Centers for Educational Equity and Excellence

Junior transfer student Ashley Tigue, majoring in bioengineering with a concentration in biomedical devices, has joined the running for ASUC Transfer Student Representative.

In recent years, Latinx and Chicanx students have made up a greater percentage of UC Berkeley’s transfer admit classes than its freshman admit classes — in the 2022-2023 cycle, nearly 30% of all admitted Latinx and Chicanx students were transfers.

In 2013, UC Berkeley alumni, Danny Murillo and Steven Czifra, met on campus and shared their backgrounds on being formerly incarcerated and system impacted individuals. Together, Murillo and Czifra co-founded the Underground Scholars Initiative, or USI, a student-run organization for those who have been personally impacted by the U.S. criminal justice system.

UC freshman and transfer graduation rates within four and two years, respectively, are at their highest since 1996, according to the UC’s online information center.

Violeta Alvarez, executive director of the Berkeley Underground Scholars program, was named “2018 Woman of the Year” by state Sen. Nancy Skinner for her work with formerly incarcerated students in a tweet Tuesday.

Francis, or “Frankie,” Guzman, a 2007 UC Berkeley graduate, returned to his alma mater Sunday afternoon to address the second graduating class of the Underground Scholars Initiative, a pioneering program unique to UC Berkeley that connects campus resources to formerly incarcerated students and students with formerly incarcerated family members.

Two resolutions — one urging UC Berkeley to create an undergraduate voting holiday and another advocating for greater space allocation to the Educational Opportunity and Undocumented Students programs — passed through the ASUC Senate without debate at its meeting Wednesday.

Four ballot measures — including two that include a total of $81.50 in mandatory semester campus fees to go into effect fall 2015 — passed in this year’s ASUC general elections.

While deliberating SB 66, a bill to amend new ASUC election bylaws that passed unanimously, a majority of the Senate decided to remove campaigning restrictions on university-owned study spaces from the bill. Candidates are allowed to campaign in any space within a university run building (including hallways), wear clothing indicating political affiliation and send electronic messages.

UC Berkeley junior Leah Romm announced Tuesday that she will run for ASUC student advocate.