Academics grapple with defining the concept of university as ’10 Questions’ concludes

The “10 Questions” lecture series, which will address a different question each week, doubles as a course for students and a panel open to the public. The series explores open-ended questions such as “What is beauty?”, “What is failure?” and “What is knowledge?”

Each week’s panel features two faculty members from the School of the Arts and Architecture and two faculty members from other departments who will approach the question of the week from the perspective of their academic disciplines.

A panelist described UCLA as a “city-state on a hill” to answer the question, “What is a university?”

Four faculty members from the arts, humanities and the UCLA administration discussed the essence, purpose and aspirations of a university from the perspectives of their fields in the final lecture of the “10 Questions” series Tuesday.

David Schaberg, dean of humanities, used examples from ancient Chinese texts to illustrate how universities had been perceived across time as institutions for the protection of freedom of thought.

“Whatever else they are, universities are remarkably old. They are incredibly stable, settled and malleable,” Schaberg said. “(They are) homes for the production, sharing, dissemination of knowledge.”

Jerry Kang, vice chancellor for equity, diversity and inclusion and a professor in the UCLA School of Law, said when he became an administrator he was surprised to discover UCLA functioning like a city-state, with a student senate and body. He believes universities serve as bulwarks of critical thought against a world in which reality is increasingly seen as debatable.

“Can it save us when everything else is going to hell?” Kang said. “Can the university be a city-state on a hill?”

Byronn Bain, African American studies and world arts and cultures/dance associate professor and a performing artist, recited an original poem. In it, he discussed the often-overlooked impact of African and Asian cultures on the development of Western university traditions.

“Imhotep was Hippocrates and Einstein’s intellectual father,” Bain said. “From column construction to medical surgery, who did all that … back in 2,700 B.C.?”

Bain also said universities must ensure people historically locked out of places of learning are given access to university resources. He played a short documentary filmed for a program he taught at a penitentiary, the California Institute for Women, to demonstrate the benefits of higher education for inmates.

Robert Watson, Neikirk Distinguished Professor of English, said universities are balanced between tradition and innovation, and scholars are in the best position to convey and challenge new and old ideas.

“Clusters of ideas, like clusters of cells, undergo a Darwinian competition that favors those good at replicating and spreading themselves, not necessarily the ones that fulfill our best potential,” Watson said. “A key function of artists and scholars is to challenge those convenient unifying functions of culture when they mislead us.”

He also defended the study of humanities against a purely economic understanding of its value.

“Teaching among Homo sapiens differs from the teaching among other species, precisely in this deferred and indirect mode of reward. Full-blown human pedagogy presupposes first the disposition to invest time in training without any immediate return … (and) involves a sophisticated aesthetic judgment of what constitutes a good performance,” he said. “I think the connection between humanity and humanities could hardly be clearer.”

In the Q&A section of the event, the panelists and attendees talked about the importance of not hiding behind UCLA’s name, and whether the university’s admission process, by denying access to thousands of applicants who wanted access to the school’s resources, was inevitably elitist.

Asavari Tiku, a fourth-year neuroscience student, said the discussion helped her vocalize her own questions about institutions such as universities.

“If the human race were erased, and then we started all over again, would these similar systems evolve? Would we still be thirsting for this organized institution for the pursuit of knowledge?” she said. “Or is it just artificial and we’re imposing some kind of structure to something that there shouldn’t be structure to?”

Anne Marie Burke, co-developer of “10 Questions” and executive director of communications and public relations for the School of the Arts and Architecture, said the public nature of the series itself helped UCLA fulfill its role as a university.

“(Our) mandate … as a public institution is to make what we do here and to make the university more porous, and to both welcome the public in and share out what it is that we do,” Burke said. “That responds to in my mind the highest kind of calling of the university.”

She added she hoped to hold a variation on the series again in the future.

Students learn to cultivate community through cooperative housing

When Scott Mulligan and two other UCLA students moved into their room, they noticed the room’s window was surprisingly dirty.

“When we got to our room, the window was super dirty, and then (Andrew), Jared and I just cleaned … and then it was super clean by the end of it,” said Mulligan, a fourth-year political science student.

