GRADUATE ASSEMBLY MEETING

September 5, 1999

SAY OF THE MEETING Went through introductions of Delegates, Officers, and staff.

• Heard reports from the Business Director and Officers. • Heard a report from the Executive Committee on GA salaries and

approved a recommendation to reimburse the External Affairs VP for travel expenses to a UCSA meeting.

• Approved up to $2,500 for the purchase of a computer to do online budgeting.

• Considered GA appointments to the Store Operations Board and the Police Review Board, and postponed a vote until the October meeting.

• Reconfirmed GA staff, including Shih Chang, Communications Coordinator; Hatem Bazian, Co-Coordinator, Graduate Minority Students' Project; and Suzanne Baker, Departmental Liaison. Confirmed GA staff, including Jillian Sandell, Graduate Women's Project Coordinator; and Adrian Mcintyre, Educational Improvement Grants Project Coordinator.

• Discussed GA committees, including the Funding Committee, the EIGP Committee, the Finance Committee, the Affirmative Action Committee, and the Editorial Committee.

• Approved Grad Events funding requests. • Discussed events for the GA's 30th Anniversary celebration. • Approved Andrew Flores as Funding Committee Chair. • Heard an introduction on the UC Student Association. Discussed

proposed UCSA Charter amendments and rejected an amendment to the UCSA Charter.

• Created an unpaid position, Campus Office Director, to work with the External Affairs VP.

• Approved the UCSA Action Agenda for the year.

This regular meeting of the Graduate Assembly, commencing Fall Semester, was called to order by David Friedman at 5:40 p.m. in the ASUC Senate Chamber. Mr. Friedman introduced himself as President of the GA. He's a

third-year student at Boalt and also went to Cal as an undergraduate, making this his seventh year at Cal. Eli Ilano introduced himself as External Affairs Vice President. This was his second year at Berkeley, having previously worked in Georgia in environment. Delegates introduced themselves. Mr. Friedman said they would pass around Delegate sign-up sheets. People can fill out the information and indicate if they've been approved by their Associations at that time. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA I Mr. Friedman said any Delegate can request to have something added to the agenda or write their own Resolutions. Ideally, they should get items into the GA before the meeting, but if not, they can be distributed later. Mr. Davis asked when new business can be introduced. Mr. Friedman said they could add items during New Business. A motion to approve the agenda was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE AGENDA PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Ms. Baker said Delegates were supposed to hand in Delegate Certification forms. If they or their Graduate Assistant don't have them, she brought extra copies. She would ask Delegates to drop them off at the GA, Anthony Hall, or to bring them to the next GA meeting. Mr. Casner asked if they have to be recertified if they were a Delegate last year. Ms. Miller said she believed they did. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES Mr. Friedman said everybody should have received a copy of the minutes from the May meeting. A motion to approve was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE MAY 6, 1999 MEETING PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Mr. Ilano noted that the GA operates under Robert's Rules. Mr. Friedman said he wanted to introduce Nzingha Dugas, the Graduate Assembly's Business Director, who directs the office, does finances for the GA, and is a wealth of information. Mr. Friedman said the job of Delegates is to attend GA meetings, held the first

Thursday of every month, starting at 5:30 and usually lasting an hour and a half, sometimes two hours. They have food as a lure. The goal is for Delegates to disseminate information to their departments that the GA gets and to get information to the GA from departments, and to vote on such things as fees or things going on in their departments. This is a chance to work for the collective body of grads, who are solitary at times. The GA is a chance to get together and fix things for the entire grad student body. He asked if people have any questions about what they're supposed to. They should give Delegate Certification forms to Ms. Baker. ANNOUNCEMENTS Mr. Friedman said this is a chance for Delegates to announce things going on in their departments that others might be interested in. Somebody was to have talked about campus publications and problems with space allocation, but wasn't present. Mr. Friedman said he wanted to make sure everybody knew about the Class Pass. Last year the student body voted a fee of $18 a semester for free AC Transit. To use this, they must get a sticker, and the Department of Transportation has a Web site with information on the various locations where they can pick the stickers up. If people don't get it, they're wasting $18. Ms. Miller asked how many people were not aware of the Class Pass, and noted that one person raised their hand. REPORTS Report from the Business Director Ms. Dugas said she distributed hand-outs of her report as well as the budget the GA approved in May. The GA's finances are in pretty good standing, with a surplus. The GA still has two open positions they're interviewing for, and they're in the last round. One position is the Graduate Advocate Services Coordinator, who would advocate for issues of concern to grad students. The position finds resources or helps grads with problems, such as with issues of plagiarism or other problems. The Graduate Advocate would also support the GA in its Advocacy Agenda. The position is for 15 to 20 hours a week, as are most of the positions. If people have a fellowship and are concerned about filling such positions, they could e-mail her or give her a call. The 15 to 20 hours is not necessarily in the office, and there's a lot of flexibility. If people are interested in advocacy work, they'll be interviewing for this in the next couple of weeks. Another open position is the Graduate Minority Students

Project Co-Coordinator, a similar position for a resource person, for 8 to 10 hours a week. They're still interviewing for this position as well. Ms. Dugas asked how many people were there last year. She said Mr. Friedman will probably go more into the ASUC Auxiliary and said a new Auxiliary Director has been hired, which is connected to the ASUC. Events coming up include GRE Preparation Workshops, a Women's Resource Fair, and in October, the GA's 30th Anniversary celebration. Ms. Dugas said she was there to be a resource person for people. If they have any questions, suggestions, ideas, or thoughts, they should feel free to e-mail her. She tries to get back as soon as possible. The GA has six grant programs. She could answer questions people might have. Report from the President Mr. Friedman said he distributed a written report. Funding is a really big issue. The GA has over $100,000 in its surplus. The GA gives out grants for weekly grad student meetings, one-time lectures, speaker series, community service, and minority grants. The GA can hand out a lot of money to groups that have great ideas and a need for funds. A surplus has been built up because people haven't been applying as much as they should, so he would ask Delegates to please spread the word that the GA has funds available to groups in their departments. Hopefully, the Student Store will also provide money that's supposed to go back to the support of student groups. The Store hasn't shown a profit for the past ten years and the GA has to make sure that grads see profits when they occur, since the undergrad Senate is currently technically in charge of where those profits go. Store profits are expected in about six months. Mr. Friedman said he would also like to mention a fee issue that that wasnt in his written report. He'd like to have a discussion about it next month, and it's important for Delegates to start talking about this in their departments to see what the feeling is. A new fee is being proposed to support a revamped RSF, to start out at about $65 a semester. That hasn't really occurred since it was built in 1984, he believed. This new fee would also help support women's athletics on campus. Over time, the fee would increase to a range of about $110 a semester. So it's a substantial fee. He hoped to have a presentation on this at next month's meeting. All students will vote on this fee in November. If it's approved by 51% of the vote, with 20% of the population voting, everybody would have to pay it. Like all fees on campus, one-third of the total goes back

