2006 Fall Special
Election Supplement


These are the proposals submitted by each group/organization, explaining their need for more funding and the new or expanded services and programs they would offer if the measure passes.


Arts and Lectures
Associated Students
Bicycle Systems
Bike Shop
Campus Learning Assistance Services (CLAS)
Child Care Grant
Community Affairs Board (CAB)
Comm Personnel
Disabled Students Program
Environmental Affairs Board (EAB)
Event Center Governance Board
Intramural Sports
IVCRC(IV Improvements)
Isla Vista Tenants Union
KCSB
Legal Resource Center
MultiCultural Center (MCC)
Office of Student Life
Orfalea Family Children's Center
Program Board
Recreational Sports
Recycling
Shoreline Preservation Fund (SPF)
Student Commission On Racial Equality (SCORE)
Student Health Services
Take Back the Night
University Center Governance Board
Women's Commission


Disabled Students Program
The current amount received from the A.S. Lock-In is intended to offset the costs of the Note Taking and Test Proctoring service for our students. The current amount received covers approximately 60% of the total costs. We would use this increase as follows:

Office of Student Life
We currently have a CEC fee of $1.75/quarter and $1.00 for summer. Fifty-two percent of the fee goes to student-initiated late night programming, the remaining is split between leadership and first-year programming costs. We are currently at the limit on this fee and cannot offer any more services and staffing is strained to even accomplish the programming we do offer. With the Division of Student Affairs receiving 23% permanent budget cuts over the last four years and with the registration fee frozen for the last 10+ years, the resources that can be devoted to student services is strained.

With the new $1.50 per quarter (including summer session), we would expand our services to students in the leadership and first-year programs. We would offer the annual student leader retreat to more students; offer more intensive training in the Kouzes and Posner model (possibly including weekend retreats) which could include a certification in this model; create a statewide leadership conference; enhance our current leadership conference with more offerings for attendees, including bigger name speakers; and enhance our quarterly leadership series. We could offer more small group work for students interested in developing their leadership skills.
We would enhance the men's and women's programs and offer more programming to first year students, possibly including retreat offerings. We would also expand our advising to first-year students in support of their success and offer more workshops. INT 20, the University Success Course, could also be expanded to accommodate more freshmen and sophomores. We could also offer a version for transfer students. The fee would provide funding for programmatic costs and an additional entry-level Student Affairs Officer staff position.

We would also allocate money toward security costs for student-initiated programming.

Arts & Lectures
Arts & Lectures is requesting an increase in undergraduate student fees to help subsidize affordable student ticket prices. Over the last four years, A&L has consistently kept student ticket prices low even though the cost of artist fees and general ticket prices have gone up. It is an important part our mission that we make every event accessible to students. This increase in fees will help cover the gap between these increased costs and low student ticket prices.

Orfalea Family Children's Center
UCSB student teaching assistant employees are integral to our ability to provide the optimum level of early childcare and education. We are eager to build up our value as an employer for our student employees while enhancing the services provided to our families many of whom are themselves UCSB students. Mitigating UCSB Student parent child care tuition costs remains a high priority as well.

Multi Cultural Center

Recreational Sports
UCSB Recreational Sports is one of the largest student services on campus if not the largest. The program allows the campus community to utilize their leisure time in a constructive manner rather than the numerous destructive ones. The result is fun, fitness and friendship for all. The program also facilitates development of life skills and students learn competitive achievement, teamwork, communication, leadership, integrity and social responsibility through their participation.

Interest, not skill or the ability to pay, should be the only prerequisite for participation. Unfortunately, institutional support in the form of registration fees has dwindled away with budget cuts.

Programs Supported include:
  1. 21 sport club teams & student athletic training.

    The intercollegiate sport club program provides for top-level competition in sports that are not part of the intercollegiate athletics department. We currently facilitate 21 teams with additional sports hoping for acceptance. No experience is necessary, and many of our club athletes have gone from being novices to receiving Olympic and international recognition. Over the past 18 years, sport clubs have won over 40 national championships for UCSB.

    The operational cost for sport clubs is about two million dollars per year. Teams conduct fund-raisers, provide their own management, organization, leadership and pay team dues. Unfortunately, team dues are becoming cost prohibitive for most UCSB students. Cost for travel, uniforms, equipment and coaching continue to skyrocket.