The group cleaning exercise became emblematic of Mulligan and his roommates’ experience at the University Cooperative Housing Association, also known as the Co-op. For them, the Co-op has been a place where group cooperation compensates for the shortcomings of a housing facility that aims only to serve its residents’ most practical needs, said fourth-year mathematics student Andrew Kenner.

“It was a very rewarding couple of hours we spent cleaning our room when we moved in,” Kenner said.

The Co-op is a student housing cooperative on Landfair Avenue, which includes three buildings that house around 400 students total. Residence is open to any college student. In return for reduced rent, students must work a four-hour shift every week in an assigned area, such as the kitchen, the facilities or the mailroom.

Justin Downing, a fourth-year political science student, moved into the Co-op this fall. Residents in their first quarter are obligated to work either in the facilities or the kitchen, which serves 19 meals a week.

“I have a 6 a.m. shift in the kitchen,” Downing said. “It’s OK, you know? You cook a lot of eggs.”

Mulligan searched for an affordable apartment in Westwood for months before applying to the Co-op and counts it as his saving grace. Like most Co-op residents, Kenner was drawn to the reduced rent, but the larger appeal for him came from the idea of self-sufficient living.

“I like co-ops as an idea. People pitch in to make things better – the division of labor makes things better … I think because everyone has to pitch in in some way … you wash the dishes well because you know at some point you’re going to eat off that plate too,” Kenner said. “There’s camaraderie to it, and the atmosphere encourages that.”

Former Co-op resident Alexander Prisadsky was a classmate of musician Jim Morrison during his time as a film student at UCLA in the 1960s. The Co-op ultimately became the perfect stage for his class film.

“After each (UCLA basketball) win, a crowd of students from the Co-op dorm I was living in and nearby fraternities formed in the street, building a bonfire in the middle,” Prisadsky said. “Since my new script was going to be about crowds, I arranged to have a camera Friday night the 19th … the fire sequence became the focus of the film.”

Many residents said the greatest benefit of living at the Co-op is the cheap price tag, while the greatest drawback is the sometimes subpar cleanliness.

Andrea Moreno, an exchange student from Spain attending her first year at the UCLA School of Law, said the large community of exchange students at the Co-op made it easier to get to know people far away from home. However, the lack of cleanliness made an intimidating first impression.

“At the beginning, you might say, ‘Oh, it’s not that fancy, not that well taken care of,’” Moreno said. “It’s run by students, so not everything is perfect, not everything is super clean.”

Mulligan added the Co-op’s imperfections are what make its environment more engaging.

“The Co-op is the best kind of weird possible … it’s a little strange, but it’s a good kind of strange,” said Mulligan.

For students like Kenner and Mulligan, the Co-op has also nurtured their sense of personal responsibility through tasks such as dishwashing and taking care of the slug that lives in their bathroom.

Mulligan said he personally named the slug Mr. Slug. Mulligan and Kenner believe the Co-op residents who encounter Mr. Slug feel a responsibility to respect his space.

“He’s a fellow Co-oper, as far as I’m concerned,” Kenner said.

Gene Block, vice chancellors discuss event security, Title IX and emergencies

Chancellor Gene Block meets with the Daily Bruin Editorial Board every quarter to discuss issues affecting campus and explain administrative policies. At the meeting Tuesday, Block, Administrative Vice Chancellor Michael Beck, Vice Chancellor for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Jerry Kang and Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Monroe Gorden Jr. spoke about the administration’s response to the National Students for Justice in Palestine conference, changes to federal Title IX policy, the UCLA Centennial Campaign, issues with UCPath and emergency preparedness.

NSJP Conference

NSJP held its conference at UCLA mid-November. The Los Angeles City Council called on UCLA to shut the event down, while student government at UCLA passed a resolution in support of the conference. Block wrote an op-ed in the Los Angeles Times about the conference. UCLA administrators sent NSJP a cease-and-desist letter Oct. 31 regarding the conference’s logo used to promote the group. Zionist groups unaffiliated with UCLA protested the event Nov. 18.