to financial aid as an offset. Delegates need to start thinking about this and if the GA wants to take a position on it. At the very least, grad students should vote since it will have a substantial impact on them, especially Ph.D. students who are there longer. Mr. Davis asked if two views of the proposed fee could be presented, not just a presentation from the Administration. Mr. Friedman said that would be the goal. He wasn't sure if there was a coalition of people against it, but he'd be happy to talk about the negatives involved. It would be a fair presentation. A Delegate asked if it would be possible to invite the Student Regent to attend in order to discuss the proposed fee increase, against the backdrop of the overall budget. Mr. Friedman said he didn't think that would be a problem. They're very fortunate in having the Student Regent on campus. There's one Student Regent, Michelle Pannor, for the entire 170,000 students at all nine UC campuses, and she's an undergrad at Berkeley. They'll see if she could attend. Report from the External Affairs Vice President Reporting as the External Affairs Vice President, Mr. Ilano said he didn't type up a written report. He is responsible for things of interest to the GA that occur outside the University, including Systemwide issues, the State Legislature, and the City of Berkeley. A lot happened over the summer that Delegates should know about. He'd start out with some victories. UCLA proposed having differential fees for students in City Planning and Public Policy. This fee would have also been imposed at Berkeley, since these are the only schools with those programs, which are the same. Before the proposal got very far, students formed a small group, lobbied their departments, and got support to oppose this change. The author of the proposal, a dean at UCLA, tabled the proposal indefinitely. Also, students may have noticed they're paying lower fees that year. That's due in part to lobbying efforts by the UC Student Association and Berkeley students. There was a 5% fee rollback that year, which represents $95. This was amazing because as an undergrad in the huge budget crisis in the early '90s, fees looked like they'd never stop going up. For fees to go down is unheard of around the country, so he thought this was exciting. The Legislature is willing to work with students on things around fee issues. The Legislature in the past has been somewhat unwilling to work contrary to the Regents and impose its influence on the Regents. So students are exploring new territory with the State Legislature, which is very exciting. Mr. Ilano said another thing that happened is a court decision that UC Riverside

brought against the Regents involving the use of fees. The Smith Decision said students could not spend mandatory fees on political or ideological activities. That decision was somewhat re-interpreted so that now, for the first time in five years, he believed, students can actually spend mandatory fees on political and ideological activities, Which means they can go back to Sacramento and work with the Legislature. Mr. Ilano said the final point on victories they've had is that there's been some legislation students supported that the Legislature approved. One item gives Cal State students the same model of student presence, although not representation, on the Cal State Board of Trustees as UC students have on the Board of Regents. That was signed into law by the Governor. Mr. Ilano said that day a piece of legislation was vetoed by Gov, Davis that would have provided voter registration material to all new students and would have made this material easily available at central campus locations. The bill was approved by the Legislature and students lobbied for it heavily, but the Governor vetoed it. He has not yet issued a press release explaining the veto, but the rumor is that it wasn't strong enough. So the matter will go back to the Legislature. The veto was a surprise to a lot of people. There's already a federal mandate that schools receiving financial aid have to do this anyway, and the bill would have put that into State law. Mr. Ilano said he'll have more to talk about under the UCSA items on the agenda. Report from the Academic Affairs Vice President Reporting as the Academic Affairs Vice President, Ms. Miller said a list of Academic Senate Committee openings not yet filled was distributed. She would really appreciate it if Delegates go to their departments and encourage people to submit an application for these openings. The application is online and is very simple. And she would encourage Delegates to also participate in these committees. They don't take too much time and really provide an impact for students on campus, Ms. Baker said Graduate Assistants should have received a list of the openings and forwarded them. Ms. Miller noted that she was on the committee that selected the ASUC Auxiliary Director, who is already in place. Mr. Davis asked what powers the committees have. Ms. Miller said each committee is different. Chancellor's committees deal more with administrative policy and Academic Senate committees deal with professors and how students are treated. Some committees meet monthly and some meet weekly, and that information is on the GA's Web page.

Report from Graduate Council Representatives Mr. Friedman asked if there was a Grad Council representative present. Mr. Casner said he hasn't been to a meeting and said the Grad Council was just starting. He was elected with other reps last semester. This committee includes faculty and administrators and is a policy-making body that has actual decision-making authority over certain aspects of graduate standards and the educational environment. Ms. Miller said that included in the agenda packet was a half-sheet on new GA resources. She wanted to make sure that grads know what the GA offers. They've set up a grad student e-mail list that anybody can subscribe to. Also, there's been a bombardment of housing announcements, so they set up a "tradepost" Web page on the GA site, where people can post announcements for housing availability or things for sale. It will mostly be accessed by grads. Report from the Executive Committee Reporting for the Executive Committee, Mr. Friedman said the GA's Executive Committee is composed of the three Officers and some people elected last May. Their job is to make tentative or final decisions when the Delegates aren't meeting. One thing the Executive Committee was directed to do last May was to come up with a report on GA salaries. Executive Officers of the GA are paid, as are staff. A Delegate was concerned last year that the reason not many people ran for GA office was because salaries weren't competitive with teaching jobs. People usually choose to either be an Officer or teach as a GSI. Delegates wanted the Executive Committee to look into that and come back with some recommendations. The Executive Committee discussed this and a lot of issues are tied in. There's no clear guidelines about how many hours Executive Officers have to work, so thought needs to go into what they expect from GA Officers. One possibility is to tie salaries to time worked. The GA also has to consider its budget. If they get more money from the Store, perhaps they can use that to help pay Officers better. Finally, there was a question as to whether salary was the main reason people were not running for GA office. Since the GA won't hold elections again until May, the Executive Committee decided to think about these issues over the next few months, hear what people think, and try to drum up support for people to run for office, and perhaps disseminate information on what the jobs entail.

