VOLUME VOLUME 45, 45, ISSUE ISSUE 39 39
WWW.UCSDGUARDIAN.ORG WWW.UCSDGUARDIAN.ORG
MONDAY, MARCH THURSDAY, MARCH12, 12,2012 2012
SPECIAL ELECTION
THIS WEEK
Division I referendum Fails Nearly 60 percent of students voted “no” on the historic referendum that would have increased student fees to move UCSD to Division I athletics. By angela chen • Editor in Chief
U
J ody M ak /G uardian
Asayake Taiko performed at the annual Nikkei Student Union culture show on Saturday, March 10, 2012.
2012-13 A.S. CANDIDATES BOLD KAREN LIANG CLINTON RODRIGUEZ LEAH WONG PAULINE NUTH
PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT OF STUDENT LIFE VICE PRESIDENT OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS VICE PRESIDENT OF FINANCE AND RESOURCES
INDEPENDENT ALI ATHAR CODY MARSHALL
PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT OF STUDENT LIFE
STUDENT VOICE ELIZABETh GARCIA
PRESIDENT
TIDE MEGGIE LE JEREMY AKIYAMA OLAMIDE NOAH
B rian Y ip /G uardian
BRYAN CASSELLA
UCSD track finished first at the San Diego Collegiate Challenge on March 10.
PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT OF STUDENT LIFE VICE PRESIDENT OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS VICE PRESIDENT OF FINANCE AND RESOURCES
CAMPUS CLIMATE
ndergraduates will not pay a $495 annual increase to move UCSD athletics to Division I. In an unprecedented turn of events, over half the undergraduate population voted on the D-I referendum during the two-week special election, failing the increase by approximately 2,000 votes. If passed, the referendum would have been the first step for UCSD to advance from the D-II California College Athletic Association Conference — where it has been since 2000 — to the D-I Big West conference, which includes fellow UC schools such as Santa Barbara, Davis and Irvine. Students would have paid the fee increase only if the Big West conference accepted UCSD by 2014. The Big West rejected UCSD in December 2010. “It’s a disappointing result because it feels like the people I represent as an athlete don’t appreciate or respect what I do,” senior track captain Nick Howe said. “It’s not just fun and games. We go out there and it’s hard work, and we’re representing UCSD. Even though we’ve had success, my successors would be so much greater if UCSD was a D-I program.” [Ed. note: Howe is the Guardian’s Associate Sports Editor.] According to the A.S. Advocate General Courtney Hill, 11, 407 undergraduates (51 percent) voted, with 6470 “no” votes (approximately 60 percent) to 4673 “yes” votes (approximately 40 percent). Of the six colleges, Warren College had the highest voter turnout. Hill said that the 51-percent turnout is the highest in school history, especially as election turnout usually hovers around 20 percent. The special election saw the referendum become a See D-I, page 3
UC SYSTEM
Black Resource Center in the Works UCSB Disabilities Lawsuit Moves Ahead By ANGELA CHEN Editor in Chief
The Black Student Union may move to a new black resource center. Currently, the BSU shares resource space with the MEChA, or Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan. BSU Chair Allyssa Villanueva and BSU Vice Chair Olamide Noah presented their proposal — compiled after two years of research — at the Campus Climate Council on March 8. The CCC meeting is held on the second Thursday of
every month. The BSU is asking for a fully operational, professionally staffed resource center that could be located in areas such as the Old Student Center. This request was part of the 19 demands originally issued by the BSU in March 2010, all of which Chancellor Marye Anne Fox approved. “Sharing spaces reproduces the invisibility and hyper-visibility of black students on campus,” Villanueva said. “A lot of first-year students feel that going into shared spaces like the Cross-Cultural center is not enough — there’s still no
sSPOKEN
“
FORECAST
We say ‘respect everyone, but fear no one.’”
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black students in the space, no black faculty.” According to Noah, most of the other UC schools — including UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, UC Berkeley and UC Riverside — have black resource centers. Currently, black and African students number 418 undergraduates out of 22,162, or 1.8 percent. This is the lowest number in the UC system, Noah said. Black and African students currently comprise 3 percent of the UC system in total.
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A federal judge has rejected a motion to dismiss a disability lawsuit filed by a UC Santa Barbara senior. On Feb. 27, U.S. District Judge Philip Gutierrez denied a motion to throw out Alexander Stern vs. University of California because the defendants, the UC Regents and other individuals, did not meet with plaintiff Alexander Stern before filing a motion to dismiss, as is required. Stern filed a lawsuit against the University of California in October 2011
See CENTER, page 3
NIGHT WATCH
Monday
Tuesday
CHELSEA CARLISLe
UCSD Women’s Basketball Senior Team Captain
By Zev Hurwitz Associate News Editor
Wednesday Thursday
See LAWSUIT, page 2
GAS PER GALLON
SURF REPORT monday Height: 1 ft. Wind: 2-10 mph Water Temp: 58 F
Tuesday Height: 1-1.5 ft. Wind: 5-10 mph Water Temp:58 F
Wednesday Height: 1 ft. Wind: 4-11 mph Water Temp: 58 F
Thursday Height: 1.5-2 ft. Wind: 4-10 mph Water Temp: 58 F
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INSIDE Birdland..................................2 Lights and Sirens....................3 At Wit’s End............................4 Letter to the Editor.................5 Restaurant Review...............10 Sudoku...................................9 Sports...................................12