When fees go up and services go down at the University of
California, as they often do during a budget crisis, many question
the decisions of the university’s administrators.
And both undergraduate and graduate students who want to have a
voice and a vote in how the UC is run can apply to do just
that.
“It is important to have a student voice at the regents to
remind them why (the UC) is important,” said Matt Murray, the
current student regent.
The 26-member UC Board of Regents governs the university, and
the student regent is a full voting member of that board, the only
one in a student population of more than 180,000.
After being selected, the future student regent will spend 10
months as a student regent designate in order to prepare for being
a regent.
The student regent designate does not vote and is essentially a
regent in training.
The chancellor’s office will accept applications for the
student regent position until Feb. 19. Sixteen to 20 applicants
from the entire UC system will be selected for interviews. The
three finalists who remain after two rounds of interviews by campus
student leaders will go before a committee of the regents, who will
select one student to be next year’s student regent
designate.
“It’s not so intimidating when you focus on what you
are interested in and what you want to do,” said Jodi
Anderson, this year’s student regent designate and a
third-year doctoral student in the UCLA Graduate School of
Education & Information Studies.
Murray and Anderson both said they originally applied to gain
experience and learn more about the university.
“The process itself is worth the effort of applying, and
getting the job is a bonus,” Murray said.
Anderson is currently halfway into her term as the student
regent designate. She will take over for Murray when his term
expires in July.
Although Anderson does not vote, she attends the bi-monthly
regents meetings which last for two days, and serves on three
committees ““ finance, grounds and buildings, and investments
““ and the eligibility study group.
Applicants for the student regent position must be UC students
in good standing, but there are no other specific
qualifications.
If a student who is an elected member of student government is
selected as a student regent, he or she must resign that position
before being appointed.
The student regent is given a scholarship equal to two years of
tuition and fees, an office at his or her home campus and is
reimbursed for the expenses of attending regents meetings and
committees.
Fifty to 90 UC students usually apply to be the student regent,
with the highest numbers coming from UCLA or Berkeley, said Mike
Cohn, student activities officer for the Center for Student
Programming. Cohn coordinates the student regent application
process at UCLA.
Anderson said the regents appreciate having a student
perspective at the table.
“You can use that perspective to step in and clarify if
there are gaps or misrepresentations,” she said, adding that
the student regent is more accessible for students and has the
campus connection that other regents lack.
“It is about being informed and well prepared. … That is
what the regents respond to,” Anderson said.
Murray agreed and said student regents can have a tangible
influence on the managing of the university.
For example, Murray said he and Dexter Ligot-Gordon, the 2002-03
student regent, helped push the Green Building Policy and Clean
Energy Standard, which the UC adopted in July ““ making energy
efficiency and renewable energy a focus of the university’s
building projects.
“It is critical for students and faculty and anyone who
cares about the future of the university to make our voices
heard,” Murray said.