    The student leadership is a revolving door and is extremely difficult to achieve continuity, in particular relating to safety. As a result, we also need funding to address coaching, athletic training and other risk management practices. Although this fee will not cover the entire operating cost, it will substantially lower student dues allowing interested students to consider participating.

  2. Adventure Programs

    The 10 Adventure Programs include Rock-climbing, Kayaking, SCUBA Diving, Ropes Course, Adventure Climbing Center, Canoeing, Wilderness First Aid, Leadership Training Course, Clinics, Backpacking, and Camping Trips. These programs develop students and take advantage of the amazing outdoor opportunities and trainings that exist in our local area and beyond.

    The Adventure Programs serve approximately 8,000 participants annually with a primarily student staff of about 100.

    This funding will create an opportunity to construct and operate a state of the art Outdoor Utility Pole Challenge Course which:
    1. Provides an effective alternative to "hazing" by offering a teambuilding environment focused on challenge, cooperation, communication, problem solving, etc.
    2. Provides funding for staffing and management of the Challenge Course.
    3. Employs and develops UCSB students in high growth positions which provide skills and experience relating to risk management, group dynamics, team management, organization and leadership.

  3. Intramural sports and overall support for all recreational sports programs. A large and diverse recreational sports program has different needs from year to year including one-time and large needs such as capital improvements, vehicles, ice machines, etc.

    Intramural sports or sports within the walls of UCSB is the largest of the recreational sports programs. About 12,000 participants annually are involved in a diverse pool of offerings. We facilitate a student directed program with over 250 employees providing management, organization and leadership in a variety of jobs from gym/field supervisors, sport coordinators, head of officials, sport officials, Marketing/publicity, photographers, and student athletic trainers and office staff support.

    Many have been involved in sports competition growing up, but for one reason or another are not competing at the intercollegiate level. Intramural sports provides these students with the opportunity to compete on a regular basis at a fun and skill appropriate level. In addition, because no experience is necessary, it provides students to try sports they have never experienced or have not played in years.

    UCSB's recreational sports programs require a tremendous amount of financial support. Currently, these programs cost about $3 million dollars to operate. The overwhelming burden of this budget comes out of the pockets of students because institutional support has dwindled to only about $50,000. This equates to a minute 1.7% of the total operating cost. Thank you in advance of your support of our attempt to create a program solely based on the prerequisite of "interest" being the fundamental philosophy of UCSB recreational sports rather than "skill or an ability to pay".

Intramural Sports
Intramural Sports or sports "within the walls" of UCSB operates on the premise that interest is the only prerequisite for participation and not skill nor the ability to pay.

Registration fees provided 100% of the funding at one time. Budget cuts and inflation have eroded this funding and the program now charges entry fees for participation. Without additional funding, participation will soon become cost prohibitive and available only to those who can afford the cost to play.

Intramural Sports provide employment opportunities to hundreds of UCSB students each year. Currently, we are not able to offer competitive wages and will not be able to meet the demands of rising minimum wage increases.

Intramural Sports currently requires participants to provide their own equipment. Office equipment and vehicles are also outdated. This funding will also allow the program to facilitate quality programs addressing necessary safety standards.

A popular slogan, "Intramural Sports is for everyone" is no longer true. It should be for everyone, not just those who can afford to pay.

Through participation in Intramural Sports, all students can benefit by learning about competitive achievement, teamwork, communication, leadership, integrity and social responsibility. Constructive use of leisure time culminating in fun, fitness and friendship will enhance the quality of life for UCSB students through Intramural Sports.

Student Health Services

Events Center Governance Board
The Events Center is still the largest venue available on the central coast for athletic events and concerts. However, it is a 1979 building that has a considerable amount of deferred maintenance and could become a great facility for student events if sufficient funds were available. A new air conditioning system is needed, new theater style seating to replace the lower bleachers, new sound system, expanded restrooms, and acoustic treatment to improve the sound quality for concerts. If the Events Center could improve its status from just a "gym" to a major multi-use facility, it could compete favorably with the County Bowl for major events. The list of improvements totals several million dollars and we have been saving most of the money from our initial fee referendum to accumulate enough to begin some major projects. We still don't have enough saved to really address any of the major issues listed.

University Center Governance Board
Two new major issues exist for the University Center: A) Increased student wages mandated by the state minimum wage law, and B) The cost of creating and programming an outstanding late night venue in The Hub.