  • Block said the administration’s cease-and-desist letter to the NSJP regarding its logo was not an attempt to prevent their meeting, though Beck noted UCLA retained its rights up to and including shutting down the conference if NSJP did not comply. Both Beck and Block said the issue was resolved after UCLA’s name was removed from the logo.
  • Beck added that an update to Policy 110, UCLA’s major events policy, was released coincidentally in the days leading up to the NSJP conference after two years of planning. He said the policy provides more clarity for students.
  • Kang said the administration understands the need for content-neutral policy enforcement. He also said it is often unclear to the public who is endorsing speakers on campus, indicating the need to be clear with brand use.
  • Beck said the administration must be notified of guest speakers three weeks in advance to make security plans.
  • Beck added UCLA policy covers “extraordinary” costs associated with guest speakers. He said this cost generally is associated with speaker security, but not event costs such as compensation for ticket-takers or ushers.
  • Beck also added this policy is capped at $100,000 per year for third-party hosts, but there is no cap on student-invited speakers.
  • Gorden, Kang and Block all noted this policy is intended to provide a level playing field to allow for a variety of free speech.
  • Beck said funding for security costs comes from the police department budget, which is funded by taxpayer dollars. He added UCLA aims to have cost-effective security procedures.

Title IX Policy

  • Kang said the UCLA Title IX Office has increased its transparency measures with accountability reports and investigation summaries.
  • Gorden said there are policies in place that ban fraternities from affiliating themselves with UCLA, but added administrators must evaluate where responsibility falls between an individual and the group.
  • Gorden added he believes sanctioning fraternities is not enough to eradicate sexual assault and sexual violence. He said Title IX trainings must be changed, possibly to train smaller groups at a time to ensure peer accountability.
  • Kang said there is no easy way to move from informing students to changing their behavior. He added his office is open to experimentation and to partnering with community members to improve results.
  • Kang said local campuses are sending their ideas about the new federal Title IX standards from Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to the University of California Office of the President. He added he believes the live cross-examination proposed in the new policy could be detrimental to survivors and investigations.
  • Block called the DeVos policies a step backward, but added the UC will have the flexibility to maintain many of its more rigorous standards.
  • Kang said the administration uses a responsible employee policy, which requires employees to report instances of sexual violence. He added the office constantly emphasizes that retaliation for a Title IX complaint, regardless of findings, is strictly prohibited. He also added he hopes transparent proceedings where people face consequences for inappropriate actions will help people feel their cases are not being swept under the rug.
  • Kang said settlements with those found to have committed sexual violence now include a public statement paragraph explaining the findings and consequences of each case. Beck said settlements with those found to have committed sexual violence should not automatically be viewed as bad. Kang added it is UCLA practice to keep complainants informed about their case, even if the administration and offender are technically the two parties settling.

UCPath Implementation

  • Block said administrators delayed implementing UCPath for almost a year because it was such a large change.
  • Beck said payroll mistakes occurred under the old system, but UCPath is taking much longer to resolve pay issues. He added he believes this is unacceptable.
  • Beck added UCLA staff have aimed to resolve complaints made to the UCPath office themselves, using off-cycle checks and instant-pay cards. He also added the office is monitoring and working on the situation every day.

Centennial Campaign

  • Block said the campaign’s goal of raising $1 billion for scholarship funding was very ambitious. He said though the goal has not yet been reached, it is his highest priority in terms of fundraising efforts.
  • Block added UCLA may need to explore other options to bolster scholarship donations, including directing a percentage of other donations to the scholarship fund or by engaging students in fundraising efforts.
  • Beck said the goal was set far higher than professionals estimated was possible. He added they set the goal so high so as not to take the easy way out.

Emergency Preparedness

  • Beck said the administration has taken steps to release more detailed information proactively in its emergency notifications, pointing to its Woolsey fire updates as an example.
  • Beck added the office refined how it gauges air quality after realizing their previous air quality management system had a 24-hour updating period.
  • Beck added the office is working to define thresholds that will enact certain actions, including specialized announcements for those who have respiratory problems or to areas with small children.
  • Beck said a new active shooter training video, with a more specific focus on UCLA, will be launched soon.
  • Beck added trainings in orientation will emphasize where to find safety resources, including the Bruins Safe application.
  • Beck said the administration is still working on procedures for what to do in a true evacuation situation. He added it would be nearly impossible to evacuate such a dense population on limited roads in a short amount of time. Instead, he said, it may be more effective to determine which areas emergency responders can defend best in a shelter-in-place response.
  • Beck also added administrators will simulate an evacuation of UCLA in January to test emergency preparedness.

