The man behind most of UCLA’s fiscal decisions, Vice
Chancellor Steve Olsen, will soon be working with politicians,
policy experts and the general public in an attempt to make the
state’s financial structure more transparent and
effective.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently appointed the longtime Bruin
a commissioner to the California Performance Review.
The California Performance Review is an organization established
by Schwarzenegger that is meant to “restructure, reorganize,
and reform state government to make it more responsive to the needs
of its citizens and the business community,” according to the
performance review Web site.
The commission’s work has yet to begin, but Olsen soon
will juggle his new responsibility with his job at UCLA.
In February 1999 Olsen ““ a UCLA alumnus ““ returned
to UCLA as an administrator after a 22-year break from the
campus.
“To me (UCLA is) home, and I felt part of this place even
before I arrived,” Olsen said.
Not many students on campus know who Olsen is or what his job as
vice chancellor for finance and budget entails, but he plays a
significant role in the university’s finances.
As the chief planning and budget officer, Olsen coordinates a
number of activities with specific attention to strategic planning
and budget decision making.
“Essentially I’m the chancellor’s chief
financial adviser. “¦ I look at everything from enrollment
planning to the analysis of academic proposals,” Olsen
said.
His work and experience in the budget office has earned him the
recognition of the governor.
Olsen said he has been aware of the governor’s desire to
enact a review commission for quite some time. Shortly after
Schwarzenegger was elected to office, Olsen was asked to examine
the Department of General Services ““ in the same way Olsen
has now been called to examine California’s economy.
“I took a few days off and had a chance to meet the
incoming members (of Schwarzenegger’s administration), and
that’s when I learned they had an interest in this
(review)”, Olsen said.
Olsen has advocated the idea of examining the state of
California’s economy for a number of years and says that such
an investigation can facilitate better the efficiency and
effectiveness of the process.
Despite the large of amount of work required to assess the
state’s fiscal structure, Olsen feels he will be able to
balance his work as vice chancellor with his work on the
commission.
“Part of all our jobs is public service “¦ and I have
the full support of the chancellor to spend whatever time I
need,” Olsen said.
Though the commission’s work may not have any direct
effect on the university, Olsen says he hopes UCLA will be able to
benefit from his new post.
“My hope is that if we can find new ways of running
business practices more efficiently and effectively, then the
university will be able to take advantage of it,” Olsen
said.
Ultimately the pressure on UCLA’s budget and
students’ wallets could be alleviated if innovative practices
are discovered, he added.
The new commission of 21 professionals ““ of which Olsen is
now a member ““ will hold a number of public hearings, gather
information, and provide recommendations to the governor, said
Ashley Snee, a spokeswoman for Schwarzenegger.
In addition, the commission is comprised of local business
leaders, members of the labor community, government officials and
public policy professionals, Snee said.
“The commission will facilitate the public input process
of the California Performance Review,” Schwarzenegger said in
a June 28 press release.
The most important aspect of the commission, Schwarzenegger
said, was the intent to garner public opinion ““ a goal the
governor has advocated since the beginning of his term.