Student Wage Increase: The UCen is one of the largest employers of students on campus (over 500 students total). The state minimum wage was just signed into law and it will increase to $7.30 an hour on January 1, 2007 and to $8.00 an hour the following January. We currently hire most students at $6.75. Since we are essentially a break-even operation, there is no way that we can retain our current hours of service and the current number of student employees. Not only will the minimum wage employees be increased, but all other student employees who have received increases over the years will also be raised by the same amount. We will have to cut hours and cut jobs. The total estimated annual increase due to this wage adjustment will be roughly $250,000.

The Hub: We currently have plans to remodel The Hub in order to make it a more attractive place for Concerts and other student events. This is part of a campus effort to offer a late night alternative to Isla Vista. Because the original renovation bid came in much higher than expected, we have been forced to delay the project and reduce its scope. With additional student fee money, we could once again enhance the project to really make it an outstanding venue where students would want to attend concerts, dances, and shows. In addition, we could create an annual programming budget of up to $100,000 to staff the venue on weekends and to provide funds for a variety of events that could complement the concerts put on by Program Board. We have learned from colleagues all across the country that regular weekend late night event venues can be very successful. However, they don't come close to generating enough income from food & drink sales or event ticket sales. As a result, the efforts that aren't backed with student fees always fail in the end. When students know that The HUB will always be open and that something worthwhile will be happening there, it can become a great alternative to Isla Vista.

Campus Learning Assistance Services
Campus Learning Assistance Services (CLAS) has not recovered from the series of budget cuts it has experienced over the past several years. The cuts, plus the increase in operating expenses, have made it difficult to maintain our current level of services. Demand for current and new services remains strong across all disciplines. If we are to retain our current level of services without resorting to a fee-for-service model and if we are to accommodate additional tutoring requests and expand our study skills program, CLAS must replace lost funds, increase its operating budget, and full-time staff.

The CLAS portion of the AS Initiative would help pay for the following:
CLAS serves over 7,000 undergraduates annually, logging in upwards of 153,519 student contact hours. CLAS serves students in all disciplines and at all class levels by operating 5 drop-in labs and offering 600 tutorial groups and 201 academic skills workshops annually. CLAS hires between 75-150 undergraduate and graduate students. Currently, all CLAS services are free to UCSB undergraduates. In comparison, a student opting to hire a private tutor may pay from $30 to $60 for a single hour of tutoring. Helping CLAS to maintain its open door policy ensures that all students have equal access to academic services.

Associated Students
Associated Students provides and administers a wide range of services for UCSB students. However, we are at a critical juncture, because the student monies that cover these services have not been increased since 1974. Each of the groups or programs listed deserves your support because they provide services, advocacy, training, and in many cases paid employment for students. They include:

Bike Shop

A.S. Childcare Grant
Programs/projects and events for undergraduate students with dependent children

A.S. IVCRC/IV IMPROVEMENTS

A.S. CAB

KCSB
KCSB has not had a fee increase since 1989. Because we train more than 200 people a year in the fundamentals of radio broadcasting, we have substantial equipment costs annually. And in order to train people on equipment that they might find outside of the University, it is important to routinely upgrade equipment here. Our student managers routinely work far more hours than they get paid for and we would like to be able to correct that. Unlike other student organizations, we also have to pay for the maintenance of our building,, for custodial care, utilities and other major repairs and upgrades to the infrastructure. The University's costs for all of these things have continued to rise in the 17 years since our last lock-in increase. We are faced with major anticipated changes in technology in the next few years as broadcasting moves from analog to digital broadcasting. And, as we learned last year after our antenna was struck by lightening, even good planning can't anticipate acts of nature which can prove to be very costly.

Through the years, we have sought alternative sources of funding so that we didn't have to come back to students to request more. However, we are now regularly exceeding our budget by 40 to 50% annually, and it is foolhardy to count on soft money for that much of our budget. And, with a budget increase, we can undertake more events which are uniquely related to KCSB like the Amy Goodman lecture or musicians well outside the mainstream.

