Students advocate for bill package as Lobby Month approaches

Lobby Corps letter campaign happening now

Written by DANIELLE HUDDLESTUN
News Writer
Published on April 26, 2012
Filed under Campus News, Top Stories

Beginning in May, the students of Lobby Corps will be traveling to the state capitol at least three times per week in order to lobby for their bill package. Lobby Corps is an advocacy unit under ASUCD. The group works on behalf of UC Davis students at the state capitol to lobby for bills that will benefit the student body. “All legislation is relative to higher education and looked at from a student’s perspective. They relate to three aims: transparency, affordability and accountability,” said Bihter Ozedirne, Director of Lobby Corps. There are 10 bills that the students are lobbying for, all falling under the categories of corporation taxes, student financial aid, public postsecondary education and postsecondary education. “Holding the UC Regents and respective administrations accountable will evaluate the quality of academics and services provided to students. Assembly Bill 2190 establishes a California Higher Education Authority which will monitor and report on the progress and quality of the postsecondary systems,” said Kevin Pascual, Internal Director of Lobby Corps. “The transparency aspect... ...

Thirsty (for knowledge) Thursdays

During your time at UC Davis, there is a good chance you will end up taking a class you neither need nor like. Occasionally, these classes are harder than they seem. However, let’s say you recognize your disdain for the subject too late, and you can’t drop the class. What do you do then? Luckily there is a solution: if you are in good academic standing, you may request to take the class on a pass/no pass (P/NP) basis. Though some students believe that taking a class P/NP looks poor on a transcript, it is often a better option than receiving a poor grade in a class and duly lowering your overall grade-point average. There are also a few other benefits that make this option more appealing. For example, if you are a science major who is 100 percent positive that you want to switch into the College of Letters and Science after you fail a chemistry midterm, it makes sense to complete that class P/NP. That way, the poor... ...

Women’s Water Polo Preview

Event: Big West Conference Championships Records: Aggies 17-12(4-1); TBD Where: Schaal Aquatics Center When: 4:15 p.m. Who to Watch: If defense wins games, then the Aggies can sleep soundly at night knowing they have two solid goalkeepers. Senior Rachel Tatsuko just earned the Big West Conference Player of the Week for her shut-down performances. Tatsuko, who splits time with regular starter junior Riane Woods, started against Cal State Northridge and San Jose State. Woods also got the same recognition about a month ago. Tatsuko helped the Aggies upset No. 8 San Jose State with two steals and 12 saves, that included three stops in 6-on-5 situations. Did you know? The UC Davis women’s water polo program is currently ranked 11th in the nation. Yet, they are not the top-ranked team in the conference. UC Irvine holds a perfect 5-0 record in conference and is ranked No. 6 in the country. The Anteaters defeated the Aggies 10-4 earlier this season in Irvine. Preview: It would appear that things are going the... ...

Column: The real life

When you leave for a year-long exchange, you put your previous life on pause and start creating a new one from scratch at your temporary home. Obviously, Skype and Facebook help to keep in touch with family and friends back home, but it is the new (and live!) friendships that you’re really interested in developing. How often do you get a chance to meet so many new, interesting people who also are in the same life-changing situation as you?! This year was supposed to be my American experience. It actually turned out to be our experience set in the American background. It just so happens that the group of people I hang out with are mostly exchange students. I guess it’s natural in a new, strange environment to stick to your own kind. And in this 30,000 plus community, my kind was other exchangees. We all met on our first week in Davis, starting with the essential trip to IKEA followed by an international students orientation, frozen yogurt at YoloBerry,... ...

The Shins at the Mondavi Center

On Monday, The Shins played at the Mondavi Center and filled the sold-out place to the brim with their musical vibrancy. James Mercer, with his singularly potent talent and his variously skilled supporting cast, jingled on stage with their often wistful, strangely melancholic, yet joyful tunes. They performed for about an hour and a half, mixing it up between Port of Morrow, their most recent and perhaps too under appreciated album, and the hits. Those ranged from “New Slang,” “Phantom Limb,” “Pink Bullets” and so on, forcing everyone in the audience who didn’t already know that, wow, they have a huge array of truly excellent songs. Anyone who was worried about The Shins (given Mercer’s relatively recent drift off into Broken Bells, a shoot-off pop-indie attempt met with decent success) probably need not be. The Shins are not dead. They are far from dead. They are very much alive. It is worth noting, however, that while their live sound is crisp, it is not flawless. They come off best in... ...

