Abhishek Shetty: USAC should focus on more economic projects, not solar umbrellas

UCLA is currently en route to its goal of producing zero landfill waste by 2020. That goal is at the risk of hitting a roadblock if the Undergraduate Students Association Council Facilities Commission goes ahead and wastes money on expensive solar umbrellas. Using funding from The Green Initiative Fund, the commission is drafting a proposal […]

Lydiette De Jesus: UCLA must meet students’ needs for health care services

It’s 9 a.m., and the professor begins class promptly. Papers ruffle, and the professor’s voice is heard amidst a chorus of coughs, sneezes and sniffles. It’s flu season, and for a campus as large as UCLA, that means sick students – and a lot of them. The good news is the Arthur Ashe Student Health […]

Arman Sharif: Creating a common funding application would help UCLA student groups

SOOF, CPC, CAC, PAB, ASUCLA, USA, SGA, GSA, SWC and even TGIF. As two-year director of an on-campus youth mentorship organization, I still find myself lost in the sea of UCLA funding acronyms. Parsing through different UCLA funds and fund-granting committees is a daunting step – whenever I need to apply for large annual allocations […]

Blake Deal: Los Angeles voters must seek balanced approach to development

Los Angeles citizens will soon come to blows over whether or not they choose to restrict residential development near one of Hollywood’s most historical sites. In March, the Los Angeles City Council approved Sonny Kahn’s Miami-based skyscraper firm Crescent Heights’ plan to build two residential towers, called the Palladium Residences. Their name comes from the […]

Arthur Wang: Next UC chancellor selection process should account for student input

The search is on for fresh leadership at two University of California campuses, but what some hope to be a shake-up will probably be one of those tiny temblors that everyone sleeps through. Chancellors Nicholas Dirks of Berkeley and Linda Katehi of Davis both announced their resignations in surprisingly similar circumstances in August, in light […]

Sandra Wenceslao: UCLA should require students to join major-related activities

When you’re trying to score your dream job, you’ll need more than a flashy college degree. The work experience and knowledge acquired throughout college are equally, if not more, important than the degree itself. Most students think that just because they got into one of the best universities in the country, they will automatically score […]

Abhishek Shetty: Danny Siegel should redirect his efforts to tackle housing affordability

Just five months ago, Danny Siegel rose to the office of Undergraduate Students Association Council president and made housing affordability one of the key parts of his platform. But now, as the academic year gets underway, he can’t afford to be vague on his proposals. Housing affordability is slowly becoming a major inconvenience for students […]