Currently, GA Officers are are the highest paid Officers in the entire UC System, so a lot of people are hesitant about raising salaries. but this is something the GA could talk over in the next few months, and there was no real need to do anything at that time. Mr. Friedman said the other thing the Executive Committee did was to tentatively approve funds to reimburse Mr. Ilano for travel to UC Student Association meetings for him and other grads who attended with him. The Executive Committee recommends that the GA reimburse Mr. Ilano $1,200 for expenses in flying to San Diego. Mr. Ilano said this was the first UCSA Student Congress, which brought grads and undergrads from all UC schools together, to put together an agenda for the UCSA to work on that year. Each school had a number of voting delegate based on the number of students enrolled at the school. The GA took four people to the Congress, which was an unexpected expense and wasn't in the budget. The Executive Committee can only authorize up to $500 in expenses, so the GA had to make the decision. Mr. Friedman called for a motion to approve the reimbursement. It was so moved and seconded. THE MOTION TO REIMBURSE MR. ILANO FOR $1,200 FOR TRAVEL TO AND FROM THE UCSA STUDENT CONGRESS IN SAN DIEGO, TO COME FROM THE GA's SURPLUS, PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. ONLINE BUDGETING Mr. Friedman said that because the GA budget was so big, they've gotten to the point where staff wants to online budgeting, which would make the office much more efficient. This would be for all the grants the GA gives, to help make life a little easier. Unfortunately, while they've upgraded most of their computers last year from the Apple/Mac classics, they need one more computer purchase to hold them over for the next few years and allow staff to do online budgeting. Mac gurus tell him they could get a computer that would enable staff to do this for about $2,500. That would also come out of the GA's surplus. This was a question of efficiency and helping the GA work with the ASUC Auxiliary a lot better if they purchase that computer. Mr. Moss asked if money in their surplus could be saved for next year. Mr. Friedman said it runs over from year to year. This is somewhat of a contentious issue because people see this money sitting around and there's concern that it's not being spent. It's been collected over the years from grads paying $10.50 a semester. It would be nice to spend the amount they collect each year and not

just have it accumulate. Ms. Dugas said they haven't closed last year's books completely yet because the system changed, but there will be an addition to the $138,000 surplus of about $15-20,000. Mr. Friedman said the GA will also be getting money from the ASUC Store. The ASUC Auxiliary runs the Store and vending machines on campus. It also has a ski lodge in Donner that loses $30,000 a year. It only costs $15 a night, so during the ski season people can stay in the cabin at Donner. The ASUC has been trying to sell it, unsuccessfully. The Auxiliary also runs the Bear's Lair, which will soon be renovated. So there's a lot of money to be added to their budget from the Auxiliary. Mr. Bach asked if the budget surplus is in a bank. Mr. Friedman said it is. Mr. Casner asked when they'll get the final report as to what's going on with the Bear's Lair. Mr. Friedman said he could give that report. A Delegate asked what they would be getting for the $2,500 computer. 1W. Chang said it will be an Apple system. The rest of the office is all Apple, and they need something that runs Peachtree. It's either an iMac or a G4, the only machines sold to departments these days. A motion to approve a computer purchase for online budgeting, $2,500, was made and seconded. Mr. Friedman said they'll try to get the machine for less than that amount. THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE PURCHASE OF A COMPUTER FOR ONLINE BUDGETING, FOR $2,500, FROM THE GA's SURPLUS, PASSED UNANIMOUSLY BY VOICE-VOTE. COMMITTEE APPROVALS Mr. Friedman said he would have to leave the meeting at 7 o'clock because the ASUC Auxiliary was meeting at that time to discuss what will happen with the Bear's Lair. The GA's meeting could be over by then, but since as this was their first meeting it might go until 7:30. The Bear's Lair hasn't been renovated for a while, and the stores located there are on month-to-month leases. The Store Operations Board put out an RFP for a master landlord to come in and decide what type of food stores to have there, such as In and Out, and will consider all sorts of other recommendations, such as whether or not to have franchises. Companies submitting bids will also have to provide a huge capital investment to make the area look better, and the lessee would need to redo the patio area. The Board meeting he was going to will hear proposals from people submitting proposals.

Regarding the debt the ASUC has to the University, it will be paid off in December, he believed, or January. Once the debt is paid, any profits are supposed to go to the ASUC and the GA. Also, a portion of the fees that all grad students were paying used to go to undergrads. But that money is now flowing in to the GA. So their surplus will grow unless they start spending the money in wise ways. Approval of the GA Representative to the Police Review Board Mr. Friedman said that since he was a member of the Police Review Board, he needs to be reapproved for the position for that year, so he would turn the Chair over to Mr. Ilano. They're fortunate on that campus to have a citizen review board for the UC Police. When there's a complaint filed by a citizen, a student or a member of the Berkeley community against the UCPD, they first file a complaint with the UCPD. If the person is unhappy with the internal process and the decision, they can then appeal to the PRB. It's comprised of one grad rep, one undergrad rep, three faculty members, and two staff. This body resulted from Sproul Hall affirmative action protests where instances of alleged police misconduct occurred. The UCPD's Internal Affairs Department found the police operated correctly, while the PRB found that unjustified force was used. The question is now in the hands of the Vice Chancellor to decide who he agrees with; and he tentatively agreed with the Internal Affairs Department. The Police Review Board has been revamping its structure to give it more authority. It lays dormant until there's a big protest and will then get cast in the limelight. But because it's usually been inactive, people don't know what to do. He would like to sit on the PRB for one more year. It's something of a two-year appointment since the PRB would like continuity. While the PRB is changing its procedures, appointments are currently only for one year at a time. A Delegate asked if the FRB was still governed by a code of silence. Mr. Friedman said it was, with regard to police officers. He couldn't name police officers but could discuss what the Board does. It's governed by silence because California law prohibits disclosing the names of police officers who have complaints filed against them and they're protected by personnel laws. Mr. Prudencio asked if this opening was raised last year, to give people time to consider being part of the PRB. Mr. Friedman said it was unclear how people were nominated before. If others want to run, he could wait a month before seeking reconfirmation since a recommendations has not been forwarded yet. They are trying to go for continuity, which was a main reason he was still on

