Thursday, May 7, 1998
Community briefs
BRIEFS:
Thousands admitted to UCs in second round
Because of the commitment to giving every eligible high school
senior at least one spot on a UC campus, officials said Monday they
have admitted an additional 3,179 students.
But the majority of those seniors received acceptance letters
from schools to which they had not even applied. These students met
the UC eligibility requirements but had only applied to one or two
campuses – often the more competitive campuses of UC Berkeley and
UCLA – said Carla Ferri, the UC director of undergraduate
admissions.
Underrepresented minorities comprised 19.6 percent of the
students accepted during the UC system’s second admissions stage.
The new admits bring the total number of underrepresented minority
students admitted to the UC system for the next fall term to 7,147,
compared to 7,843 from last fall.
Of the 3,179 new second-phase admits, 44.5 percent are white,
22.2 percent Asian American, 0.8 percent American Indian, 4.4
percent African American and 14.4 percent Latino. But about 13.7
percent of the applicants declined to state their ethnicities,
according to the figures.
Seven UC campuses – with the exception of UC Berkeley and UC San
Francisco – offer admission to students through the stage two
process. Because of its competitive nature, UC Berkeley instead
offers some applicants spots as spring admits. The second-stage
process allows UC officials to take another look at the qualified
students who were rejected.
Burton urges chancellor to reject GSA survey
California State Senator Pro Tempore John Burton has sent a
letter to Chancellor Albert Carnesale asking that the chancellor
"take all measures to stop the polling on unionizations and
employment questions."
The letter, sent on Tuesday, goes on to state that such polls,
if "conducted while a PERB petition is pending, are transparent
union-busting tactics."
The survey, which was added to GSA’s ballot by petition, has
spawned much controversy of late. The non-binding survey includes
questions regarding labor issues and asks graduate students if they
want SAGE/UAW to be their union.
Meanwhile, GSA President Andrew Westall has come out against the
survey, saying that "this survey is as flawed as Propositions 209,
187, and the upcoming Proposition 226."
Westall claims that he had previously tried to remain neutral in
the debate over the survey. The chancellor was out of his office
all day Tuesday and Wednesday, and his office staff could not
confirm whether he had actually received Burton’s letter.
Students end fast over ARCO’s Burma relations
A group of UCLA students have completed their hunger strike in
protest of investment in Burma by the Atlantic Richfield Company
(ARCO). Both the U.N. and Amnesty International have issued reports
detailing human rights abuses, including torture and rape, by
Burma’s military junta.
"Our message to ARCO is very simple: stop supporting this
murderous regime," said Liz Rogers, a first-year student
participant. The fast began on Sunday and ended Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the University of Washington student government has
passed a resolution strongly encouraging students at PAC-10 schools
to join in a boycott of ARCO.
"Fire" at Royce turns out to be false alarm
Fire alarms sounded, and students and faculty were evacuated. It
appeared that UCLA’s oldest and most well-known building was about
to be reduced to a pile of ashes and rubble.
But all turned out to be well in the end. The fire alarm was a
false one, caused by construction equipment, and not by any actual
blaze.