Editor’s note: Last Thursday, Abrham Castillo-Ruiz, Don Ho, Joel Juarez, Andre Lee, Levi Menovske and Bree Rombi termed out as ASUCD senators. The Aggie interviewed the senators to see what they felt were the highlights of their year in office.

Abrham Castillo-Ruiz

Castillo-Ruiz said the only reason he ran was because under-represented communities needed a voice in ASUCD. His platform issues focused on ethnic graduations, increasing AB540 awareness, increasing the number of 24-hour rooms during finals week, opposing Sodexo and fighting for the Chicana/o studies department.

The ethnic/lavender graduations were put into the budget with relative ease, the MU was opened up as a 24-hour room during finals week and Sodexo signed with a union. However, Castillo-Ruiz said he can’t take credit for these actions.

“I felt like it didn’t really come from me, but the job got done and that’s what we wanted,” he said. “I was happy for that.”

Castillo-Ruiz ended up dropping the AB540 issue but was able to restore two of the three lost faculty positions within in the Chicana/o studies department.

“To be honest, because of the way most of those issues turned out, I almost feel like I regret running for senate in the first place,” he said. “But I don’t regret being there purely as a representative.”

Castillo-Ruiz doesn’t plan on staying involved with ASUCD.

“I feel like the kind of change – the kind of impact I want to create – isn’t going to be achieved through ASUCD or some other institution,” he said.

Don Ho

Ho aimed to represent the “Average Joe’s” on campus.

“I feel that most of the campus is underrepresented and I thought I represented that constituency very well,” he said. “I’m proud of my voting record, what I said and did.”

His platform issues included bringing mainstream entertainment to campus, tailgating at sporting events, the edible garden and budget transparency.

“Entertainment Council is there for us but I always felt like they were doing alternative, indie things that are not conducive to mainstream audiences,” Ho said.

Ho also worked with the athletic department for tailgating and worked with Menovske to author a bill for the edible garden.

“I hope for the future senators, there is a lot more collaboration,” he said. “Senate is very divided and everyone’s proud of their individual projects. I wish I’d understood earlier that all the senators and everyone at the table is working toward one goal – we’re just doing it for the students.”

Ho is in the process of working with controller Joey Chen and the webmaster on his last platform issue to make it easy for students to have access to the ASUCD budget by winter quarter.

He also intends to stay involved in ASUCD by applying for a commission or interning for a senator.

“It would be a shame that any leaving senator just forgets that they put so much of their time and so much of their soul into their projects,” he said.

Joel Juarez

An ASUCD senator should represent the entire student body, Juarez said.

“As a queer person of color, I was always pushing for certain issues because I haven’t seen any of those issues addressed by other senators and they weren’t going to be brought up until I brought them up,” he said.

Juarez’s big platform issues were anonymous HIV testing, making financial aid information more accessible and creating a student advocate position.

With the HIV testing, Juarez collaborated with other senators to find money in the budget for health and education services. Juarez also worked on financial aid awareness week, which offered events put on by representatives from the financial aid office that ranged from workshops on budgeting to how to fill out a FAFSA. He hopes to bring the week back this year.

He has also worked on the student advocate program, where a student in legal trouble would have accessibility to legal information, but it has yet to be created.

Juarez plans to stay involved on campus, although his involvement may not be within ASUCD.

Andre Lee

Lee’s original platform issues included creating a program for first-years about bike safety, making Picnic Day more sustainable and creating a rest lounge for students. Lee also had plans for a bike-sharing program, but said he dropped it early on when he realized it was unfeasible.

“The platform I was most recognized for and most interested in was getting a sort of rest lounge on campus,” Lee said. “But it’s been very difficult. There are just so many veto points, so many people with a say.”

Lee collaborated with Transportation and Parking Services (TAPS), AggieTV and the Bike Barn to make an informational video and brochures that were distributed to 400 first-years. He is also working to make the campus more compostable, including Picnic Day.

“Part of the reason I ran a second term is I really want to see these things finished,” Lee said. “I’m humbled the students gave me a second chance.”

However for Lee, being a good ASUCD senator isn’t just about accomplishing platform issues, but attending senate meetings, commission meetings, hiring committees, being effective unit sponsors and holding office hours.

“Everyone runs on a lot of really big platform issues,” he said. “They want to change the world. What gets lost is being competent.”

