and the May 23rd murders, led to Program Board stepping up to provide a new level of programming for the student community.
May 23rd Remembrance Concert with Jack Johnson. Produced by AS Program Board. Photos Andy Doerr
This included beginning fall quarter with a free May 23rd remembrance concert in Storke Plaza headlined by Jack Johnson. The university also adopted new strategies for managing Halloween, including a Program Board produced concert that brought a significant number of students to the Events Center.
KCSB VIDEO COMMITTEE
The KCSB Film Committee was founded this year by Madeline Cardos and Allyson Gonzalez. Their work can be seen on the KCSB You Tube Channel. Madeline’s description of the founding process could apply to many new AS endeavors:
“My name is Madeline Kardos and I am one of the co-founders of the KCSB Film Committee. The other co-founder is the amazing Allyson Gonzalez, my co-worker and co-writer, producer, and director. The rest of the KCSB staff feared this partnership, as Ally and I did more laughing than working (according to them). We originally created the committee in order to film a video that we never actually made. This was our “Legal Training Video” shown to all new KCSB DJs, which was in dire need of reconstruction. We intended to write and film a new version of this training video by the end of our term, but ended up creating original skits, personal interviews with our KCSB DJs, a wildly successful Instagram campaign, and live in-studio videos for bands such as Dom La Nena, Evolfo, and Rodrigo Amarante instead. You win some, you lose some.
Challenges? There were many, as we were all new to filmmaking. Finding cinematographers and editors that shared our vision and our alarming senses of humor was difficult. We finally found her. Christine Lee was my friend who I met day one of college, waiting in line to register our bikes in the FT bike lot. Luckily, she was a film major as well and wanted to help KCSB for her last year of college. We also found fantastic interns from the Film & Media Productions office, who helped us immensely.
Finding equipment was also especially difficult, as KCSB did not have the budget for cameras, lighting, or sound. Instead, we branched out to other organizations such as the AS Media Annex and the Film & Media Department, who really saved us.
The number one difficulty, however, was time. It takes time to figure out what you’re even doing in the first place. It takes time to form a team. And it takes time to get in the groove and become good at what you’re doing. We only had one year. As I was a graduating senior, time was of the essence. All I can say is that it went by way too quickly. There are many things I wish we could have done, such as that dang “Legal Training Video”, however it’s up to the next generation of KCSB Film Committee members to finish what I have started. Even though we were born out of chaos, the KCSB Film Committee is here to stay.”
CREATIVE MEDIA UNIT
The Creative Media Unit is a new entity in the AS Legal Code. It’s purpose is to integrate media services, including AS publicity; graphic design; videography and editing; media equipment check out; and media workshops into a single entity that can provide these services to AS and the campus community. The unit includes student videographers and graphic designers, and a team of students to work on projects like the Care to Know AS campaign that informs students about the wide range of services AS provides. As a new entity, the Creative Media Unit is a work in progress and will no doubt develop over the years.
SENATE EXTERNAL AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
The Senate External Affairs committee is an internal Senate committee. It was created as part of the Seante reorganization signed into the AS Legal Code under former AS President Jonathan Abboud. Its prupose is to analyze proposed legislation and determine whether it should be debated by the full Senate.
FRESH PRODUCE AT FOOD BANK
This year Food Bank got the go ahead to offer fresh produce in addition to the dried and canned goods, and toiletries they’ve alway had available.
ISLA VISTA ENGAGEMENT AND SELF-GOVERNANCE
May 23rd brought into sharp focus the need for deeper engagement by the University and Santa Barbara County in Isla Vista. And they responded with concrete initiatives. AS is integral to these efforts, which include further development of the Pardall Center and, perhaps most importantly, revival of serious discussions aimed at some level of IV self-governance with student participation. The latter initiative received strong support from the External Vice President Local Affairs Cameron Schunk who worked with past AS President Jonathan Abboud to engage the Isla Vista community in this discussion.
IV Town Hall with State Representative Das Williams, EVPLA Cameron Schunk, and former AS President Jonathan Abboud, Photos Andy Doerr
With May 23rd; the Deltopia riot; general public order and long standing infrastructure and housing concerns very much at the forefront of people’s thoughts, a series of town hall meetings were held. The meetings were attended by students; local homeowners, renters; landlords; and UCSB and Santa Barbara County officials, including Supervisor Doreen Farr, and State Representative Das Williams. The result was Assembly Bill 3 (AB3) introduced by Williams in the State Legislature to create a Community Services District in Isla Vista. Student involvement was critical to this process which sought to include all stakeholders.
The UCSB administration has also worked to increase the University’s involvement in Isla Vista. A report prepared by the UCSB Foundation Trustees Advisory Committee outlined some of the steps that should be taken, including more uniform training of police officers serving in Isla Vista. Students also reached out to the County Sheriff’s Department and the IV Foot Patrol to improve relations between students and law enforcement.
The University has increase the number of Campus Police Officers and the Santa Barbara County Supervisors voted to fund a Community Resources Deputy to become part of the Isla Vista Foot Patrol to serve as a liaison between law enforcement students and the local community.
LOCK-IN FUNDING FOR THE PARDALL CENTER APPROVED BY STUDENTS
Passage of the “Maintaining AS’s Isla Vista Presence” lock-in by students in this year’s campus elections was a ringing endorsement of the impact the Pardall Center has had since its opening. This significant increase in the center’s funding underlines the importance of having a space for students administered by AS right in the center of Isla Vista. The center serves both students and non-students by providing a safe space for meetings, study space, and computer access. It also houses the AS Legal Resource Center and the IV Tenants Union.
UCIV LAUNCHED
The AS Public Safety Commission launched the UCIV Volunteer Program during the weekend of Deltopia in spring quarter 2015. Showcased in a long article in the Santa Barbara Independent from October, 2016 students volunteering with UCIV “served as mediators to help prevent conflict, promote peaceful interactions between public safety officers, Isla Vista residents and visitors to the community, all while supporting culture change.” UCIV will be especially active during Deltopia and Halloween and serve as a resource for students and liaison to law enforcement agencies.