the Board. The PRB wants him for another year to see this through. It was probably a better idea to wait a month, and Vice Chancellor Mitchell could wait another month and they could see if anybody else was interested. Mr. Prudencio said that waiting a month would give people a chance to learn more about it. Ms. Miller said she could add this to the list of open positions that people could apply for. Approval of GA Representatives to the Store Operations Board Mr. Friedman said that Ben Dahl has been the GA's representative on the Store Operations Board and would need to be reapproved. They could see if people would like to sit on the Auxiliary and could approve this next month. The Store Operations Board is the Committee that helps run the ASUC Auxiliary. It's sort of Tom Cordi's boss and sets policy for the Auxiliary. It has one grad student, the President, and one grad the GA names to it. Ben Dahl is on the Board and was currently at the SOB meeting that was mentioned earlier. If anybody was interested, they could attend next month's meeting for an election. STAFF CONFIRMATIONS Mr. Friedman said the GA needs to approve its staff in order for them to get paid. Officers have selected these people over the past few years, and they've been working throughout the summer. He would like to introduce Shi Chang, the GA`s Communication Director. He's in charge of the GA's Web site, the GA newsletter, and aids grad student communication. Mr. Chang introduced himself and said he was a thirdyear student in English, teaching Ethnic Studies. He included a short report in the agenda packet. They want to get the GA's message out in as many ways as they can, through traditional print and otherwise. He passed along a summer edition of the grad newsletter which will hopefully give people a background an what the GA does and its different projects and grants. The newsletter is to keep grads in the loop. If people have any questions they can contact the GA. They all have scheduled hours, so people can drop in at those times or send an e-mail. Ms. Dugas said the GA was actually approving the positions. Every May the GA usually votes to continue people in these positions for another year, but last May's meeting ran over, so they didn't get to this. She could only extend people's contracts through the summer until the Delegates have an opportunity to come back in September and approve them. Mr. Friedman said the motion would be to approve the positions, which come with a salary.

Mr. Davis asked having notices on recycled paper. Mr. Chang said they do that. They use what the vendor has available at the cheapest price and they make sure vendors use recycled paper. Mr. Beck asked where the newsletter is circulated. Mr. Chang said it's sent to every department with a graduate of professional school. Departments are told to make it available where students gather and copies are usually right beside the campus' own graduate newsletter. They generally send 20 to 25 copies, and people can request more. Mr. Davis asked if they have any idea how many people read it. Mr. Chang said they print 4,000 copies, and there are 9,000 grads on campus. All international students receive a copy. Mr. Friedman called for and other discussion. A motion to approve was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO RECONFIRM SHIN CHANG AS THE GA COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Mr. Chang said he'd like to thank them. Mr. Friedman said that Hatem Bazian was up for reconfirmation as the Graduate Minority Students' Project Co-Coordinator. He was President of the GA several years ago and has been working an a number of issues. He produced "The Graduate Diversity Handbook" that was sent to departments last year. They need a motion to approve his position. Ms. Dugas said this is for 20 hours a week. Mr. Davis asked what Mr. Bazian plans to do in the position. Mr. Ilano said the position tries to increase diversity among grads. The "Diversity In Excellence" booklet is Mr. Bazian's work, and he also does the Minority Student Orientation. That month he's running a GRE prep class that's highly discounted, $50 as opposed to $265, for undergrads thinking of grad school. In the wake of some of the recent trends in the State, this position has become even more important in recruiting and keeping a diverse grad student population. Mr. Bazian doesn't just do outreach to ethnically underrepresented students, but to parent students, women, and the whole range, primarily minorities. Ms. Dugas said this year is the GA's 30th Anniversary, coming out of a strong sense of activism and grads having a voice. Mr. Bazian will sponsor an activism conference. He also puts on the GRE prep courses, a subsidized class given right before GREs. He also does grad student receptions and an orientation. Another event he works on, with the Administration, is Graduate

Spring Visit Day, for people interested in coming to Berkeley. Grads participate and give reasons why to attend Berkeley. He also holds lecture series and publishes handbooks and journals. Mr. Friedman said Mr. Bazian has been on the job for three years. Ms. Dugas said he's been in the GA for four or five years. This might be his last year since he's getting a Ph.D. Mr. Davis said he sees boxes of paper that have been distributed and there's a point at which it's effective and there's too much. Perhaps they could think of something other than a booklet, which he receives all a ay. Ms. Dugas said some of those booklets are extremely popular, such as "Diversity In Excellence" and earning to Teach," last published in the early '90s. Not everybody has access to the Net. The GA does its best to make sure they recycle and use recycled paper, although they could always do better. A Delegate said perhaps the GA could publish booklets on Adobe Acrobat. Mr. Chang said all this literature is online, and is available on disk and CD. Mr. Davis said he wasn't just talking about recycling, but have wisdom in a booklet may not be effective. Mr. Casner said he thought they could trust people they're nominating for the positions to be aware of those issues and responsible. Mr. Friedman said they also attend GA meetings, which is the time to give direction or advice. Mr. Chang said that if Delegates receive too many copies or not enough, they should let the GA know. Mr. Friedman said he would encourage people to look at the "Diversity In Excellence" booklet. It's in Anthony Hall, with the big pelican in front of it, across from Barrows. There's also lots of other literature available there if people want to look. Ms. Dugas said that on the back of her report there's a who's who list if people have particular comments to make they can e-mail each Project Coordinator directly and express their concerns. A motion to reconfirm Hatem Bazian was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO RECONFIRM HATEM BAZIAN AS THE CO-COORDINATOR OF THE GRADUATE MINORITY STUDENTS' PROJECT, PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Mr. Friedman said the next staffperson to confirm is Suzanne Baker, Departmental Liaison. Without her, the meetings wouldn't run as well. She's responsible for disseminating all the information that comes through the GA and is a resource for Delegates. When she first joined the GA they didn't this position filled, and things were a mess in terms of knowing what was going on and getting information back and forth to Delegates.