Levi Menovske

For Menovske, a large part of being a senator is to author legislation. However, he said he only chose to write pieces that applied to his platform issues.

“There are so many different things that fall under student interests that it’s absolutely impossible to represent them all,” Menovske said. “I did a good job of sticking to what I said I would do. I held myself to that standard and didn’t make an effort to take on extra projects.”

Menovske’s platform issues were to start a textbook rental program at the bookstore, lay the groundwork for an edible garden and increase financial aid awareness. Menovske was able to successfully implement the rental program this fall as well as lay the base for the edible garden.

“It was a success overall,” he said. “But it was really just the groundwork. This is a project that I’m really passionate about and I want to see it prosper before I graduate.”

Menovske intends to stay involved in both of his main projects and keep working with ASUCD until he graduates.

Bree Rombi

Rombi’s main issues were bringing class readers to Campus Copies, composting and updating the ASUCD website to include a calendar.

She worked to get Campus Copies a new binding machine and more business through the Education Abroad Center.

Rombi said a lot of people thought it was a waste of time to run on composting as a platform. However, with help from people in the Memorial Union, Grounds Division and Will Klein, a senior environmental science and management major, she was able to bring composting to the MU and the ASUCD Coffee House.

Rombi has only just begun to work on the ASUCD website with Chen.

“A lot of senators that I know did more after senate than as a senator,” Rombi said. “I feel like I did a lot when I was in senate and I still want to continue.”

Of the six senators terming out, Rombi was the only one to meet and exceed the 80-hour office hour requirement, which was one of the reasons she received the Michael J. Tucker award.

AKSHAYA RAMANUJAM can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.

On Nov. 16, a provisional contract was drawn up between UC and UAW Local 2865, the union representing over 12,000 teaching assistants, readers and tutors at the university.

The vote to ratify the contract will take place at all nine UC teaching campuses from Nov. 29 through Dec. 2. If the majority of UAW Local 2865 members vote no, then UAW and UC return to the bargaining table.

Five UAW bargaining team members have written an open letter to the members of UAW 2865 Local urging them to vote against ratifying the contract. The proposed agreement is not a victory, but represents a significant failure by the union’s leadership, said the letter writers.

“The UAW leadership has bought into the UC story about how they can’t afford to provide us with any significant upgrades,” said Brian Malone, member of the UAW bargaining team and graduate student in literature at UC Santa Cruz.

This new contract stipulates a minimum annual salary increase of 2 percent and the promise of additional increases, with a maximum 4 percent increase per year, if the state gives UC more money than it did in 2007.

“This 2 percent increase in wages compared to the projected 3 percent inflation rate over the next three years is equivalent to us taking a pay cut,” Malone said.

Based on calculations made by UAW, an increase in teaching assistant wages from 2 to 4 percent would cost UC about $3 million systemwide.

“People that are organizing the vote no campaign are mainly concerned with the lack of change made in respect to wages,” said Molly Ball, graduate student in the English department at UC Davis and bargaining team member. “However, the improvements made in regards to childcare were a big win for us.”

A main point of contention during negotiations was the total annual amount of childcare expenses that an Academic Student Employee (ASE) may be reimbursed for, which was increased from $900 to $2,400 a year in the new contract. In addition, the childcare program was extended to include summer.

While this is an improvement from the past contract, this is still not enough money to cover the costs of childcare, Malone said.

“The UAW leadership aimed too low and they are walking away too early,” he said.

According to the UAW 2865 Local website, it would be an ineffective and unwise move to further prolong the contract campaign.

“While we respect the rights of individuals to advocate that we hold out for more, we believe that protracted escalation and a possible strike could undermine the gains we’ve already reached agreement on with UC and weaken public support for our contract,” UAW leadership said.

Despite disapproval from select UAW bargaining team members, it appears that both UAW leadership and UC are content with the new contract.

“We are very pleased to have reached what we believe is a fair agreement, and one that recognizes both the contributions our student employees make to UC’s teaching mission and the budgetary challenges we face,” said Peter Chester, UC’s chief negotiator for the contract.

Negotiations have been ongoing since June of this year and a number of UAW members are pleased to see significant improvements made in the contract.

“My impression is that this is the best contract we are going to get at this point,” Ball said.

