INTRODUCTION
The Associated Students Pardall Center is a unique, vibrant space located in the heart of Isla Vista that provides free study/work, meeting and events spaces, and resources for the entire community.
The first floor is an open space. The center regularly hosts campus and community events, including the annual Beloved Community week, meetings. It also encourages study groups, and impromptu gatherings throughout the year. In addition it provides free on-site computers, printing and Wifi.
The second floor houses the Isla Vista Tenants Union that provides tenant’s rights resources and assistance to all residents of the Isla Vista community and the AS Legal Resource Center that has provided countless free legal consultations and referrals, as well as, educational materials to registered UCSB students.
THE ISLA VISTA RESOURCE GUIDE
The Pardall Center website’s Isla Vista Resource Guide provides a comprehensive overview of all the organizations, events, housing options, and much more available to the Isla Vista and campus communities. Student initiative and countless hours of work led to its development. Check it out by clicking here!
THE BELOVED COMMUNITY
The Isla Vista Conference: The Beloved Community was a week long celebration and discussion of the unique community that is Isla Vista. It is based on the vision articulated by Dr. Martin Luther King as explained by the King Center:
“Dr. King’s Beloved Community is a global vision in which all people can share in the wealth of the earth. In the Beloved Community, poverty, hunger and homelessness will not be tolerated because international standards of human decency will not allow it. Racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood.”
The week was about community building and included a variety of activities to do just that.
SECOND ANNUAL ISLA VISTA CONFERENCE
The Beloved Community calendar also included the Second Annual Isla Vista Conference a wide ranging discussion of all things IV. The conference began with an art exhibit. the opening reception showcased famous—and maybe not-so-famous—I.V. murals. Folks were encouraged to get to know their neighbors and enjoy a local Mariachi band and free food and other refreshments provided by the Isla Vista Food Co-op.
THE BELOVED COMMUNITY DRONE VIDEO
It included a drone photo that called for community volunteers asked to
come to Sea Lookout park and be a part of Beloved Community’s video for our upcoming Isla Vista Conference. The purpose for this video is to represent our diverse community and the love within it, we want everyone to bring and invite their friends.
Come in tie-dye or colorful clothes and be ready to be a part of a cool drone video (we are going to form a heart with all of us in colorful happy colors)
The Isla Vista Conference: The The Beloved Community seeks to strengthen a culture of sharing by engaging in community-wide dialogue, education and action that allows us to explore our unique perspectives on how we got to this time in the history of Isla Vista and where we go from here.
ISLA VISTA COMMUNITY CENTER
Representatives from the Pardall Center and AS have been part of the discussion around creating an Isla Vista Community Center from its beginning. Friends of the Isla Vista Community Center met in September.
HALLOWEEN
In the interest of mitigating the madness that Halloween in Isla Vista often brings and providing safe spaces for students, the Pardall Center hosted a Chill Out Space on the first floor of the Pardall Center for anyone trying to find a mellow place to hang out. AS Take Back the Night hosted a Safe Space on the second floor of the center for anyone who may have felt triggered or harassed during Halloween.
UCSB WALKOUT
The Pardall Center closed Friday, January 20 in solidarity with the UCSB Walkout protesting Donald Trump’s inauguration as President of the United States.
MUSLIM BAN PROTEST MARCH
Around 300 students staged a peaceful rally and then marched to the Pardall Center to protest President Trump’s proposed ban on people entering the country from several countries whose populations are predominantly Muslim. The march ended at the Pardall Center with several speakers, including 3rd District Supervisor Joan Hartmann.
STUDY JAMS
The Pardall Center hosted study jams each quarter to help student get through their exams. For the winter quarter jam this was over 800 students over the course of dead week.
UNSCHEDULED MAINTENANCE
The center was closed for several weeks during fall quarter, due to “unscheduled maintenance.” In particular, some pesky critters had to be cleared out and the necessary repairs done in the aftermath of their setting up shop in the center’s walls and ceiling. All of the center’s services were relocated during this pastoral interlude.
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