UCOP releases report with recommendations for improving UCPD practices

The University of California Office of the President released a universitywide report in November to standardize policing terminology and practices across the UC.

The report contained 26 recommendations for police practices across the UC system, many of which focused on the system for processing complaints, introducing new training and updating protocols regarding the use of force. The report also recommended UCPD connect to the public by engaging the community and increasing transparency.

Assistant Vice Chancellor for Campus Life Mick Deluca, a member of the task force who drafted the report, encouraged Campus Safety Alliance members to share their feedback on the report via an online platform Nov. 29. CSA is a coalition of students representing 14 organizations and security officers who focus on campus security.

The feedback period for the initial draft closed Monday.

UC President Janet Napolitano commissioned the report in April. UCOP established a Presidential Task Force to review existing police practices throughout the UC in order to find areas for improvement.

Task force members will meet five times by Dec. 31 and will represent various parties including police, union representatives, university administration staff and students, according to the report.

The report recommended a uniform complaint process that allows for anonymous complaints and timely responses from police officers. The task force also suggested a single systemwide phone number and web-based system for reporting complaints with a frequently asked questions link, and to track and investigate all complaints.

The draft also recommended more police training and a system for examining the appropriateness of using force in incidents. The task force asked officers to document cases involving the use of force and to review them to ensure they comply with policy. Another recommendation called for police officers to undergo training before wielding any weapons and to train in de-escalation techniques.

UCPD Lt. Kevin Kilgore said UCPD already has a system in place that aligns with the draft recommendations.

“We already have these procedures in place,” he said. “We do allow for anonymous complaints and regulations required by law to track instances of the use of force.”

He added UCPD officers are trained prior to using any weapons.

The report also recommended officers undergo specific training designed to improve communication with students. These trainings would cover communication on topics such as procedural justice, implicit bias, cultural sensitivity, sexual orientation and trauma-informed interviewing. It also was recommended UCPD offer classes for students, staff and faculty to make them aware of these topics.

“I like that community engagement piece,” Deluca said. “Having students be willing to hear from police for certain issues helps to bridge the gap of the ‘us against them’ mentality.”

Manvir Dhaliwal, a CSA committee member and second-year human biology and society student, said she thought the recommendations would benefit minority groups and should emphasize student input.

“I’m aware that police relations haven’t always been great, especially between minority students and students who have been persecuted from the LGBT+ community,” Dhaliwal said. “Having standard procedure that doesn’t explicitly target minority groups will eventually be beneficial.”

The draft also recommended the formation of Independent Advisory Boards composed of students, staff and faculty to connect police to university administration. Deluca said UCLA already has a Police Chief Advisory group that serves a similar purpose to the recommended advisory boards, so the school may transition to the recommended model within two years.

Matthew William Richard, a CSA coordinator and second-year political science student, said that the report aligns with CSA’s aim to include students from all communities in conversations about their safety and to give them the power to vote on such measures. He believes the report will help CSA connect the administration to the student body.

“So many students, particularly those who have been most jeopardized by blanket safety policies, have not been included in those conversations about those safety policies,” Richard said. “We aim to be a mutually beneficial alliance between administration and all of the student body.”

The final recommendation in the draft was to increase transparency between UCPD and the universities to build better relationships and improve accountability. The recommendation asked UCPD to find ways to release video evidence and records to the public, in accordance with state law. The draft also suggested each police department publish an annual report about the complaints they receive.

Deluca said he does not foresee UCLA will need to make any major structural changes in the future to satisfy the recommendations.

“I really feel that we’ve almost acted as a model campus,” he said. “But I think it’s terminology and common practices and definitions that can be changed.”

Un-Connon Opinions: Building a new baseball stadium on campus would be a grand slam for UCLA

I love baseball.

