Student leaders were saddened by next year’s admission
figures showing a systemwide decrease in admissions, including
minority students, even as the drop was expected.
But student leaders also said the figures won’t
significantly affect strategies they have used so far to fight
proposed state budget cuts to the university. Instead, they will
continue with what they have planned.
Admissions figures released April 20 indicated a 6.7 percent
enrollment cut to the University of California. Admissions to UCLA
decreased by 638 students.
Many found the decrease in admissions among some minority groups
alarming. Native American students offered admission decreased from
282 to 256 students, a 9 percent drop. The number of admitted
African Americans also fell from 1,731 to 1,469 students, a
decrease of 15 percent.
But the percentage of underrepresented students offered
admission in proportion to the total number of students admitted
increased from 19.8 percent last year to 20 percent.
Nevertheless, the figures have convinced students to continue
strategies they’ve been using to fight a proposed $372
million budget cut to the university, said Matt Kaczmarek, external
vice president of the Undergraduate Students Association
Council.
“You are seeing the impact of what the governor’s
budget is going to do now … how the budget is going to
effectively destroy any efforts of maintaining a diverse
campus,” said Kaczmarek, who is also chairman of the UC
Student Association.
At UC Berkeley, students were shocked by the degree of decreased
enrollment, said Anu Joshi, external vice president of the
Associated Students of UC Berkeley.
“(The figures) make our struggle that much more
real,” she said.
Joshi went to a news conference at Berkeley on Thursday, along
with 80 other students, to express concern for the drop in
admissions of low-income and minority students.
Accessibility to the university is a main concern, she said.
“Who doesn’t have access? It’s mainly
low-income and minority students. “¦ We just want to make sure
that everyone has equal access,” Joshi said.
The 2004-2005 budget proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
eliminates funding to outreach, a move that has prompted student
outcry.
Outreach provides mentorship services to K-12 students and
encourages them to attend college. The funding cuts will have
long-term effects, Kaczmarek said.
To maintain funding for outreach programs, USAC has worked with
UCLA alumnus Mark Pulido from the office of State Assembly Speaker
Fabian Nuñez, D-Los Angeles, to start a Web site containing
testimonies on the effectiveness of outreach.
UC student governments visit the state Capitol regularly to
lobby legislators and express their concerns about the
budget’s effect on the university. Berkeley students and
student body officers will lobby in Sacramento next Wednesday to
further voice their concerns.
The next revision of the state budget, which will be released in
May, will show if student lobbying efforts have been successful,
Kaczmarek said.