With a strong vision of shared governance and close relations with the administration, Elizabeth Bjork seems ready to take on her new position as Academic Senate chair.
Bjork, who has been a professor in the psychology department since the 1970s, was elected as vice chair and chair-elect of the Academic Senate, a faculty organization that oversees the university’s academic life, last year.
She moved into her new position at the beginning of this school year.
“Most of my professional life has been here at UCLA,” she said of her many years at the university.
Bjork was a math student during her undergraduate career and graduated from the University of Florida.
She became interested in mathematical and cognitive psychology, particularly memory and learning, during her graduate work at the University of Michigan.
“I’ve always been interested in undergraduate education,” she said.
Bjork has been involved in the senate from the beginning of her time at UCLA, serving on various committees, most notably as chair of the Undergraduate Council.
Bjork said she always appreciated the opportunity to work with a variety of departments and groups on campus that the senate provides.
“When you get outside your department … you get exposed to very different perspectives,” she said.
Bjork added that shared governance, the idea that not only administrators but also faculty and students help lead the university, is a crucial part of this open communication.
“You come away better enlightened when you hear different perspectives, and I think that’s what happens with shared governance (on the senate),” she said.
Shared governance is an important part of the senate’s role within the university, Bjork said, and she promised to preserve this system and act as a faculty representative to both students and administrators.
“(Shared governance) gives students direct access to faculty who have direct access to administration,” Bjork explained.
Chancellor Gene Block has also publicly stated his support for shared governance.
The Undergraduate Students Association Council plans to work this year on developing even stronger shared governance by getting more voting student members on committees, and the senate is no exception.
“While it’s great that we have input on the Academic Senate and its various committees, no students currently have voting rights, and that’s something we would like to look into changing,” said USAC President Gabe Rose.
With turnover in three top university positions recently, including UC president, UCLA chancellor and dean of the UCLA College, Academic Senate members agree that their organization’s role will be particularly important in the coming year.
“There’s a strong tradition of shared governance, so at any kind of key point like this, the cooperation between the administrative structure … and the Academic Senate becomes important,” said Bjork’s husband and colleague, Professor Robert Bjork.
Of particular importance is the senate’s relationship with Block, said Elizabeth Bjork.
“With a new chancellor, a foremost goal of the senate is to establish a positive and productive working relationship,” she said.
Michael Goldstein, senate vice chair and chair-elect, said he hopes Block will view the senate as a valuable resource.
“The primary goal is to ensure that Chancellor Block becomes acquainted with the system of shared governance we have at UCLA and comes to appreciate it,” he said.
Beyond maintaining good relations with the administration, Bjork said she hopes to address faculty concerns such as competitive salaries, better child care and access to quality health care.
However, she added, as a public university, finding adequate funding for such projects can be a challenge.
“We just don’t have enough money to do all the things we want to. Coping with a limited budget will make it more difficult to achieve our goals,” she said.
If anyone is up to the challenge it is Bjork, her colleagues said.
Robert Bjork said his wife is a great listener, a trait Elizabeth Bjork herself named as one of her strengths.
Goldstein and past Academic Senate Chair Adrienne Lavine say Bjork is very diplomatic as well.
“It’s really been a pleasure so far,” Goldstein said of working with her. “She has a manner that is mild and decisive at the same time. She is very familiar with the issue, and she has a way of putting people at ease when she interacts with them that is great.”