Ms. Baker said she wouldn't wasted people's time with a spiel. Mr. Friedman called for any questions. A motion to approve was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO RECONFIRM SUZANNE BAKER AS THE DEPARTMENT LIAISON PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Mr. Friedman he'd like to congratulate her. Mr. Friedman said the GA has hired two new people. One is the Graduate Women's Project Coordinator, Jillian Sandell, a position Ms. Miller held last year. This position puts on a very large conference in the spring. Last year it featured Jocelyn Elders and was incredibly well attended. The position does other things as well. Ms. Sandell said she was a Delegate last year so she was familiar with the GA. There will be the Women's Resource Conference, the Empowering Women of Color Conference, speaker series, a women's network, and a variety of other services for women grads on campus that will be coordinated out of the GA. I A Delegate asked about the women's network. Mr. Friedman said women across campus work together socially and intellectually, and exchange support and might have visiting speakers across departments. It's a way to network outside one's own enclave, especially in departments where women are underrepresented. Ms. Dugas said that if people are interested they could send Ms. Sandell an e-mail. Ms. Sandell said people will get an e-mail for women interested in being part of the network. I A motion to approve was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO APPROVE JILLIAN SANDELL AS GRADUATE WOMEN'S PROJECT COORDINATOR PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. A Delegate asked if there was a men's network. Mr. Friedman said there wasn't, as far as he knew. Ms. Dugas said that Adrian McIntyre was just selected as Educational Improvement Grants Project Coordinator and they've just started training for the position. This Project gives out grants and is basically an administrative position. The Coordinator pulls together the EIGP Committee, which reviews grants, makes recommendations, and then implements the grant process. Ms. Dugas said all these staffmembers will be present at the next GA meeting. Mr. Casner said he was on the EIGP Committee last year that approved these grants and the things that came through were quite interesting. If people are interested in initiatives that promote scholarship on campus in innovative ways,

it's an interesting Committee. Ms. Dugas said Mr. McIntyre was one of eight applicants they interviewed for the position, the most they've had for any position. A motion to approve was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO APPROVE ADRIAN McINTYRE AS THE EDUCATIONAL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS PROJECT COORDINATOR PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. GA COMMITTEES

Mr. Friedman said the GA has committees and a sign-up sheet would be passed around. The Educational Improvement Grants Project Committee is needed to help approve funding decisions. Other committees will be introduced. Mr. Ilano said committees are ways Delegates can get more actively involved. Since this is the first meeting, and they have no official orientation, new Delegates will find that things will become clearer in the future, and that the GA does more than just approve people. Mr. Friedman said the GA discusses and takes positions on things that come out of these committees, such as fee hikes. People may have seen an e-mail that summer about the proposed RSF fee. The GA is working with a grad student to discuss this. These are things Delegates can hopefully make an impact on. Mr. Davis asked why there were so many committees. Mr. Friedman said they were talking about GA committees at that point. They have also discussed University committees that evening. Ms. Miller said the committees include University-wide committees and GA committees. Each committee has a different purpose. They allow grads to have an impact in such areas as libraries or University extension. Without this representation, there would be no grad input. Mr. Friedman said a few years ago the main campus Library was deciding whether or not to close some libraries, and through the Library Committee, the ASUC, and the GA, a few libraries were actually not closed. So they had an impact. A Delegate asked if signing up for GA committees was entirely different than campus committees. Ms. Dugas said GA committees help the GA operate and are very important, particularly the first three listed, the Funding Committee, the EIGP Committee, and the Finance Committee. These Committees determine here money goes from student fees. Without Delegates on these committees the GA can't give out awards in a timely manner. Part of being a Delegate means that they also serve on a committee. The Funding Committee meets once a

month for about an hour, if people have looked at the funding applications and are prepared. It looks at an average of 15 to 20 short applications, determines how much to fund student organizations that apply, and makes a recommendation to the GA. So it's very important. If a committee is not in place, the question comes to the GA, so committees shorten the work the GA does. The GA also has new grant programs. The Chair of the Funding Committee is paid a stipend each semester, $450, as an incentive to get the position filled. Because of new grant programs, the Chair of the Funding Committee will have to do a little more work. Ms. Dugas said the Educational Improvement Grants Project Committee is very interesting. The GA gets money from Student Life and Educational Development to pay for these grants. This Committee needs Delegates. Without it the matter goes back to the GA or the Executive Committee. The Finance Committee is rarely active, but she was encouraging it to form, since the GA is dealing with a lot of money, and it would be helpful to have recommendations from the Finance Committee to the Executive Committee on services they want to offer their colleagues. A Delegate asked if the Finance Committee deals with finance or investment. Ms. Dugas said it was neither, since the GA is a nonprofit. Mr. Friedman said money they have is from a surplus. There's very lit 0_ tle the GA can do with it and it has to sit in a bank account, according to an agreement with the University. (,,.,As. Dugas said the Finance Committee reviews the budget at six months and at nine months and makes recommendations for the following year. If Officers work out an agreement to receive profits from the ASUC Bookstore, which could occur starting in January or February, then the GA would have to determine where those funds should go. The Finance Committee could consider this and bring recommendations to the floor so Delegates don't have to spend hours debating the question. The GA is responsible for those movies.

Ms. Miller asked how much profit they could expect from the ASUC. Ms. Dugas said it was currently zero, and there's nothing currently in the Commercial Activities Agreement that says grads deserve onethird of those fees, although they comprise one-third of the student population. That was up to GA Officers to negotiate. Funding for Grad Events occurs four times a semester and the EIGP grants funds five times a semester. So the Finance Committee would meet five times as well. These are not big commitments. If people are interested in finance, this is a good opportunity to tell her what to do in this area. The GA also has the Affirmative Action Committee and the

Editorial Committee to fill. The GA has had interesting and lively debate about affirmative action, diversity, and quotas. The Editorial Committee assist Mr. Chang with the GA Newsletter. Not many people are on this. If they want information to get out over the Web site, this would be a good committee to be involved with.

A Delegate asked if there were recommendations. Ms. Dugas said there was a Resolution on affirmative action as a result of SP 1 an SP 2, and there were different views on it. The Affirmative Action Committee could come up with recommendations on the GA's position on affirmative action.