Malone predicts the campaign will have difficulty passing on a majority of the northern campuses, particularly Berkeley, Santa Cruz and Davis.

“The UC has the money to provide the improvements we’re asking for,” Malone said. “The UAW leadership has failed to get what we deserve and what UC can afford to give us.”

The five members of the bargaining committee launched their vote no campaign on Monday and urge members of UAW 2865 Local to vote no on the tentative agreement as well as vote for a stronger UAW leadership in May 2011.

KATIE LEVERONI can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.

ASUCD Senate meetings are scheduled to begin Thursdays at 6:10 p.m. Times listed are according to the clock at the Nov. 18 meeting location, the Memorial Union’s Mee Room.

Meeting called to order at 6:16 p.m.

Jack Zwald, ASUCD president, present, left early

Previn Witana, ASUCD vice president, present

Ozzy Arce, ASUCD senator, present

Emmanuel Diaz-Ordaz, ASUCD senator, present

Osahon Ekhator, ASUCD senator, present, arrived late

Andre Lee, ASUCD senator, president pro tempore, present

Tatiana Moana Bush, ASUCD senator, present

Darwin Moosavi, ASUCD senator, present

Matt Provencher, ASUCD senator, present

Selisa Romero, ASUCD senator, present

Rebecca Sterling, ASCUD senator, present

Alison Tanner, ASUCD senator, present

Adam Thongsavat, ASUCD senator, present

Liz Walz, ASUCD senator, present, left early

Farewell addresses

Former Senators Joel Juarez, Andre Lee, Don Ho, Bree Rombi, Levi Menovske and Abrham Castillo-Ruiz gave their farewell speeches.

Awards

Rombi received the Michael J. Tucker award.

Dana Percoco presented the Hottie Hot award to Juarez and Rombi.

Appointments and confirmations

Madelaine Sortano was confirmed director of Cal Aggie Camp.

Consideration of old legislation

Senate Bill 17 authored by Sergio Cano, co-authored by Lee and introduced by Rombi, to allow legislation to be readily available to commissioners, passed unanimously.

Senate Bill 18 authored by Ryan Fong, co-authored by Tanner, Allison Bollback and Dannielle Kimpel and introduced by Tanner, to allocate $27.00 from Senate Reserves to purchase six informational posters aimed at raising ASUCD awareness on campus, passed unanimously.

Senate Bill 21 authored by the Internal Affairs Commission, co-authored by Aaron Giampietro, Baxter Boeh-Sobon, Matthew Blair and Sabrina Dias and introduced by the Internal Affairs Commission (IAC), to allocate $2,398.00 from Capital Reserves to purchase two 21.5-inch iMacs for the Office of External Affairs, including University Affairs, City and County Affairs and Lobby Corps, passed unanimously.

Senate Bill 22 authored and introduced by the IAC and co-authored by Lee, to prevent commissions from voting on network or technological capital prior to approval by the Internet and Networking Committee, passed unanimously.

An urgent resolution authored by Cano, co-authored by Caitlin Alday, Josh Lovelace, Tanner and Thongsavat, introduced by Rombi, to oppose the 8 percent fee increase imposed by the UC Board of Regents, passed unanimously.

Approval of past meeting minutes

Approved

Meeting adjourned at 10:43 p.m.

AKSHAYA RAMANUJAM compiles the senate briefs. She can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.

Due to a recent survey conducted by UC Davis’ Fleet Services, the Davis-Berkeley afternoon shuttle will depart from Davis at a later time than the current 2:15 p.m. departure.

Of the approximately 1,000 people that participated in the survey, 62 percent of voters favored the latest departure option at 4 p.m. Fleet Services is following-up with a second survey that extends the departure time options into the early evening.

“We were trying to provide as many options as possible,” said Mark Robinson, bus operations supervisor for Fleet Services. “The second survey will narrow down the exact time frame that best suits our customers.”

The schedule change is anticipated to begin Jan. 1, Robinson said.

Furthermore, the morning shuttle’s departure at 7:30 a.m. will not be changed, as stated on the Fleet Services’ website.

Fleet Services began considering a schedule change to conserve resources and provide a better service, Robinson said. The budgetary deficit of the program itself obligates the service to be self-sufficient.

