On Oct. 28, the Associated Students of the University of California, Riverside (ASUCR) began their weekly Senate Meeting at 7:02 p.m. and concluded at 8:41 p.m.
In New Business, Executive Director Asha Nettles delivered a Fall Quarter Report regarding ASUCR operations. She disclosed that their office is fully staffed, explained the different professional staff’s duties and announced the launch of their R’Booth, or R’Professional Photo Booth, service.
The senate then heard State of the Association (SOTA) reports from the Office of the President, the Office of Internal Affairs, the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) as well as the Office of Marketing and Promotions.
While presenting her SOTA report, President Mia Tu’ifua discussed multiple potential upcoming changes to campus operations. Among these being plans to implement a new orientation model, potential expansions of the HUB and Costo Hall and further developments to the Bannockburn property once the existing structures are demolished. Feasibility surveys for some of these items are estimated to be released to the public for feedback around December.
Tu’ifua also discussed two upcoming meetings she will attend, one with the Board of Regents from Nov. 17 to 18 and another being a summit for the UC Office of the President (UCOP) from Nov. 19 to 20.
At the Board of Regents meeting they will discuss a proposal from the Housing Advisory Committee to construct a North District three to accommodate a goal student population growth of 35,000 students by 2035 and the campus’s first vertical parking structure — which would be around four to five levels tall.
At the UCOP summit the council of presidents from all University of California (UC) undergraduate campuses and UC President James Milliken will discuss ways to restore trust in higher education, including institutionalizing funding for basic needs services and considering the return of SAT and ACT tests as a requirement to apply to UC campuses. The council will also consider amending UC policy to address AI usage, cyber security concerns following last year’s national Canvas hack and deliberate what the UC can provide regarding immigration and legal council.
In Committee Reports, the senate reviewed resolutions SR-F26-002, or “Resolution to Adopt the 2026-2027 ASUCR Policy Agenda and SB-F26-003, or ASUCR Resolution in Solidarity with UC-AFT and In Support of Arts and Humanities Education.
Presented by Nettles, SR-F26-002 solidified what the senators’ roles required as well as their powers in office among other items. The resolution passed unanimously.
Co-written by College of the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences senators Nathan Boylan-Boisvert, Gen Yang Lin and Gaby Vasquez SR-F26-003, which is written in the ASUCR senate meeting agenda as a bill but reported as a resolution, aimed to vocalize support for the University Council American Federation of Teachers (UC-AFT) efforts to bargain with the UC for worker protections. The resolution was also passed unanimously.
