Graduate Assembly

Image by Christian Haugen

In order for the Graduate Assembly (GA) to be an effective advocate for graduate and professional student interests, it is crucial to maintain a two-way dialogue between students and their representatives. This is why the GA has launched a new initiative this semester to facilitate direct conversations between graduate students from all disciplines and GA officers and delegates. Through these discussions, you will have the opportunity to learn more about the current work done by the GA on behalf of UC Berkeley graduate students, and let the GA know which issues matter to students in your department.

The goal of “Around the Campus in 80 Days” is to organize such forums in as many departments as possible from now until the end of April 2011. This includes both departments that are currently represented by Graduate Assembly delegates as well as departments that are not currently active within the Assembly.

See the campaign calendar for the list of departmental forums scheduled so far. If your department is not listed and you are interested in having such a forum, please send a message to internal@ga.berkeley.edu .

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On February 11th, we held the first departmental forum in Earth and Planetary Science (EPS), with 15 students in attendance, along with representatives from both the GA and UAW2865 (the union representing Graduate Student Instructors). Here’s a brief report from this meeting:

• In EPS, students have a formal agreement with the department ensuring that they will be funded for the duration of their degree (through any combination of departmental grants, university grants, external fellowships, and GSI- or GSR-ships).
• Although GSI-ships are not EPS students’ primary source of funding, they still felt the impact of university-wide budget cuts on departmental resources (e.g., cutting office phone lines, relocation of administrative research support from the department to central campus).
• Students present at this meeting seemed favorable to the idea of a UC-wide “Graduate Student Bill of Rights” and suggested including it in information packets sent to incoming graduate students.

Each year Berkeley hosts the Empowering Women of Color Conference (EWOCC), the nation’s oldest and longest running conference for women of color. This year’s conference–entitled Building Across Difference: Inciting a Movement of Our Own–returns on Saturday, February 19. It will be held from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm in the Martin Luther King, Jr. Student Union. The focus of this day-long event is mental health awareness and building internal and external links. Come see keynote addresses by Angela Davis, Ericka Huggins, and Dylcia Pagan, hear musical performances by fantastic local performers, and participate in workshops and panel discussions. Registration is free for UC Berkeley students and can be done online before February 11th or on site on the 19th. For more information and the complete schedule visit ewocc.berkeley.edu or email woci@ga.berkeley.edu. To get inspired for this year’s event, check out the video from last year’s conference.

GA President, Miguel Daal, at Anthony Hall

“Grad students don’t hear about us unless we’re not doing our job,” says Miguel Daal, doctoral candidate in Physics and three-term Graduate Assembly (GA) President. Thus many of the GA chief executive’s activities, like helping to set RSF hours or advocating to keep the Tang Center open during spring break, go unnoticed.

So what does the GA President’s job entail? Most of Daal’s time goes to orchestrating, preparing for, and attending meetings. In addition to the monthly GA delegate meetings, Daal has separate monthly meetings with the Chancellor, Academic Senate Chair, and Graduate Division Dean. The GA President, not the University administrators, sets the agenda, ensuring it reflects the desires of the Graduate Assembly. These meetings provide a forum for addressing issues that impact graduate students and they help to maintain relationships between the graduate student government, the campus administration, and the Associated Students of the University of California (ASUC). Read the rest of this entry »

Photo by AC Transit

Graduate students often live further away from campus, relying on the bus to ferry them between work and home. Are you concerned about or affected by recent AC transit service cuts? The Graduate Assembly is hosting a meeting with AC transit staff where students can give their opinions about these changes and it’s important that graduate students participate.

The meeting is today, Monday, November 15, from 12 to 1:30 pm in the Senate Chambers on the first floor of Eshleman Hall.

Even though AC transit reached an agreement with the union last week that averted dramatic service changes in December, service cuts have already been made this month and more are anticipated for 2011. Issues around bus transportation promise to be ongoing and graduate student input is much needed.

Photo by Telstar Logistics

Who doesn’t love coffee hour? You can sip coffee and talk with friends while taking a much needed break from work. Now there’s a new coffee hour on campus. Once a week, the Graduate Assembly (GA) will be hosting a coffee hour where graduate and professional students can stop by to learn more about the GA, talk about issues, and give feedback. To accommodate different schedules, the GA coffee hour will rotate days and times. Next week swing by Anthony Hall on Monday, the 11th, at 3 pm to chat with friends, meet GA officers and delegates, and enjoy some freshly brewed coffee (or tea, if you prefer). For future coffee hour dates and time, check the GA website.

Editor’s note: To reduce waste, bring your own mug if you can.

Photo by Troy Holden

The GSC holds it’s first event of the year — the annual back-to-school party — tonight at the Alumni House from 6-9. For $5 you get all the pizza and beer you can hold. Two local beers are on tap tonight: Trumer Pils and Speakeasy Big Daddy IPA. GSC parties typically draw between 500 and 600 grad students, so there’s no better way to meet people from across campus.

The Graduate Women’s Project is sponsoring a contest to find cover art for the updated Graduate Women’s Resource Guide. Submit your drawing, painting, photograph, or graphic image related to women and community by Friday, July 30, at 5 pm. The lucky winner will receive a $100 gift certificate to the University Press Bookstore.

Are you looking for part-time work for the coming year? The GA is trying to fill two positions, the Graduate Global Development Project Coordinator and the Chief of Staff to the Vice President of Campus Affairs, as soon as possible. View the complete job postings here.

The Graduate Global Development Project (GGD) is a new position devoted to connecting graduate students who are interested in global health and development with each other and relevant resources on the UC Berkeley campus. The GGD’s goal is to foster a vibrant, multi-disciplinary community of students and faculty whose work relates to global development. The project coordinator’s responsibilities will include:

• developing opportunities for students interested in global health and development to meet, learn, and collaborate,
• connecting interested graduate students with opportunities to get involved in global development research and training,
• organizing, in collaboration with campus centers and student groups, an annual UC Berkeley Global Engagement Day,
• identifying and publicizing relevant coursework, funding, and internship opportunities on campus,
• and, participating in the development of campus norms with respect to global engagement.

Qualified candidates should be current UC Berkeley graduate students, knowledgeable about international issues, able to plan large events and network with the campus community, have experience fundraising for events, be organized and have good communication skills. The project coordinator will work 14 hours a week over a 10-month period and receives a $896 monthly stipend. To apply or for a complete job description, please email Elizabeth De la Torre at projects@ga.berkeley.edu.

The Chief of Staff (COS) to the Campus Affairs Vice President (CAVP) works closely with the CAVP to identify and resolve campus-level issues facing UC Berkeley’s graduate student population. The COS’s responsibilities include:

• attending GA meetings with the CAVP and taking minutes during these meetings,
• planning campus affairs committee meetings,
• and, working in collaboration with the CAVP and the Assistant Dean of Student to select committee members to review applications for the Faculty Mentor Award.

Candidates should be current UC Berkeley graduate students, knowledgable about the GA, responsive to email, able to attend meetings on short notice, strong writing and interpersonal skills, well organized and comfortable with multi-tasking. This is a 10-month position, requiring approximately 10-12 hours of work per week, with a $600 monthly stipend. For more information or to apply, please email cavp@ga.berkeley.edu.