Preliminary Picnic Day Statistics

Picnic Day statistics are compiled between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. Sunday, Davis police and the agencies assisting them. 2012: Arrests: 53, for public intoxication: 37, four will face criminal charges Citations: 150, open-container of alcohol: 91 (88 issued in the Safety Enhancement Zone encompassing Downtown Davis and Old North Davis), minor in possession of alcohol: 26 2011: Arrests: 54, for public intoxication: 32 Citations: 207, open-container of alcohol: 124 (118 in the Downtown Davis Safety Enhancement Zone), minor in possession of alcohol: 37 2010: 38 arrests (30 misdemeanor, 6 felony), 60 citations 2009: 32 arrests (30 misdemeanor, 2 felony), 83 citations 2008: 19 arrests (17 misdemeanor, 2 felony), 101 citations 2007: 19 arrests (all misdemeanors), 98 citations — Angela Swartz ...

City Lovin’

Sophomore pitcher Evan Wolf took a no-hitter into the seventh inning to lead UC Davis to victory over San Francisco in his first collegiate win. The Aggie bats picked up 12 hits to support Wolf’s outing, with four different players recording two hits apiece. UC Davis put five runs on the board, and Wolf’s stellar pitching held the Dons’ bats at bay. With the 5-2 victory, UC Davis improves to 15-20 overall. “The team put it on themselves to be better in midweek games and on Sundays and for [Wolf] to come out and respond to that for his first collegiate win is pretty special,” said head coach Matt Vaughn. Wolf, making his fourth start of the season, gave UC Davis the big midweek performance it has been looking for. The Clovis, Calif. native retired the first six batters he faced before giving up a leadoff walk in the third inning. Wolf then put down the next seven Dons before hitting a batter with one out in the fifth inning.... ...

Q&A with Music on the Green bands

Music on the Green, an event that takes place in Central Park on Sunday, April 29 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. brings entertainment and food for both the campus and Davis community during a free outdoor event. It is put on by ASUCD External Affairs Commission, Entertainment Council, Environmental Policy and Planning Commission, Campus Center for the Environment, Project Compost, the Davis Flea Market and the City of Davis. The Aggie had the opportunity to interview the bands that were set to perform this weekend. Jordan’s Beard What is the origin of your band’s name? Our bassist is Jordan. He has a long beard that is dyed red in the center. It’s tough to name a band and we had to choose a name because we had a show so we said let’s just name it after Jordan’s beard. It is a terrible name, but it stuck. Jordan is the most lovable person ever so that helps. If you were to describe your band, what would you say? The... ...

RENT

One of the most celebrated rock musicals, RENT, is set to arrive at Wyatt Pavilion this season. Studio 301, a UC Davis student theatre group, is proud to announce their own staging of RENT, the gritty musical about the struggle for creative freedom, recognition and love when the HIV/AIDS epidemic was quickly changing the NYC landscape. Studio 301’s RENT will have a two week run from May 10 to 13 and 17 to 20. Mitchell Vanlandingham serves as the staging director and Elizabeth Tremaine is the musical director for this upcoming production. Tremaine took some time out of her busy schedule to provide some insight about the show. MUSE: Please tell us a little about yourself and your role in this production of RENT. TREMAINE: I’m a recent graduate of UC Davis, where I majored in psychology with minors in neuroscience and theatre. I am the musical director for this production of RENT. What made you decide to get involved with this production? Mitchell and I proposed RENT to Studio 301, the... ...

Editorial: Students for sale

Over the last six months, UC Davis has come under heavy scrutiny for the administration’s treatment of students. A lot of time and money have been spent on administrative reviews aimed at bettering the relationship between police, admins, and the students they serve. While such criticism is fully deserved, it fails to address the reason why students are protesting in the first place: The cost of our university education is going up and the quality is going down. It’s been said before, and we’ll say it again – college education should be more than just a resume item. As students in the University of California system, we are credited with being members of the intellectual elite, but we’re treated more like Model Fords on an assembly line. Surely with a bachelor’s degree comes a deeper, more complex understanding of the world than was held at the unripened age of 18. But it doesn’t seem that UC Davis is doing much to accelerate this process. By senior year, we’re better at speaking... ...