A Delegate asked how often the Affirmative Action Committee meets. Ms. Dugas said it depends on what's necessary. There's movement to repeal SP l and SP 2. Mr. Friedman said some committees of the GA work in conjunction with UCSA committees, and the GA Committee might consider working with the UCSA on this issue. Things are happening at other states regarding affirmative action, and the Affirmative Action Committee might want to look at addressing some of the legal ballots and initiatives at other states. It's really up to Committee members to make the Committee active. He called for any other questions. Ms. Miller said that part of Delegates' jobs is to help the GA serve grad students. If people don't sign up, the GA doesn't get their personal input. Ms. Dugas said the GA only meets once a month, but things hap pen constantly. When people are on committees they're closer to the inner workings of the GA. It's important they get involved. She herself is a returning grad and would make sure Delegates are not over worked, since she also didn't have any extra time. But an hour out of a month to be supportive of their grad student government is important.

Mr. Friedman said the GA needs to approve a Funding Committee. If they don't have one, the Executive Committee will deal with funding requests. The Funding Committee approves money for student groups. As long as grads attend a group's event, the group can get $2 per grad, an amount that the GA will hope fully increase.

Mr. Friedman said he had to go to the meeting of the ASUC Auxiliary at that time, dealing with choosing vendors for the Bear's Lair. Next month he would promise a much livelier meeting and would apologize for the mundane nature of their business that evening. They'll have the fee issue to discuss next month as well as other issues that Delegates may have. Mr. Friedman said people could call him at work or send an e-mail. He wanted to thank them. FUNDING COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS

With Mr. Ilano chairing the meeting, he asked if people had a copy of the Funding Committee recommendations for Grad Events Funding, Round 1. The Executive Committee met and reviewed funding applications and submitted its recommendations. He called for any questions. A Delegate asked who does the recommendations. Mr. Ilano said it was from the Executive Committee. Recommendations usually come from the Funding Committee, which has not yet been established. The Delegate said it seemed that people in Logic were having a big bash. Mr. Casner said they go by funding guidelines that are listed. The Committee's inclination is to fund anything with the properly stated purpose and which meets their guidelines. The application the Logic grads initially was unclear as to what they were spending the money on, so the group was asked to resubmit its application. Ms. Dugas said this is Logic's annual picnic. The GA's By-laws state that any group holding its initial program, a single, special event, can get priority funding. The event is like an orientation. If groups have Delegates active in the GA, they can get these amounts. Mr. Chang noted that people on committees get to advocate for events being held in their departments. A Delegate asked if this was a list of groups that were funded in May. Mr. Ilano said these groups just applied. The Delegate asked about the application procedure. Mr. Ilano said any registered student group can apply. Ms. Miller said they also must have a representative in the GA. The Delegate asked how grads ,re informed about the existence of these funds. Ms. Miller said that's what Delegates are for. Mr. Beck asked about the next deadline for applying for these funds. Ms.

Dugas said it's September 30 for Grad Events, Projects and Services, EIGP funds, and all other grants. Mr. Ilano said there's a list of guidelines for GA grants in the office. He and Ms. Dugas have sent the list of dates to past organizations and groups on their list. Mr. Chang noted that all applications and directions are on the Web. A Delegate asked what must happen to register a student group. Mr. Ilano said people from the group have to register at Student Activities and Services in Sproul, and must have four signatories. Ms. Miller said there's a standard constitution that people submit. Mr. Davis said it looked like some events were in departments that would perhaps pay for them, such as the Geography Department paying for a tea that grads hold, instead of students requesting that money from the GA. Ms. Dugas said grads to make requests to departments. Ms. Miller said one requirement in the application is to show that money has been requested from other sources. Groups don't necessarily have to get funding from those sources, but they do have to request it. Some groups have requested lesser amounts from the GA than the total amount needed, with the GA funding the remaining amounts. A motion to approve Grad Events funding recommendations was made and seconded. Mr. Moss asked if this being the first round meant it wasn't the final say for these funds. Mr. Ilano said that for this round, this was the final approval. Groups can also apply for more funding. Ms. Dugas said / ere are three more funding rounds that semester. A Delegate asked if these are grad-only events, or if they just have grad representation. Mr. Ilano said the groups get $2 per grad attending and $1 per other person who attends. Ms. Dugas said the events have to be mostly grads. Mr. Casner said they're overwhelmingly grad students. Ms. Miller said the groups also need to have a GA Delegate. THE MOTION TO APPROVE RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GRAD EVENTS FUNDING, ROUND ONE, PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. GA's 30TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION Mr. Ilano said this is the 30th Anniversary of the Graduate Assembly. Staff and Officers met that summer to talk about what they wanted to do that year, and

one thing was to hold some big events to draw attention to this anniversary and to the GA's history. A lot of ideas were thrown around. They thought it would be a good idea to form a working group to work on an activism conference, a showing of "Berkeley in the'60s," to publicize the history of the GA, to have a big party, and to nationally publicize the school since much grad school recruitment occurs by reputation. This would be a chance to gain the national spotlight and get on the national map again. If people were interested in working on this, he'd pass a signup sheet around. FUNDING COMMITTEE CHAIR Ms. Baker said people are needed on the Finance Committee and the Editorial Committee. And they need to pick a Chair of the Funding Committee. Ms. Dugas said she would set up a meeting with people and go over how to select a chair and how to chair a meeting. Mr. Ilano called for any nominations for Funding I Committee Chair. Mr. Flores said he was interested. A Delegate asked if people on the Funding Committee receive a salary. Ms. Dugas said only the Chair of the Funding Committee receives a stipend. The GA added three new grant programs, and Delegates last year decided to make the position a stipended position per semester since it will require a little more work than normal. A motion to approve the nomination was made and seconded. THE MOTION TO APPROVE ANDREW FLORES AS CHAIR OF THE FUNDING COMMITTEE PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Mr. Ilano said he'd like to congratulate Mr. Flores. UC STUDENT ASSOCIATION Introduction Mr. Ilano said the UC Student Association did a lot over the summer. Last month he was elected the UCSA Chair. The University of California Student Association is made up of representatives from graduate and undergrad student governments from all UC campuses, including Hastings and UCSF. They deal with Statewide and University-wide issues.

Mr. Ilano said the agenda item on ratifying the UCSA's By-laws could be deleted. Last year the UCSA went through a process of amending its By-laws and Charter. A copy of the By-laws was included in the agenda packet. The UCSA's committee structure was reorganized to make more sense. If people are interested in these, they can send him an e-mail or give him a call.

