The ASUC is a democratically elected body that is responsible first and foremost to the students who form its electorate at UC Berkeley. When significant changes are made to the ASUC, students should be able to expect that they will be informed.
Unfortunately, the majority of the student body may have been surprised by a major change to their student government implemented in such a way that avoided public scrutiny.
On May 3, the final decision was made to move the ASUC Auxiliary from the Office of Administration and Finance to the Division of Student Affairs. We question why the administration and our own elected ASUC officials did not do more to make the change known to students, especially considering the decision was made before the semester’s end while students were still on campus.
Even though the final decision took a month to enter the public spotlight, questions still remain unanswered as to the reasoning behind the change. Making such a shift under the cover of summer does not breed confidence in the decision. We share Graduate Assembly President Miguel Daal’s sentiment that the advantages of the change have not been adequately explained to the student population.
What is even more alarming is that this change remained secretive despite its magnitude. Because the Auxiliary is the financial arm of the ASUC and stays somewhat detached from policy decisions, moving it to the more policy-oriented student affairs division raises concerns about the future autonomy of the ASUC. These concerns should at least be addressed more completely than they have been and brought under tougher scrutiny by the student body.
Going forward, Daal’s suggestions of a memorandum of understanding and list of benefits from the change would be a positive step towards better accountability. But these measures are palliative — students must demand more openness about the changes occurring at the Auxiliary.
The ASUC and administration should oblige such demands, as failure to do so risks appearing unaccountable to the students they serve.
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DailyCal is way too polite here:
“We question why the administration and our own elected ASUC officials
did not do more to make the change known to students, especially
considering the decision was made before the semester’s end while
students were still on campus.”
Le Grande has no respect for the students, UC has no respect for them.
UC’s position is: just pay your tuition and shut your mouth.
Le Grande said they discussed the move for months, said it was OE’s cost saving recommendation. Then claimed he knew nothing of ASUC’s finances and had no real operational changes planned.
Does he expect to get taken seriously like that?
Was that designed to pull one over on the students, or does he think
their parents – who mostly foot the bill – are that stupid too?
UC Riverside prof quits administration b/c UC’s administration only wants to play games, lie, and dismantle the institution:
http://chronicle.com/article/Mad-as-Hell-in-California-and/127760/
First of all, I think it’s great that the Daily Cal is covering this issue and recognizing its importance, despite the fact that the ASUC Auxiliary is little known to most students.
The timing of this change is particularly bad since many outgoing ASUC executives and senators had already left for the summer, and the incoming executives had not yet transitioned into their new positions. I believe the incoming ASUC and GA officers have spent quite a bit of time in the last few weeks discussing with administrators and the ASUC Auxiliary just to understand exactly what there plans are, and what are the potential impacts of this change. And I believe we all agree that even if there are benefits to restructuring, we have nothing to gain by rushing it through this summer without proper student oversight.
There is one public meeting of the ASUC Auxiliary Store Operations Board on Wednesday, June 15, where this topic will be discussed. It is from 9am-12pm in the Senate Chambers (1st floor, Eshleman).