Some reasons to support us:
  1. KCSB provides non-commercial programming that can't be found anywhere else in the Santa Barbara area 24 hours a day, all year long.
  2. We provide free radio training to anyone who is interested at UCSB and in the community - whether you are interested in Djing, news, sports, or just volunteering.
  3. We present low cost educational and entertainment events - Some of these events have included lectures by Amy Goodman, Norm Solomon, and a performance by Living Legends. We also sponsor numerous local shows, film screenings, and other local cultural events.
  4. We are Santa Barbara's ONLY non-commercial, non-profit, educational station.
  5. Operating a radio station is very costly, for example, updating old or broken equipment, and the university does not support us.
  6. We haven't raised our fees since the 1989!
  7. If this initiative passes, we pledge to observe a 5 year moratorium on requests for new fees.
  8. This fee increase is not as costly as many other fee initiatives students have voted for, such as the Rec Cen.
  9. We are produced for the community, by the community!
  10. We provide news coverage and viewpoints often not seen in the mainstream news outlets.
  11. We also cover some UCSB athletics that no one else covers - soccer, volleyball, and baseball.
  12. We provide support and publicity for other on-campus organizations at no cost.

Communications Personnel
The Communications Personnel budget covers the salaries of all of KCSB's professional staff. It has not been increased since 1989. The station has grown considerably during that time and we have increased our staff from two positions to 3.5 positions. Like KCSB, we have avoided asking the students for lock-in increases and have developed some other sources of funding for staffing. However, we now exceed our AS budget by approximately $40,000 a year. We are also a very small staff for running a full time, full power radio station.

In addition to allowing us to maintain ourselves, a lock-in increase would allow us to consider some staff growth: a full time news director, a part-time web master, a part-time youth radio project coordinator. We also have occasional needs. For example, KCSB is 45 years old and has a great deal of archival material that needs digitizing and catalogueing. And we have an enormous music library on vinyl which would be more accessible if it were digitally organized.

Shoreline Preservation Fund
  1. An increase in funding for programs and services will only enhance the good work SPF already does.
  2. Increased funding will allow the creation of a capital reserve account which will set aside funds that will accumulate interest for large infrastructure improvement projects such as coastal stairways, trail maintenance, water quality improvement project (i.e. construction of bioswales), Campus network of educational signage along the bluffs
  3. Funding approved for several large capital projects has significantly diminished support for ongoing projects that depend on SPF funding as well as new programs that fit well within our Mission
  4. Coastal Service Program has seen exponential increase in participation and demand for funding. Additional funds would expand this program to more student organizations and areas for improvement
  5. UCSB Elwood Devereux Habitat Open Space Plan (to be approved this year) has identified areas for coastal access improvement for students staff and Faculty however no funding is currently available to implement. SPF can leverage funds to prioritize construction and implementation of these identified projects.
  6. Additional funding would allow for the following:
    1. Provide resources to Coal Oil Point reserve and CCBER to perform large scale restoration on campus
    2. New stair at Campus Point to alleviate erosion problem
    3. Maintenance and enhancement of existing Beach access stairways coastal trails
    4. Development of Educational signage along coastal pathways
    5. mplementation of new technologies in water quality improvement (ie bioswale and CDS units)
    6. Development of formal water quality monitoring program in ocean and water bodies adjacent to UCSB

Bicycle Systems
  1. Existing lock in fee is insufficient to complete priority bike system improvement projects such as West Campus Bluffs path improvement project, Library roundabout, Bren hall missing link to East Bluff Commuter path, new bike corrals at South Hall, Music North, and Kerr Hall
  2. Increased funding would allow for better bike path maintenance throughout campus and more frequent resurfacing
  3. Bike safety awareness and outreach
  4. Development of formal Campus Bike Master Plan

Recycling
  1. As campus grows the needs for recycling materials grows and the committee will require construction of at least 5 "4-in-1" Recycling cluster (Berthas) for new buildings. This campus expansion also calls for:
    • Hiring additional employees to better maintain new berthas
    • Parts and maintenance for existing Berthas
    • Construction and replacement of recycling rigs (Bicycle and Trailer) as well as parts and maintenance for existing bicycles.
  2. New technologies that would include the purchase or rental of better electric vehicle
  3. Development and implementation of a permanent campus wide TechnoTrash Program including several new bins, cost of proper disposal, publicity and an additional employee to oversee the program
  4. Development of the Eucalyptus Grove into a sustainable recycling demonstration site for the education of UCSB campus, students, staff, and faculty, as well as the surrounding community and visitors. This will include extensive landscaping, construction and purchase of several types of recycling and composting demos, and hiring an additional employee to maintain the area.