Ratification of UCSA Charter Amendments Mr. Ilano said the GA needs to think about UCSA Charter amendments listed on the last page of the packet. He started in May, so he wasn't part of the discussion that went into the changes and did not vote for many of them when they were being considered. He didn't think the group that established it considered what an organization's charter should be. Most charters don't include operating procedures and other things usually reserved for the By-laws. What a charter usually contains is the organization's mission, what it's doing, what it's about, defining the organization. The By-laws are used to go over how the organization functions. Mr. Friedman was the GA's UCSA representative last year his recommendation is not to prove these changes. It's strange to act on this at the first GA meeting of the year, but they have to. e amendments have to be ratified by a super majority of UC campuses and have already been ratified by more than two-thirds of the campuses. So the question is not quite moot, but the GA's vote won't change the outcome. However, the majority of the campuses and have already been ratified by more than twothirds of the campuses. So the question is not quite moot, but the GA's vote wouldn't change the outcome. However, they can state an opinion. Mr. Davis said he attended this conference. He agreed with Mr. Ilano that certain things should not be included in the Charter. The UCSA also has an Action Agenda of three issues of concern, which is a very narrow reading of what problems exist; and the items aren't issues, but problems. One item says the UCSA is interested in lowering fees, which is a general category into which they can include any number of tactics, but this talks about things as issues and was too small a notion for what a student association should be about. He moved to reject the proposed amendments. The motion was seconded. Mr. Prudencio the By-laws were too narrowly drawn and should not state how many issues of concern should be dealt with, which he thought should be up to the discretion of each elected body and what comes up in a given year.

A Delegate asked why the UCSA came up with Section H, to implement an Action Agenda of three issues of concern. Mr. Ilano said there were seven Action Agenda items last year that were called the " Advocacy Agenda." Some members of the Board last year thought that seven issues were too many because there wouldn't be enough focus on accomplishing things. There was an argument that accomplishing two out of three was more empowering than two out of seven accomplishments for the year. He said it felt strange being Chair of the organization and telling that to the GA. The idea of the organization is very good, and having a coalition is a great idea. It could do great things. But these particular changes are a bit odd for the Charter. Ratification of UCSA Charter Amendments (cont'd) - _ . A Delegate asked if they could modify Section H. Mr. Ilano said they would have draft an amendment and take it to the UCSA for approval, and it would then go back to all the Associations. THE MOTION TO REJECT PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO THE UCSA CHARTER PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. GA Campus Office Director Position Mr. Ilano said at his request the Executive Committee passed a recommendation to create a Campus Office Director Position for the GA. All undergrad student governments, and many grad student governments, have such a position. The position is in charge of working on UCSA Statewide or University-wide cam paigns and doing grassroots organizing. That would include writing letters, organizing trips to Sacramento and Regents' meetings, and working on the Action Agenda, which he'll talk about. The GA doesn't have such a position, which means that all those responsibilities fall on him. And he also had to do bureaucratic things and represent the students. The recommendation would be to create this position, which would be unpaid. The only cost would be travel to UCSA meetings, which is marginal. Mr. Ilano said he travels to these meetings as well, and more than half the meetings are in Northern California, which they drive to. So the cost for travel is marginal for this person to attend. There might also be some nominal office expenses,

such as for copying. This proposal is coming out of the Executive Committee, to create a GA Campus Office Director.

A Delegate asked why they couldn't simply borrow a Campus Office Director. Mr. Ilano said the idea is to organize students on this campus. Ms. Miller said the position would also work on Bay Area-wide policies that the GA might come up with. The Delegate asked how many grad Associations there are. Mr. Ilano said there are nine, one at each UC campus, plus Hastings. The Delegate asked if they disagree with them so much that Berkeley needs its own. Mr. Ilano said this is a way to organize students at Berkeley, and the job of people on other campuses is to organize students at their own schools. Mr. Casner said the position was dedicated to mobilizing resources at Berkeley. Mr. Davis asked what "organizing" means. Mr. Ilano said a lot of the direction would come from him, the GA, and the Executive Committee as to the person's specific tasks. If the GA decided to have a lobbying trip to Sacramento for the budget, this person would do outreach, call legislators' offices, set up appoint ments, and follow-up. Mr. Davis said he thought the UCSA Legislative Aide, Peter Pursley, made arrangements for people in Sacramento. Mr. Ilano said he might talk to Mr. Pursley to find out who was important for a particular bill.

A Delegate asked how they expect the position to be filled if it's unpaid. Mr. Ilano said it's a way to get introduced to this arena of student politics, was a great learning opportunity, and a lot of fin. If a bill comes up that he thought had pertinence to Berkeley grads, he'd write a bill or talk to the legislators or p Governor. He wrote two letters to the Governor that past week. He could direct this person on specific campaigns or things they wanted to do. Mr. Prudencio asked if the GA could vote to create the position and figure out

if someone wants to fill it. Mr. Ilano said they could. They'd announce the position and anybody who was interested would apply. A time would be scheduled for applicants to meet with the Executive Committee, which would pick the person. Mr. Davis said he'd like to amend this, that the person in the position has permission from people in the room to call upon them to do some of this work, since the work couldn't be done without the help of the rest of the GA. Mr. Ilano said that's part of their responsibilities. THE MOTION TO AMEND PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. THE MOTION TO CREATE A CAMPUS OFFICE DIRECTOR PASSED WITH NO OBJECTION. Mr. Flores asked if this was something that would have to be created every year. Mr. Ilano said it was a permanent position. If it doesn't work out, they could move to change things at another GA meeting. UCSA Action Agenda Mr. Ilano said that on the last sheet is the UC SA's Action Agenda, dealing with hate crimes, repeal of SP 1 and SP 2, and support of student parents and childcare. These items were determined in San Diego where the first UC Student Congress met, and the UCSA came up with these items and passed them as a group. There were many submissions for what the UCSA should work on this year. This was a new process. These three items weren't necessarily the things he personally would have chosen, but he thought the idea was good to have participation in what the UCSA works on in a given year. There's a lot of momentum in the UCSA to work on these things. His personal recommendation would be to approve the Action Agenda and work towards a better UC Student Congress next year, with a somewhat better process. Mr. Davis said he was at this meeting and heard these discussions. In general, it seemed it didn't matter what the Action Agenda items are if one's general approach is dynamic and they want to change things. There seems to be one focus, whether or not the GA or the students focus on the Board of Regents, with people person who are not a representative, or on the Legislature, where they have historically much more power, since students vote and can go to different Senators and representatives. The Regents, however, are selected by

