▶ UCLA Student Nominated as Student Regent:
UCLA junior Abraham Oved was nominated as the 41st UC student regent at a University of California Board of Regents special committee on Thursday, May 22. The Board is set to meet and vote on the recommendation in July. Oved will serve as student-regent designate if the nomination is approved and will not be able to vote on deliberations until July 2015. Until then, current student-regent designate and UC Berkeley student Sadia Saifudden would be collaborating with Oved on student–centered issues. She has voiced support for the nominee, calling him an “enthusiastic and capable leader, and an avid learner.” Oved has stated he wishes to focus on the state’s support for higher education, sexual violence on campuses and campus climate issues.
“I want to work with students on the ground,” Oved said. “That should be the focus of this position: empowering students and giving them the resources they need to be heard.”
Oved is finishing his third year at UCLA, majoring in economics and minoring in global studies.
▶ Rady Receives $1 Million Donation:
Local philanthropist and UCSD supporter Ernest Rady has donated a $1 million gift to the UCSD Rady School of Management. The school announced the donation on May 19, along with the information that it would be used to fund fellowships for outstanding MBA students. Rady had pledged to match 1 dollar for every 60 cents raised by the school in support of fellowships, up to $1 million.
“Without these fellowships, this type of student recruitment would not be possible,” said Rady School Dean Robert S. Sullivan. “Attracting an even greater number of talented students to the Rady School enhances the learning experience and success of all of our students.”
The fellowships are also believed to help students better take advantage of internship opportunities presented through the school by marginally reducing the financial burden of the program.
“[Ernest Rady’s] ongoing commitment to making the Rady School one of the best business schools in the world demonstrates his passion for higher education and developing a new generation of leaders,” UCSD Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla said.
Ernest Rady serves as executive chairman for the Board of American Assets Trust and is the founder of successful companies such as Insurance Company of the West, Irvine-based Westcorp Inc. and Western Financial Bank.
▶ Mandeville Gallery Renamed:
The Mandeville Center Gallery Annex has been named the Adam D. Kamil Gallery as of May 22 in remembrance of the late visual arts student and filmmaker. The naming of the gallery comes in light of the Kamil family’s $150,000 gift contribution to the Adam Douglas Kamil Media Awards, which the family established in 2009 after their son’s death. The ceremony premiered over 30 UC student films and was held at the new gallery on May 8.
The theme of the awards ceremony this year, “So What’s Your Story?” was inspired by Kamil’s propensity to document the lives of everyday people and their unique narratives, a recurring motif in his films. This year’s winning film, titled “Grandma” and directed by visual arts student Yu Chen, highlights the role our cultural background plays when communicating ideas of society, beauty and family.
“We are thrilled to know that Adam’s creative spirit will live on through the Adam D. Kamil Gallery, where students can showcase their talents, share inspiration and connect with one another,” Kamil’s mother Elaine said.
The gallery is located on the lower level of the Mandeville Center and can be used to showcase one’s work or organize a group exhibition.
▶ Napolitano, UCLA Chancellor Oppose Anti-Israel Pledge:
UCLA Chancellor Gene Block and UC President Janet Napolitano have come out against a pledge calling for all undergraduate student council offices to suspend any future trips to Israel sponsored by pro-Israeli lobbying groups. The pledge was initiated by several student organizations, including Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace. In response, seven groups supporting Israel issued a letter to the Board of Regents on May 22 demanding for the UC system to condemn the pledge:
“The SJP’s motive is clear: to manipulate the composition of the student government so it is filled with anti-Israel activists who support the SJP’s hateful agenda.”
Chancellor Block’s statement was decidedly more diplomatic.
“I am troubled that the pledge sought to delegitimize educational trips offered by some organizations but not others,” he said. “I am troubled that the pledge can reasonably be seen as trying to eliminate selected viewpoints from the discussion.”
Napolitano has parroted Block’s concerns, adding that she does not support UCLA students “who target any student seeking to participate in student government who has a relationship with, or wants to travel to, Israel on trips sponsored by certain groups.”
Four of the 13-member student council at UCLA signed the pledge on May 9, while six refused and three abstained with the promise to not take a sponsored trip.
