Soft-spoken and thoughtful in manner, Dexter Ligot-Gordon was
just another regular student on the campus of University of
California, Berkeley.
What made Ligot-Gordon stand out from his colleagues, however,
was that Ligot-Gordon was responsible for being the voice of
thousands of undergraduates across nine UC campuses for the past
year.
Being the key representative of UC students and the bridge to
the other UC Regents was the “most challenging thing
I’ve ever done. I worked with so many groups (including)
student communities, grass roots, and the regents,”
Ligot-Gordon said.
One of Ligot-Gordon’s accomplishments which many students
may remember him by is his opposition to student fee hikes and
attempting to increase the number of students of minority groups
enrolled in the UC.
Working actively in his community in Vallejo, California during
his high school years exposed Ligot-Gordon to the debates swirling
around Proposition 209, which prohibited race as a factor in hiring
and admitting individuals in local and state schools.
Standing Policy 1, which banned race as a basis for admission to
the University of California, was already in effect by the time
Ligot-Gordon entered UC Berkeley.
Ligot-Gordon felt the “first-hand effects of SP-1″
when he compared his observation of the faces on campus to those he
had seen when he had first visited UC Berkeley a few years before
attending the school himself.
“I saw how diverse it was back then, and since (that time)
there has been a dramatic change in the atmosphere,” he
said.
Ligot-Gordon himself comes from a background he deems
“very diverse,” graduating from a high school where
minority groups including Latinos, Pacific Islanders, and blacks
were represented in great number.
The experience of growing up in a diverse community lent a
personal touch to Ligot-Gordon’s feelings about diversity on
college campuses.
Witnessing a decline of diversity on the UC Berkeley campus led
Ligot-Gordon to advocate for racial diversity across all UC
campuses during his term as student regent, which led to collisions
with other members of the board, namely Ward Connerly.
Connerly has been an outspoken figure on issues of race and
higher education during his nine-year tenure as a regent.
As a key proponent of Proposition 209 and SP-1 and -2, Connerly
has strongly opposed race and gender criteria throughout his term.
Though SP-1 was rescinded in May 2001, Proposition 209 supercedes
it.
Connerly was one of Ligot-Gordon’s strongest opponents
during his term as UC student regent.
“I profoundly disagree with Dexter on what this government
should be,” said Connerly.
“I don’t think the government should be playing
favorites. There were times when I thought he had taken a few cheap
shots, saying I was making political moves … but you
shouldn’t judge somebody on whether they agree or disagree
with you,” he said.
Despite strong disagreements on the political level, Connerly
praised Ligot-Gordon’s achievements as a student regent.
“Without a doubt, he did his job well. I saw a humanity in
Dexter that I often don’t see in other people. He was always
well prepared, conscientious, and represented the students
well,” he said.
Matt Kaczmarek, the recently elected Undergraduate Students
Association Council’s external vice president, praised
Ligot-Gordon’s achievements.
“Dexter has had a remarkable (term). He evolved into an
advocate and became well respected among the regents … He’s
definitely brought a new focus and attention on outreach
that’s culminated in the final regents’ meeting … I
think he’s learned how to perform well and communicate on
both sides of an issue,” he said.
Serving as the voice of students on this large a scale has been
a valuable experience, said Ligot-Gordon.
“I am content with my term. And I know that it will serve
me well in whatever I do in the near future,” he said.