In response to severe budget cuts to outreach programs at the
state level, the undergraduate student government approved the
transfer of $10,000 to the Student Initiated Outreach
Committee.
The decision was made unanimously during the Undergraduate
Students Association Council’s meeting on July 27.
The outreach center, which provides weekly counseling and
tutoring to underprivileged students at fifteen locations in the
Los Angeles area, has faced funding reductions that total 75
percent of its annual budget.
The transferred money is the surplus from last year’s
academic success referendum, which is used to enhance the quality
of academics at UCLA and provide educational equipment.
Every academic quarter, 50 cents of every student’s fees
go to the academic success referendum.
Academic Affairs Commissioner, Eligio Martinez, brought the
matter to the council’s attention and after discussion, the
council decided that assisting a program like outreach would be a
“good use of the leftover money.”
Martinez said the money will help the student initiated outreach
center accomplish its mission, but won’t solve all the
organization’s problems.
Though the money could have been used to improve academics at
UCLA, Martinez said it is better spent on outreach programs.
“Having a computer is important, but having a kid in
higher education is more important,” he added.
Martinez had also stressed the importance of this contribution
during their meeting and stressed the urgent nature of the matter
as one that “just can’t wait.”
Diem Tran, chairwoman of the outreach center, said the money
will enable her group to continue operating at a minimal level, but
it will not replace the money lost to budget cuts.
“The transferred money will alleviate the burden and help
us to continue as effectively and efficiently as possible,”
she said.
Though the outreach center aims to encourage underprivileged
students to pursue higher education, Martinez said UCLA students
who participate in the programs also benefit.
“We learn as much from them as they do from us,” he
said. He added that as a result if the program, several UCLA
participants have gone on to pursue graduate degrees in
education.
This effort on the part of the council could be a part of a
larger contribution. The council will further look into the
possibility of its leftover budget also going towards the same
cause.
The University of California’s outreach programs got some
good news with the passage of the state budget last week. The
budget called for the restoration for some of the funds to outreach
that had originally been slated to be cut completely in the
governor’s budget proposal and May Revise.
With reports from Narges Zohoury, Bruin senior
staff.