Column: TV guide

I’m sure I speak for a majority of college students when I say that our favorite activity of the day, besides eating, is watching television. We may claim to be extremely busy and exhausted, but at the end of the day we find 30 minutes to fit in an episode of “Modern Family” to reward ourselves for our “hard work.” One of my apartment-mates sets aside at least an hour at the end of his day to watch a television show or two. Oh, only easy majors have time to watch television? Well, here’s some food for thought … he’s a mechanical engineer who still makes time for his nightly “Lipstick Jungle” or “Desperate Housewives.” Because we’re cheap, we don’t pay for cable. But thanks to technology, we have access to Hulu Plus and Netflix, allowing us to watch whatever we want, whenever we want. In addition to today’s technology and advances in mass media we can find virtually anything online moments after they are aired. Now, when I do... ...

Arts Week

DANCE 9th Annual UC Davis Dance Team Showcase Friday at 6:30 p.m. & Saturday at 10 p.m., $5 Brunelle Performance Hall at Davis High School, 315 W 14th St. This annual showcase serves as the Davis Dance Team’s largest fundraiser, bringing choreography and entertainment specifically for this show. Tickets can be purchased at the door or from any dance team member. Dance Dance Davis: Free classes Monday at 6 – 8 p.m., University Club Dance Studio May 2 at 8:30 p.m., Davis Art Center Shelly Gilbride, doctor in performance studies, theatre and dance alumna, local arts consultant and dancer, is recruiting at least 100 people from Davis for a flashmob dance performance to take place at a surprise Davis location on May 9 at 6:15 p.m. These dance classes serve as opportunities for those interested to contribute dance steps to the show. For more information, visit theatredance.ucdavis.edu. FILM UC Davis Film Festival The UC Davis Film Festival is looking for entries of any UCD student film made in the past... ...

Men’s Tennis preview

Event: Big West Conference Championships Teams: UC Davis vs. University of Pacific Records: Aggies, 5-15; Tigers, 8-14 Where: Indian Wells Tennis Garden — Indian Wells, Calif. When: Friday at 11:00 am Who to watch: Junior Toki Sherbakov is one of The Aggies’ more thrilling players to watch, as he posted a strong performance against the University of Hawaii at Hilo on Tuesday. In the Aggies’ victory over the Vulcans, Sherbakov helped secure the doubles point with teammate Josh Albert. He cruised during his No.1 singles match, winning 6-1, 6-3. Did you know? The Aggies and the Tigers met in the third match of the season. Pacific came away with a 6-1 win over UC Davis. The Aggies lost all six singles matches and only one doubles match to the Tigers. Preview: The Aggies begin their quest to a Big West Championship with a match against the No.4 seeded Tigers. The Aggies ended the season on a positive note, winning two out of four matches, including a conference victory over UC Riverside. UC... ...

Column: I know those girls

There’s a lot to be said about the new aptly titled HBO series, “Girls”, and most of it already has been written by TV columnists, feminist critics, New York critics, feminist New York critics and other experts in the world of circle-scarfdom. “Girls” is a show created by Lena Dunham. She stars as Hannah, a 24-year-old in New York who, at the onset of the series, is cut-off by her parents. Hannah lives in the very real world of unpaid internships, artistic aspirations and premature ejaculations. She and her friends struggle with relationships, dinner parties and trying to figure out if that stuff that gets around the side of the condom can give you HIV, which will then lead to AIDS. There is a certain aspect to this show that is so relevant to me and our generation that it’s almost hard to watch because you already know how a scene will play out. I mean this as in it’s relatable, not predictable. When I asked a friend of mine... ...

Who’s that Aggie?

Editor’s note: In Who’s That Aggie?, The California Aggie finds a student on campus and investigates their background and experiences at UC Davis. When junior computer science major Joey Fusco walks into a room, the energy shifts in his favor. He moves quickly and speaks even swifter. Fusco sports a slight smudge on the right shoulder of his shirt and a greenish bruise on the inside of his right arm as he extends his hand to shake. “People never guess that I do what I do,” Fusco said. He leans back in his chair with both hands now resting behind his head. “It’s usually not until they see my Facebook that they find out that I skydive.” In fact, Fusco is an avid skydiver. In his three years practicing what he calls a sport, Fusco has taken over 500 jumps. The allure began in a civics class during Fusco’s senior year of high school. His teacher, Mr. Gissell, informed those interested to meet at the school parking lot the Monday... ...