February 24, 2003

UC staff group discusses effort for nonvoting representative on Regents

By Louise Donahue

Staff representation on the UC Board of Regents was a major topic at the recent meeting of UC's systemwide staff organization, the Council of UC Staff Assemblies (CUCSA).

Meeting February 10-12 at UCSC, the staff group heard from Regent John Davies about the proposal for a nonvoting representative, which the Regents have agreed to study.

Davies outlined some of his concerns with the concept, including legal issues and the large number of Regents. Of the 26 Regents, 18 are appointed by the governor, one is a student appointed by the Regents for a one-year term, and seven are ex-officio members. The president and vice president of the UC Alumni Associations and the UC president are among the ex-officio members.

Because the two alumni representatives each have an alumni-designate representative--and a staffer would be expected to also have a designate--the proposal would add another two representatives at the table. Two faculty members--the chair and vice chair of the Academic Council--now sit on the board as nonvoting members.

"Davies was thoughtful in sharing his concerns about what the challenges might be for us," said Patt Takeuchi, financial planning analyst at UCSC. Takeuchi and Ed Titus, campus telecommunications manager, represent UCSC in the UC-wide staff organization as members of the Staff Advisory Board.

Davies also offered a closed-session update on the search for a successor to UC President Richard C. Atkinson, who is stepping down in October. Davies is chairman of the Regents' nine-member search committee. The Staff Advisory Committee to the Search Committee had earlier provided Davies with some suggested presidential qualities, characteristics, and experience, as well as with four possible interview questions for candidates.

"This is the first time where the search committee was so forthcoming in seeking staff input," said Takeuchi. "I think this is an improvement from the last time," she said. Atkinson took office in 1995.

Davies encouraged the Council of UC Staff Assemblies to work on informing the Regents more about the structure and role of the organization. Although the council has no role in bargaining or compensation, he said some Regents may not be clear on that.

The council also heard from alumni Regent Alfredo Terraza, vice president of the Alumni Associations of the University of California, and Paul Schwartz, communications director for human resources and labor relations in the UC Office of the President.

Chancellor M.R.C. Greenwood welcomed members of the council as the session began. CUCSA is an advisory body made up of staff delegates from each of the nine UC campuses, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and the Office of the President. It meets on a quarterly basis, rotating among campuses, to discuss issues of importance to staff and to provide feedback to the Office of the President on these issues. Its final quarterly meeting of the academic year will be at UC Irvine in June.

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