    Legal Resource Center
    Currently:

    Take Back the Night
    Take Back the Night is an activist organization that fights sexual assault by raising awareness, empowering women and men to change their communities, and confronting the stigmas attached to survivors. Traditionally, we focus exclusively on our week of events in April; however, with increased funding, we could do additional programming and outreach as well as make that week even better.

    Below is a breakdown of how the additional funds would be allocated.

    If students approve a 100% increase, TBTN would be able to:

    The Student Commission On Racial Equality

    The Student Commission On Racial Equality seeks to expand its collective ability to advocate on behalf of social justice issues as they pertain to and affect students of color throughout the state of California. As we expand our advocacy and campaigning, we see the need for additional funds for staff members within AS. We would like to either increase the focus and pay of existing staff members or hire a staff to work specifically for S.C.O.R.E. on local, statewide and national social justice campaigns.

    Additionally, S.C.O.R.E. is a vehicle by which students at UCSB can attend statewide conferences throughout the year. These include the Student of Color Conference, the UCSA Lobby Conference in Sacramento, the USSA Legislative Conference in Washington DC and many more.

    S.C.O.R.E. also allocates money to student organizations for their respective programming and advocacy. Increased funding for S.C.O.R.E. will translate into increased funding for student orgs throughout campus.

    Furthermore, S.C.O.R.E. can and will continue to assist endangered student outreach and retention programs; particularly those that impact low income and under-represented student communities. To this end, we aim to establish an outreach and retention component through our office.

    Finally, we would like to establish our own publication to advocate and advance our agenda on campus and statewide levels.

    Program Board
    With an increased budget we could:

    Isla Vista Tenant Union

    IVTU's goal is to better the quality of life in Isla Vista by addressing tenants' rights issues in the community. However, IVTU is handicapped by a shoe-string budget and is a prime example of an under-funded organization. The 100% increase in funding would primarily provide:
    1. Increase in Special Projects - IVTU seeks to broaden its activities beyond day-to-day office work and:
      • Expand Homegrown Revolution and community workshops/conferences
      • Reinstate and expand a quarterly newsletter
      • Have the capacity to provide immediate support to tenants who want to mobilize in "emergency" situations such as the recent Cedarwood evictions

    2. Honoraria - IVTU started the current school year with zero appointed committee members. Notes from last year also cite recruiting committed members as a major issue. Providing honoraria will be a key incentive to recruiting and retaining quality members who will push IVTU to its full potential.
    3. Increase in office capacity - IVTU student and professional staff are barely able to do more beyond day-to-day office activities during the school year because we have extremely limited staffing. There is only one, part-time Coordinator, and two part-time students at-most (currently one part-time student). We also have a very limited Operating budget and would like to expand so we may have our own tenants library, provide more literature for dissemination, have funds for advertising, and have adequate supplies.

    Women's Commission
    Women's Commission works to empower women identified individuals by providing them with a safe space to organize and address women issues. Women's Commission also serves as an umbrella organization for all women's groups by providing support, space, and funding. By receiving the increase we will be able to:

    Environmental Affairs Board

    1. The production of a Green Guide - an all-encompassing environmental resource guide for UCSB students designed to provide a central point for all environmental opportunities and activities at UCSB and within Isla Vista. Included, among much more, will be a comprehensive listing of all environmental groups on campus, specific dates of environmental activities, alternative transportation options, restaurants and businesses participating in green business, past accomplishments of the university, future goals of the university, volunteer opportunities for students, internship opportunities, etc.
    2. Expansion of the Isla Vista Earthday Festival with an emphasis on creating a completely zero waste event and implementing a more educational direction for the festival through inviting guest speakers and green businesses.
    3. Funding of the Green AS Building Campaign, a campaign designed to make the Associated Students more environmentally sustainable.
    4. Implementation of higher quality, further-reaching publicity to advertise EAB at a level consistent with the growing interest and importance of environmentalism today.
    5. Funding of a paid position to maintain our new webpage with the goal of creating the most comprehensive online student resource for environmentalism at UCSB.
    6. Funding of additional campaigns including Grow Native and Wild, a project aimed at restoring plots of land on campus to native growth. Specifically we will be restoring the plot in front of the Old Little Theater this fall, and we need funding for tools. Our Greening the Greeks Campaign is designed to work one-on-one with selected Greek groups to implement sustainable practices within the Greek System. Funding will be needed to initiate aspects of the project to fulfill the goal of sustainability.




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