University of California, Los Angeles
PA-3: Inclusive and Participatory Governance

The University of California (UC) Board of Regents is the highest form of governance for all ten UC campuses. The UC Board of Regents consists of Appointed Regents, Ex Officio Regents, and a Student Regent. Additionally, Regents-Designate, Faculty Representatives to the Regents, and Advisors to the Regents engage with and advise members of the Board.

The student Regent is a voting member of The Regents of the University of California, attending all meetings of the Board and its Committees and serving a one-year term. This position is not elected but is filled by application and open to all students currently enrolled in the UC system. From the time of appointment as a Student Regent, but prior to the commencement of service as a member of the Board, the appointee holds the title Regent-designate and is invited to participate in all meetings of the Board and of its Committees, but without a vote.

UC faculty in the Academic Senate carry out shared-governance responsibilities established by The Regents. The Senate is empowered by UC's governing body, the Board of Regents, to exercise direct control over academic matters of central importance to the University – to determine academic policy, set conditions for admission and the granting of degrees, authorize and supervise courses and curricula; and to advise the administration on faculty appointments, promotions and budgets.

The Systemwide Academic Senate and the ten Divisional Senates (one for each UC campus) provide the organizational framework that enables the faculty to exercise its right to participate in the University's governance. The faculty voice is formed through a deliberative process that includes the Standing Committees of the Senate, the Academic Council, the Assembly of the Academic Senate, and their Divisional counterparts. Consultation with the senior administration occurs in a parallel structure: at the systemwide level between the Academic Council Chair and the President; and on the campus level between the Divisional Senate Chairs and the Chancellors. With some exceptions and as defined by the Standing Order of the Regents 105.1, Senate membership is granted to individuals who have a ladder-rank or other selected academic appointment at the University.

Two faculty members — the chair and vice chair of the Academic Council — sit on the Board of Regents as non-voting members. The Academic Council elects its chair and vice chair.

Staff members can participate in governance on a UC-wide scale as Advisors to the Regents. The Staff Advisors are selected from all staff and non-Senate academic employees and are appointed by the President in consultation with the Chairman of the Board. Serving as non-voting advisors to designated Regents' committees, the Staff Advisors have direct input into the Board's deliberations and decisions.

Students have the opportunity to participate in campuswide elections to represent the student body in the positions of President, Vice President (Internal and External), Facilities Commissioner and Senate of the Associated Students (AS). Students are also appointed by the ASUCLA President and confirmed by the UCLA Student Senate to sit on a range of campuswide committees, including the Campus Sustainability Steering Committee.

Key engagement activities serve as a guide for UCLA to embark on new efforts to positively impact the greater Los Angeles community. Government and Community Relations (GCR) connects campus resources with policy makers/elected officials, and community influencers to address issues.

At the local community level, GCR maintains relationships with homeowner associations, neighborhood councils, and neighbors to ensure updates on campus activity and initiatives. Updates may include: Capital Programs projects and hearings, student activities, large campus events, sound disturbances, and commencement schedules. GCR also helps mitigate concerns such as noise, parking, and other impacts. Often times, we solicit neighbor’s input on new construction, campus initiatives, and the envisioning of campus expansion.

Quarterly meetings are held to increase the level of engagement and communication with surrounding neighborhoods. Attendees are very receptive and weigh in on the campus’ decision making process that impacts their neighborhoods.

Below are other key stakeholders we work with on a regular basis.

KEY STAKEHOLDERS
Internal
● Office of the Chancellor
● UCLA Continuing Education
● UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Services
● UCLA Technology Development Corp
● UCLA Veterans Relations Affairs
● UCLA Ralph Bunche Center
● UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Initiative
● Campus Leaders (Faculty and Staff)
External
● Neighbors
● Elected Officials and Government Organizations
● Community Organizations/Partners
○ LAUSD
○ Los Angeles Urban League
○ MALDEF
○ Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California
○ Jewish Federation
● LA Regional Chambers of Commerce
Educational Partners and Institutions of Higher Education
● Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees
● Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education
● Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent
● Loyola Marymount University
● California State University Los Angeles
● California State University Northridge

Also, the Basic Needs Committee is comprised of staff, faculty, students, and community members dedicated to addressing basic needs issues at UCLA. Today, the Committee is made up of over 50 campus alumni, faculty, staff, students, and community partners dedicated to combating food and basic needs insecurity in the UCLA community. Their efforts include building and enhancing existing services, conducting comprehensive research, and creating new innovative programs and resources to work towards making UCLA a basic needs secure campus.
https://www.basicneeds.ucla.edu/About/Team

The STARS Technical Manual does not provide clear methodology or guidance for how to report for this credit in the absence of formal self-identification of gender or underrepresented groups status.

The Board of Regents’ office stated that it would be inappropriate to survey board members regarding gender identities or other identification regarding under-represented groups because of privacy concerns. With input from the AASHE STARS Team, UC Office of the President and campuses devised a count based on the pronouns used on the Regent’s website biographies.

The pronouns used in the public biographies of the 33 people listed on the Board of Regents Members and Advisors web page were used as the proxy to determine the number that are women and/or individuals who do not self-identify as men. Seventeen people had “he/him” pronouns in their bios and 16 people had “she/her” pronouns, resulting in a count of 48% women/individuals not identified as men. These data form the basis for our response regarding gender.

Because there is no clear methodology or guidance for how to ascertain underrepresented groups status of individual members of the Board of Regents, in the absence of self-identification, the UC campuses have chosen not to respond to the optional question about underrepresented groups. In the future, the UC will continue to work with the system-wide Diversity and Engagement office, who also seek more official Board demographics data, in an attempt to get official public reporting of gender data, and, as appropriate, underrepresented groups status.