A UCLA undergraduate has been chosen to head the systemwide
organization of student governments and lobbyers, representing the
interests of over 190,000 University of California students to
university and state officials.
Matt Kaczmarek, who is also external vice president of the
Undergraduate Student Association Council ““ UCLA’s
undergraduate student government ““ was selected by student
representatives from other UC campuses on Aug. 17 as the new chair
of the UC Students Association.
“The opportunity to be chair of UCSA is a real humbling
experience … it presents me with not an opportunity to be proud
of myself, but an opportunity to show that I can work for the
university,” he said.
UCSA’s outgoing chair, Stephen Klass, an undergraduate at
UC San Diego, said Kaczmarek was the right choice as the new
chair.
“His background in organizing, his involvement in
university policy is just far beyond where people normally are when
they take up this position,” he said.
Kaczmarek will face a formidable list of problems this year, as
UC students find themselves crunched between increasing student
fees and drastic cuts in services.
Sparring with the UC Board of Regents and state legislators to
make sure more services aren’t cut is not the only thing
Kaczmarek will have to deal with. The UC is also considering
curbing enrollment growth for the 2004-2005 academic year, a
proposal that would upset the university’s promise of
accessibility to all eligible students.
To meet these challenges, Kaczmarek brings his experience from
four years of involvement with UCSA and his enthusiasm for tackling
tough situations.
“I view it kind of as a 365-day marathon where
you’ve got a discreet amount of time to do as much as you
possibly can,” he said.
Kaczmarek’s goals for his term as UCSA chairman include
seeking state and UC funding for student-initiated outreach to the
K-12 communities, making UCSA more visible at the state
Legislature, and advocating for fewer cuts to the UC.
His most immediate priorities, however, are to keep student fees
from being increased further and to defeat Proposition 54, an
initiative which seeks to prevent the state from collecting
information on an individual’s race or gender.
Proposition 54, spearheaded by UC Regent Ward Connerly, will be
on the Oct. 7 ballot to recall Gov. Gray Davis.
Klass cautioned that the immediacy and magnitude of the problems
UC students face, especially regarding the state budget, will make
this year a challenge for UCSA.
“Matt and (the UCSA) board are going to have similar
problems to this year in that we’re still going to be one or
two more years in this state (budget) problem in California,”
he said.
In the last state budget, the UC was cut by over $400 million, a
reduction that has led to a 30 percent student fee increase, a
freeze on faculty pay raises and cuts to all non-instructional
programs.
Kaczmarek predicted that, while difficult, budget problems would
be more manageable this year than they were this past year.
“This year we have a much better understanding of what the
budget situation is, and we’ll be able to use what we learned
last year to make allies,” he said.
Another challenge Kaczmarek may face is an internal one ““
how to balance his duties as UCSA chair and EVP of USAC.
To do this, Kaczmarek said he would have to rely on his
hand-picked EVP staff to manage his duties while he is gone, a
staff in which he expressed confidence.
And this will not be the first time Kaczmarek has balanced out
two different jobs. Last year, he remained heavily involved in USAC
while also keeping up with his duties as a Resident Assistant in
Rieber Hall.
Karen Hedges, De Neve resident director and former Rieber RD,
said Kaczmarek balanced his duties and received high marks from
residents while maintaining a visible presence with USAC.
Kaczmarek said he would also have an experienced staff to
support him at UCSA, which he hopes will translate into a good year
for student advocacy.
“Our organization is really strong this year. We have a
qualified group of people, and the board has strengths in so many
different areas,” he said. “The association will be
working hard.”