It’s a great, historic sport I grew up obsessing over. As a Massachusetts native, I grew up in a culture where everyone was a die-hard Red Sox fan, and it has made me the aggressive and bombastic sports fan I am today.

When I came out to Westwood, I was under the impression I would be moving from one baseball culture to another. There is history and prestige inherently tied to UCLA baseball, and I was looking forward to seeing how people here treated one of my favorite sports.

It turns out, no one really seemed to care.

Now let me get this straight – the Bruins do have their fans. They have alumni, they have young families and they have die-hard baseball junkies who all care about their team. But the issue is that the student interest just isn’t there.

The cause? Well, it could just be that baseball as a whole is losing popularity in my generation, but I still know plenty of students who love the Los Angeles Dodgers, LA Angels, San Francisco Giants or some other MLB franchise.

So the issue isn’t baseball, and it has nothing to do with the quality of the program – UCLA is routinely ranked in the top 25, produces high-profile MLB talent and won a national championship as recently as 2013.

The problem is Jackie Robinson Stadium.

Not the stadium itself, exactly, just where it happens to be: on the other side of the I-405, almost two miles away from campus.

Compare that to Pauley Pavilion and the Los Angeles Tennis Center – which are right on Bruin Walk – and Easton Stadium and the Spieker Aquatics Center – located by the Sunset Canyon Recreation Center on the Hill.

I went to plenty of home baseball games last year, and at most of them, there wasn’t a student in sight. Only for weekend day-games would a group of students show up, and even then, the attendance rarely exceeded 1,700.

Tickets are free for students, but Ubers aren’t. And a 45-minute walk isn’t exactly the most convenient way for students to spend their time.

This may hit die-hard fans close to home, but Jackie Robinson Stadium is not the right fit for UCLA. The Bruins need a stadium on campus so eager students can make it out to the ballgame.

There is currently minimal promotion for the team’s games, but if schedule banners hung next to the men’s and women’s basketball ones on Bruin Walk, maybe UCLA baseball’s attendance could begin to compete with its Pac-12 rivals.

Jackie Robinson Stadium fits 1,820 fans, but both USC and Washington have newly renovated stadiums that seat around 680 and 380 more than that, respectively. Oregon State’s Goss Stadium sits 3,315 and has outfield seating – unlike Jackie Robinson Stadium. Arizona’s Hi Corbett Stadium sits nearly 10,000.

To be fair, there is no reason for UCLA to expand and pour money into tricking out Jackie Robinson Stadium where it stands. The revenue wouldn’t overtake the costs for a long, long time – not nearly enough people go to the games.

That is why the brand new, state-of-the-art Jackie Robinson Stadium II should be built right on the Hill.

If UCLA found a way to fit the Mo Ostin Basketball Center, Wasserman Football Center and Wallis Annenberg Stadium on campus, I think it could find a spot for a baseball stadium as well – tear down the Hitch Suites for all I care.

Another season at the original Jackie Robinson Stadium is rapidly approaching, and yet again, fans will have to journey out to the far edges of Westwood to see a really talented team play one of the greatest sports on the planet. The next generation of UCLA fans shouldn’t have to make watching baseball such a chore.

No more 45-minute walks along the highway or pairs of $10 Ubers on gamedays – put a stadium on campus.

Men’s basketball hopes to score a win against longtime rival Notre Dame

The Bruins haven’t fought the Fighting Irish since 2009.

UCLA men’s basketball (6-2) will host Notre Dame (6-2) on Saturday night in the two former rivals’ first meeting in nearly a decade. It has been 34 years since their annual series – running from 1966 to 1984 – was canceled, and coach Steve Alford said he was glad to see its return.

“It just makes so much sense,” Alford said. “It’s a great school – there’s a lot of tradition, a lot of rich history between Notre Dame and UCLA.”

Unlike his coach, sophomore guard Chris Smith was not up to speed on the historic rivalry.

“I know during the dynasty, when (UCLA was) winning a lot of championships, I heard that we were on a (winning) streak and Notre Dame broke that streak,” Smith said. “It was a really long streak.”

It was, in fact, a “really long streak.”

Eighty-eight games, to be exact.

Bookending the Bruins’ record-setting streak were two losses to the Irish – one Jan. 23, 1971 and the other almost three years later Jan. 19, 1974.

