After UC Davis ended its membership with the UC Students Association last year, the organization is contemplating ways to improve its visibility, connection and benefits to students.

UCSA, the board that unites student governments at UC campuses, started during the era of the Civil Rights Movement and campus protests against the Vietnam War, and requires membership dues to be paid from each campus to fund lobbying for legislation benefiting higher education.

As a member, UCLA contributes about $82,719 from its graduate and undergraduate student fees annually, said Tina Park, the UCSA board member for UCLA.

UC Davis voted against paying its dues last year because increasing membership dues made it unaffordable. They have instead invested the money in private lobbying efforts, said Darnell Holloway, president of Associated Students of UC Davis.

UC Davis now contracts a lobbying group for about $17,000 less than the UCSA dues.

He added that because members of their student government are working and being trained personally with lobbyists in Sacramento, it seems their work and money is put to more efficient use.

Holloway also said a tenuous relationship to UCSA stemmed from financial matters, and UCSA representatives from UC Davis complained frequently that their opinions were not heard.

“We still send a (UC Davis representative) to UCSA meetings, so there is interaction,” Holloway said of maintaining a connection with other UC campuses on legislative issues. “We’re not trying to isolate ourselves.”

UC Santa Barbara, in contrast, upped the ante last year by passing a referendum increasing the amount each student pays to UCSA. UCSB now gives more than $100,000 annually to UCSA in membership dues, Park said.

Because Park said she believes UCSA lobbies and spends money on issues most important to all UC students, UCLA is nowhere near parting with the organization.

Putting a stop to student fee hikes, increasing Cal Grant awards, and getting students registered to vote have recently been UCSA’s primary goals, Park said. UCSA is there to advocate other causes its members deem important, she added, citing efforts in urging the UC to divest from Sudan last year.

Specifically, UCSA is lobbying the state legislature to maintain more funds for academic preparation programs and pass AB 175 and AB 302, which are aimed at increasing Cal Grants.

This past weekend, in a joint effort with student governments from the California State University and the California Community College system, UCSA members met with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s office and state lawmakers personally to discuss these issues.

Next week, UCSA will also be testifying at a higher education subcommittee hearing and showing letters from more than 5,000 students against fee increases, said Bill Shiebler, UCSA president.

“We’re also tracking the budget process,” Shiebler said of UCSA’s efforts to research and influence the amount of money allotted for education in the state budget.

Among the priorities listed for UCSA’s own budget in its January 2007 minutes are improved visibility, better office equipment, increased field organization department, expanded staff, increased grassroots activism and alumni/parent development.

Park said UCSA also realizes its obligation to improve communication between students and campuses.

In order to mediate and improve relations between all campuses, UCSA is in the process of budgeting more student lobbying efforts, field representatives and a more resourceful Web site.

“As board members, we are trying to step it up by sending as many students as we can to lobbying conferences,” Park said. “It’s really important to us to let students know they have resources outside of their own campus. That’s a big fringe benefit of UCSA to students – it connects all the UCs.”

Right now UCSA is accepting job applications for a field organizer, a new staff member who will go to UC campuses throughout the year to help support UCSA campaigns.

Because UCSA is based in Oakland, Park said the organization does not get as strong a connection to some campuses.

“We need a person traveling to campuses because students will get more face-to-face contact with UCSA,” she said.

Park also said organizers will try to improve communication between all UC students and UCSA by updating the coalition’s Web site.

“The Web site is a big thing to us,” Park said. “We want to update it so it will be more attractive and resourceful to students who need our help.”

In order to improve relations with UC Davis, Shiebler said he looks forward to conversing with the UC Davis Graduate Student Association, which is still part of UCSA.

Shiebler said though UC Davis does not pay dues and is not an official member of UCSA, UCSA represents the interests of UC Davis students no matter what.

Last year was not the first time a campus has discontinued its membership to UCSA. UC Davis had already done so in 1993, followed by UC Berkeley in 1994. UC Davis had deactivated because of a dispute over a political process within the organization and UC Berkeley left because representatives from that campus felt UCSA was “inefficient” and “invisible.”

Both eventually came back.