• printer friendly
• mail this article
• iPod format
• digg

Photo

Vice Chancellor Steve Olsen was appointed to the California Performance Review.

The man behind most of UCLA’s fiscal decisions, Vice Chancellor Steve Olsen, will soon be working with politicians, policy experts and the general public in an attempt to make the state’s financial structure more transparent and effective.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently appointed the longtime Bruin a commissioner to the California Performance Review.

The California Performance Review is an organization established by Schwarzenegger that is meant to “restructure, reorganize, and reform state government to make it more responsive to the needs of its citizens and the business community,” according to the performance review Web site.

The commission’s work has yet to begin, but Olsen soon will juggle his new responsibility with his job at UCLA.

In February 1999 Olsen – a UCLA alumnus – returned to UCLA as an administrator after a 22-year break from the campus.

“To me (UCLA is) home, and I felt part of this place even before I arrived,” Olsen said.

Not many students on campus know who Olsen is or what his job as vice chancellor for finance and budget entails, but he plays a significant role in the university’s finances.

As the chief planning and budget officer, Olsen coordinates a number of activities with specific attention to strategic planning and budget decision making.

“Essentially I’m the chancellor’s chief financial adviser. … I look at everything from enrollment planning to the analysis of academic proposals,” Olsen said.

His work and experience in the budget office has earned him the recognition of the governor.

Olsen said he has been aware of the governor’s desire to enact a review commission for quite some time. Shortly after Schwarzenegger was elected to office, Olsen was asked to examine the Department of General Services – in the same way Olsen has now been called to examine California’s economy.

“I took a few days off and had a chance to meet the incoming members (of Schwarzenegger’s administration), and that’s when I learned they had an interest in this (review)”, Olsen said.

Olsen has advocated the idea of examining the state of California’s economy for a number of years and says that such an investigation can facilitate better the efficiency and effectiveness of the process.

Despite the large of amount of work required to assess the state’s fiscal structure, Olsen feels he will be able to balance his work as vice chancellor with his work on the commission.

“Part of all our jobs is public service … and I have the full support of the chancellor to spend whatever time I need,” Olsen said.

Though the commission’s work may not have any direct effect on the university, Olsen says he hopes UCLA will be able to benefit from his new post.

“My hope is that if we can find new ways of running business practices more efficiently and effectively, then the university will be able to take advantage of it,” Olsen said.

Ultimately the pressure on UCLA’s budget and students’ wallets could be alleviated if innovative practices are discovered, he added.

The new commission of 21 professionals – of which Olsen is now a member – will hold a number of public hearings, gather information, and provide recommendations to the governor, said Ashley Snee, a spokeswoman for Schwarzenegger.

In addition, the commission is comprised of local business leaders, members of the labor community, government officials and public policy professionals, Snee said.

“The commission will facilitate the public input process of the California Performance Review,” Schwarzenegger said in a June 28 press release.

The most important aspect of the commission, Schwarzenegger said, was the intent to garner public opinion – a goal the governor has advocated since the beginning of his term.