But the UCLA and Notre Dame teams playing this weekend are not the same as they were under John Wooden and Digger Phelps.

“They’re a motion (offense) team, we’re a motion team,” Alford said. “(They play) predominantly man-to-man defense like (us). So (there’s) a lot of similarities to when we pair up against them, we’ll get a good litmus test of where we are.”

The Irish’s leading scorer, guard Temple Gibbs, is averaging 14.3 points per game. Gibbs is one of three Notre Dame players averaging double figures, but the Irish were still able to put up 80 points against 2016 national semifinalist Oklahoma earlier this season.

“Contrary to us, they bring experience,” Smith said. “With experience comes chemistry. And chemistry – we don’t really have as much of it as I’d like.”

Three of the Notre Dame’s four regular starters are upperclassmen, compared to UCLA, which only has one – redshirt junior guard Prince Ali.

The young Bruins, however, have five players who are averaging 9.9 or more points per game.

The Bruins are shooting 35.7 percent from downtown this season, down from 38.1 last year. Ali said while he thinks his team can improve its 3-point shooting, there is no cause for concern just yet.

“I think it’s pretty early to be thinking about stats,” Ali said. “But I’m sure we’ll start making more 3s as the year keeps going.”

Notre Dame ranks 266th in the country in 3-point shooting, hitting 3s at just a 31.1 percent clip.

The Bruins and Irish will tip off at 7:30 p.m. Saturday in Pauley Pavilion in the first matchup of the two-year home-and-home rivalry revival.

Women’s basketball looks to continue undefeated streak against Fresno State

Kennedy Burke said the highest priority for the Bruin’s offense on Friday will be patience.

“(We can’t) force them and (can’t) go into the spots they’ve trapped,” the senior guard said. “We have to be available on the open court, but not going far away from the ball.”

After falling to Indiana in the final seconds of Sunday’s game, UCLA women’s basketball (3-5) will host Fresno State (4-2) at Pauley Pavilion on Friday. The Bruins haven’t challenged the Bulldogs since 2004, when they outscored Fresno State 92-76.

“We have to really keep the ball out of the lane and control penetration,” said coach Cori Close. “I’m worried about taking away the 3-point line from them.”

The Bulldogs have an average of 7.2 made 3s per game, which is responsible for nearly a third of their total scoring.

“We’re going to try to defend the 3-point line, try to make them drivers so that we can rotate and have good help side,” said sophomore forward Michaela Onyenwere. “If they’re averaging seven 3s, we’re going to try to take that away.”

Fresno State guard Candice White ranks first on her team in 3-pointers made this season. White also averages 17.5 points per game and is the Bulldog’s leading scorer.

“She’s a really good scorer,” Close said. “Everybody else on their team does a really good job of spreading the floor, of being a threat, so that she has more room to drive and do her thing.”

Defensively, White has also recorded 14 steals so far in the season to contribute to Fresno State’s team average of 12.7 per game. The Bulldogs have forced 21.5 turnovers per game – over six more than UCLA tallies.

“We obviously need to take care of the ball and be meticulous with passing and catching,” Onyenwere said. “(And) being strong with the ball.”

UCLA and Fresno State closely align in points per game – 65.5 and 68.8, respectively. The teams both average 13 assists per game and are nearly equal in shooting percentage – 38.2 and 39.9 percent, respectively.

Onyenwere said the Bruins need to focus on gaining possession of the ball to take advantage of opportunities on offense.

“I need to crash the boards every single time,” Onyenwere said. “I know my team looks at me to score and that’s the role (I play).”

Onyenwere logged her second double-double of the season last week against the Hoosiers. The forward is averaging 13.1 points per game and shoots 55 percent from the free-throw line.

The Bulldogs are averaging 78.6 percent from the charity stripe – of the highest free throw percentage any team UCLA has faced this season.

Burke said the Bruins have to minimize committing fouls on defense after giving up 23 free throws to Indiana on Sunday.

“We have to play smart with our feet and not with our hands,” Burke said. “Honestly, if we didn’t foul as much as we did the last game, we would’ve beaten them by a nice amount.”