This year's elections were a success! Graduate students have elected a new executive board to serve as your Graduate Students Association (GSA) representatives for the 2013-14 academic year. The elections also featured four fee items on the ballot. Below are the results of this year's elections.
In addition, at the upcoming June 4 GSA General Assembly meeting, the GSA will hold a special election for the vacant external affairs position. If you or anyone you know is interested in running for GSA VP of external affairs, please feel free to send their nominations, or questions about the position, to gsapresident.ucsb@gmail.com.
GSA Executive Officers Election Results:
President, Gary Haddow (Education)
VP, Internal Affairs, Emma Levine (Music)
VP, External Affairs, (Vacant)
VP, Committees & Planning, Dusty Hoesly (Religious Studies)
VP, Student Affairs, Jaycee Bigham (Education)
VP, Academic Affairs, Marcel Brousseau (Comparative Literature)
VP, Communications, Ester Trujillo (Chicana/o Studies)
In addition to the GSA executive officer elections, there were four fee initiatives. All four of the initiatives passed for reaffirmation, beginning fall 2013. The descriptions of the fees are listed below:
1) Night and Weekend Parking (last reaffirmed in 2011, on a 2-year reaffirmation schedule)
The first reaffirmation on the ballot asked if graduate students wished to continue a $5 (includes return to financial aid of $0.42) per graduate student per quarter, (excluding summer) mandatory fee to fund annual Nights & Weekend parking passes for all graduate students. The fee will be collected starting fall 2013 through spring 2015 and be subject to reaffirmation in spring 2015. This sticker comes in handy for those late-night reading, writing, or grading sessions.
2) Student Medical Emergency Relief Fund (last reaffirmed in 2009, on a 4-year reaffirmation cycle)
The second reaffirmation on the ballot asked if graduate students wished to continue an $0.89 per student per quarter, including summer, mandatory fee in order to provide funding for the Student Medical Emergency Relief Fund (SMERF), which will continue to fund grants for students who are not able to cover the costs of medical procedures. The fee will be collected starting fall 2013 through summer 2017, and be subject to reaffirmation in spring 2017. Some of the many services that the SMERF fund covers are dental and medical costs.
New Fee Proposals
1) Health & Wellness Programs (H&W): The first fee proposal asked if graduate students wished to pay an additional fee (per student, per quarter): $7.53 (including summer), $5.65 is for Health and Wellness, $1.88 is for return to aid. Of the $5.65 for Health and Wellness, a 7 to 10 percent administrative assessment and a 1.6 to 3 percent UCOP assessment will be charged on all non-capital expenditures. If affirmed, the fee will be collected fall 2013 through summer 2017 and be subject to reaffirmation in 2017.
The fee will provide funds to continue and expand Health and Wellness services. Health and Wellness will expand its selection of resources (such as condoms, healthy food, massages, and field trips) at no additional cost to students. The fee will also increase student involvement through internships, increased staff, and Health and Wellness education on topics such as sex and relationships, healthy eating, drugs, stress-reduction techniques, and wellness. The goal at Health and Wellness is to help students be physically and emotionally healthier and this fee will enable them to provide outreach and prevention efforts to reach more UCSB students.
2.) Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity (WGSE): The second fee proposal asked if graduate students wished to pay an additional fee (per student, per quarter): $4.14 (including summer), $3.11 is for WGSE, $1.03 is for return to aid. Of the $3.11 for WGSE, a 7 to 10 percent administrative assessment and a 1.6 to 3 percent UCOP assessment will be charged on all non-capital expenditures. Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity currently collects $4.25 per undergraduate and graduate student per quarter (including summer). The WGSE fee increase would be in addition to the $4.25 per student per quarter currently collected, and would bring the total to $8.39 per student per quarter. If affirmed, the fee will be collected fall 2013 through summer 2017 and be subject to reaffirmation in 2017.
The Women, Gender, and Sexual Equity support fee will help maintain staff and programs including Campus Advocacy Resources and Education (formerly the Rape Prevention Education Program), Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Resources, Women's Center Programming, and Non-Traditional Student Services. The support fee will maintain the public spaces within the Women’s Center, Resource Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity, and Non-Traditional Student Resource Center (e.g., libraries, art galleries, meeting rooms) through the addition of new technology, library acquisitions, art gallery resources, and replacement of aging equipment. It will also help to improve current WGSE programs and services such as 1) the Campus Advocacy Resources and Education; 2) help for individuals in crisis; 3) support for lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender/intersex/ally communities; 4) student-initiated activities and events; 5) student employment opportunities; 6) student internships; and 7) educational programming.