On Oct. 9, 2024, the Associated Students of the University of California, Riverside (ASUCR) received an update from Vice President External Affairs (VPEA) Vivian Herrera from the last University of California Student Association (UCSA) board meeting.
The first update was on Basic Needs priorities across the UC schools. VPEA Herrera, explained that David Rubin at the UC Office of the President (UCOP) is well-educated on basic needs. During the board meeting it was announced that about 68% of UCR students are unhoused or food insecure. VPEA Herrera shared further statistics for other UC system schools and explained that a current goal is to have more professors add basic needs information to their syllabi to increase awareness of programs such as CalFresh.
In addition to basic needs for food, housing policy was also discussed. VPEA Herrera explained that first-year students no longer have priority housing, which makes it difficult for students to manage other basic needs such as food. Students who are already facing food insecurity tend to struggle more with finding affordable housing than those who are not food insecure.
The College of Humanities, Arts, & Social Sciences (CHASS) Senator Tuifua opened the discussion on housing by bringing up the current lawsuit UCR is facing from the City of Riverside. UCR is being sued for the rapid increase in construction causing air, noise, and sound pollution, as well as other issues. VPEA Herrera expressed interest in learning more about the problems students face and the reasoning behind rent pricing.
The final topic covered in the UCSA meeting was ethnic studies education for high school students. The plan is separated into two areas, A-G and H. The A-G plan is meant to educate students on unbiased history and have an understanding of ethnic studies prior to coming to college. Some districts have already moved to have programs such as these. It has been seen that ethnic minority students come disengaged when they are not being represented in content they are learning about. This group of students also happens to be the most marginalized due to housing crises and food insecurity, making them more likely to have lower grade point averages (GPA) due to lack of basic needs as well as lack of diverse education.
Area H covers ethnic studies courses that are directly commenting on racism. VPEA Herrera went through a brief summary of the history leading up to the A-G/H education concept, and also expressed that the next steps are having President Drake sign off after it is approved by the Academic Council and UC Regents.
The Senate meeting concluded with School of Public Policy Senator Jimenez explaining the three committees she joined and President Pro-Tempore Haidar explaining her bill on health care products and resources being more available on campus. She is also working on creating a graphic to make writing and proposing legislation easier for both senators and the general public.
During Ex-Officio Reports, Vice President of Marketing and Promotions Ashley Estrella ratified her staff positions for Head of Staff and three Photographers and Videographers with a 12-0-0 vote. The Executive Vice President Naia Pizzaro ratified a Senate Parliamentarian and Head of Staff with a vote of 12-0-0.
CHASS Senator Carter Anderson, CHASS Senator Nathan Baw, CHASS Senator Ryan Jun-Min Choi, College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences Senator Mitchell Wei and School of Education Senator Adam Ramirez were not present at this senate meeting.