Currently, the shuttle makes two trips a day and transports about 15,000 riders each year, said Richard Battersby, director of Fleet Services, in an e-mail interview. The shuttle stops are located on Hutchison Road at the loading dock of Shields Library on the Davis campus and at the west gate entrance on West Crescent on the Berkeley campus.

Courtney Mullarkey, a sophomore environmental policy and planning major, takes the shuttle twice a month to visit friends at Berkeley.

“I would like a later return time,” Mullarkey said. “It would be more convenient just because it gives you more time to do whatever you want to do.”

– Martha Georgis

Despite the troubled economic times and the rise in public tuition, more students from other countries are making their way to the U.S. – and UC Davis – for an undergraduate degree.

According to a recent Open Doors survey by the Institute of International Education, the U.S. experienced a 3 percent increase of 690,923 international students. Along with the rest of the country, UC Davis experienced a 5 percent increase of 2,346 international students fall 2009.

“We’ve had a constant increase, but it’s been a slow growth over the years,” said Wesley Young, director of the Services for International Students and Scholars at UC Davis.

The survey reported China, India, South Korea, Canada and Taiwan as the top five countries to send students to the U.S. for higher education during the 2009-2010 school year. Together, those five nations make up 52 percent of all international students in the country. China alone had a 30 percent increase in enrollments.

Similarly, Young estimated that China contributes 35 percent of all the international degree-seeking students at UC Davis for fall 2010.

“In the last four, maybe five years, the U.S. has seen an increase in Chinese students coming for an undergraduate degree,” he said. “We have seen the same thing [at Davis].”

Young said the increase in China’s middle class combined with the growing demand for higher education and the lack of universities able to meet the demand in China, contributed to the growing number of Chinese undergraduates not only in the nation, but at Davis as well.

Emily Zhang, a junior economics major, decided to move to California from China to pursue her undergraduate degree.

“The first reason [for the move] was the quality of education in the U.S. and the second for diversity,” she said. “In the U.S. you can learn from a variety of cultures, and the students here are more active and more creative.”

The combination of the growing demand for higher education and greater financial capabilities has increased the opportunities for Chinese students.

“I would expect the number of Chinese undergraduates to grow in the future,” Young said.

Contrary to the number of students choosing to come to the U.S. to study, the number of American students deciding to study abroad has decreased in the last couple of years.

UC Davis also experienced fewer students deciding to study abroad last year.

“We attribute it mostly to the economy, but in large part to the increase in UC tuition,” said Zachary Frieders, assistant director of the Education Abroad Center (EAC).

However, the number of UC Davis students studying abroad in the 2009-2010 school year only decreased by 1.25 percent.

“The fact that we have more or less remained flat in our enrollment, given what has been going on, we actually see as a strong testament to the value of studying abroad,” Frieders said.

Even though UC Davis has experienced fewer students deciding to study abroad, more students are opting to travel to non-traditional countries.

“While Western Europe is by far the most popular destination, we have seen a growth in the non-traditional countries,” Frieders said. “We have seen a lot more interest in South America, the Middle East and Asian countries.”

Peru, South Korea and Chile are all examples of non-traditional countries that have experienced a growing interest from students, according to the Open Doors survey. The interest for these countries went up 32 percent, 29 percent and 28 percent in 2009-2010, respectively.

Nadine Custis, a senior international relations and Spanish double major, traveled to Chile in 2009.

“The main priority was to sharpen my Spanish skills and I felt like learning it in a classroom wasn’t sufficient for learning a language,” she said. “I chose Chile over other places because I didn’t think I would have the chance to go to South America later on in life.”

Custis was able to complete a good portion of her course work for her Spanish major while studying in Chile.

“In terms of academics it can be really practical,” she said. “Then the whole package of being somewhere else, being self-sufficient and having everything that is familiar just kind of stripped away really makes you think about who you are, what your goals are and where you’re going.”

The EAC offers several opportunities for students to study abroad. Taking your financial aid and studies on location is a worthwhile endeavor, Frieders said.

“Looking at jobs and grad school now, it’s not enough just to have a degree. Studying abroad is another part of your portfolio that can set you apart from other graduates,” he said.

Custis encourages other students to study abroad if possible.

“I think it’s an important part of your experience both as a college student and as a young person to have something like this, because after graduating from college, being able to contribute back to society is going to be based on more than what you learn in the classroom,” she said.

MICHELLE MURPHY can be reached at campus@theaggie.org.