the Governor and are corporate and not interested in student activities and lower fees. If students push the agenda towards the Legislature, they'd have much more of an impact and many more options open, and, likely, more results. He thought the GA could agree to the Action Agenda as long as they throw their weight towards focusing on the Legislature. Mr. Ilano said the first item would deal with a Systemwide policy to prevent and respond to hate crimes. The second would work towards repeal of SP 1 and SP 2. The In the third Action Agenda item, the word "financial' should be deleted. It would create support for student parents and childcare. Housing is another big issue, along with normative time to degree and flexibility in class scheduling. These are things that are under the main, umbrella issues. Those are the three issues the UCSA decided to have as an Action Agenda. This needs to be approved by two-thirds of the campuses to be the actual UCSA Action Agenda It will be sent out to the media and to legislators, and resources and staff time will go into working on these items, along with his time. If people are interested in working on these they should let him know. He called for any questions. A Delegate asked if these were philosophical goals the UCSA wanted to go forward with, or if they had actual solutions they were advocating. He would see problems with solutions proposed and asked if the GA would be voting on ideas or a plan of action. Mr. Ilano said the vote was just on the issues, not the solutions. For many of these items they're still in the research phase. He's been reviewing the State Penal Code on hate crimes, for instance. They're also trying to collect numbers on representation at the University for the items on SPs 1 and 2. He's also met with student parent groups to try to find out their needs. These are not committees, but projects the UCSA will work tin. Mr. Davis said these could be interpreted widely. "Financial support" could include lowering fees for foreign students, which were raised. A Delegate asked if the GA was going to vote on the three items as a packet or separately. For some of them, he wasn't sure if they know enough, and he was being asked to vote on something he's seen for five minutes. Ms. Baker said they don't send out packets to Delegates before the first GA meeting. Mr. Davis asked if the Action Agenda meant the only things they could ask were these three items. Mr. Ilano said this would approve the Action Agenda,

and the UCSA would work on a whole range of other things that come up, including specific pieces of legislation that are introduced. The UCSA has an office in Sacramento that works in that arena. Ms. Miller said approving this would not define what the GA does. THE MOTION TO APPROVE THE UCSA ACTION AGENDA PASSED BY VOICE-VOTE. NEW BUSINESS Mr. Prudencio said he would like to suggest an agenda item for the next meeting, a review of the recycling system on campus. He would suggest having a representative attend the meeting from File 13, a student organization, to tell the GA what it's doing, including a budget overview of funds the group gets from the campus and what it's responsible for, as well as the official campus person, Lisa Bauer, to explain what her responsibilities are, where her funding comes from, and the background on recycling. There two systems in place that aren't working together. File 13 receives money from student fees, and it's not clear that anything is being done on a consistent basis with those resources. This is something he'd like the GA to consider, pushing the campus to have a consolidated recycling system. Ms. Miller said she would look into that and see if people were available for next month's GA meeting. Mr. Davis said he found out there's a strike going on at the University of Mexico, where officials are trying to raise tuition. He would like to have the GA go on record as supporting the demands of the striking students who oppose increase fees and the corporatization of the University. Mr. Casner moved to table discussion until the next meeting. The motion was seconded. Mr. Ilano said resolutions are usually provided in advance so people can discuss things in their departments. Mr. Davis asked what the process was for submitting resolutions. Ms. Miller said the first GA meeting is difficult since everybody is new and they don't have addresses for people yet. Meetings are on the first Thursday of every month and she tries to send out Delegate packets nine days in advance. So on the Tuesday before, she sends out announcements, and anybody who wants to submit something to the packet can do so. They need to get things to her by the Tuesday prior to the GA meeting. Mr. Ilano said resolutions don't have to be in a specific form, such as with whereas clauses. If there's a time factor, the Executive Committee could also move on something. THE MOTION TO TABLE DISCUSSION OF THE STRIKE BY STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MEXICO PASSED BY HAND VOTE 13-3-0.

A Delegate said that although he was a new Delegate, he just elected a number of people he's never met. Ms. Miller said elections to confirm staff usually occur in May, so it's usually not new people who vote. The Delegate asked why that vote was postponed. Ms. Miller said the meeting in May was the GA's budget meeting and went late, and people left before there was a chance to approve staff positions. Mr. Casner asked if they could have the Executive Committee address that, to make sure that for May, those approvals don't get pushed back. A motion to adjourn was made and seconded and passed with no objection. This meeting adjourned at 7:50 p.m. These minutes respectfully submitted by, Steven I. Litwak Recording Secretary

Present at the GA Meeting of September 2, 1999

Nathan Payton, Political Science David Bach, Political Science Jill Stauffer, Rhetoric Michael Daub, Physics Anastasia Telesetsky, Law Alexis Abramson, Mechanical Engineering Mark Greenbaum MBA Gabriela Gallegos, GSPP Hsuan Hsu, Engineering Ria Hutabarat, CRP Jennifer Murphy, German John Beck, Mechanical Engineering Peter Scheirer, Statistics Keith Casner, Asian Studies Eric Lagally, Bioengineering Anne Baxta, Rhetoric David Friedman, GA President Eli Ilano, GA External Affairs VP Shih Chang, Communications Project Suzanne Baker, Departmental Liaison Amar Chaudhary, Computer Science Mike Zara, Law John Koo, EELS Victor Holmes, MCB Vanessa Gurtu, Nutritional Science Rodrigo Prudencio, MBA Sarah Baughn, GSPP Jessica Owley, Landscape Architecture Jonathan Kass, City & Regional Planning Jonathan Tan, Astronomy Robb Moss, Civil & Environmental Engr'g/ Andrew Flores, Mechanical Engineering Antionette Chevalier, English Stephanie Preston, Psychology Ron Davis, Theatre Arts Jeffrey Judd, Integrative Biology Kimberly Miller, GA Academic Affairs VP Nzingha Dugas, GA Business Director

Jillian Sandell, GWP