The May 2020 campus elections saw the appointment of new leaders to the Student Union Assembly (SUA). But low voter turnout resulted in the failure of all ballot measures, which would have funded campus programs and made an amendment to the SUA constitution. 

May 2020 Ballot Measures

The May ballot listed two measures and an SUA constitutional amendment, all of which failed due to low student voter turnout.

The campus-based fee measures required 25 percent of the student body vote to meet the minimum voting pool and that at least two-thirds of this pool vote “yes” to pass. With less than 11 percent of the undergraduate population, or about 1,800 students, voting in May, the measures automatically failed.

Measure 74 would have renewed funding for the Sustainability Office for the next ten years, allowing them to continue to support their payroll. Measure 75 would have helped secure permanent space for student programs, including Slug Support, Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), and campus recovery space The Cove.

In a similar story, the SUA constitutional amendment required that 20 percent of the undergraduate body vote and approve with a simple majority to pass. With exactly 1,700 total votes, or 10.71 percent of students, the amendment failed.

The amendment would have made changes to multiple parts of the constitution, including to the student organization representative structure and adding a section defining the process to minimize conflicts of interest in the SUA space.

SUA Officers 2020-21

The SUA, a student-run and student-funded assembly, is responsible for representing the needs, interests, and priorities of UCSC’s undergraduate body.

President: Shivika Sivakumar

As president, Sivakumar’s main goals are to rebuild connections with students and organizations and increase transparency in the SUA space to better address campus issues. Sivakumar ran on a six-point platform that includes a crisis management task force, an online help desk service, and supporting other student spaces. She previously served as the vice president of external affairs for the College Nine Senate in the 2019-2020 academic year. 

President: As principal spokesperson and leader of the undergraduate student body, the SUA president facilitates collaboration between the SUA and students. They also serve as the undergraduate representative in communication with the UCSC administration.
Vice President of Internal Affairs: Chloe Mietzel

Mietzel served as a government affairs intern for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation in Washington, D.C., where she developed a passion for advocacy that she wanted to bring to campus. As VPIA, she wants to increase communication between the SUA and student organizations and create a better sense of community on the UCSC campus.

VPIA: The VPIA oversees all internal workings of the SUA. Chairing the Student Committee on Committees (SCOC), they ensure there is a student voice on various campus committees that work on educational policy, financial aid, the university’s budget, and more. Any campus issues brought forth by the SCOC, Engaging Education, or the Campus Sustainability Council go through the VPIA.
VPIA Chloe Mietzel. Photo courtesty of Mietzel.
Vice President of External Affairs: Rojina Bozorgnia

Previously the Stevenson Student Council vice chair and SUA representative, Bozorgnia plans to continue working towards keeping tuition flat, increasing civic engagement, reforming campus election procedures, and protecting DACA and international students. She also wants to make sure she builds and maintains relationships with campus administrators and elected officials on the local, state, and federal levels.

VPDI Saxon Stahl. Photo courtesy of Stahl.
Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion: Saxon Stahl

As a member of both the Indigenious and LGBTQIA+ communities, Stahl is passionate about changing spaces for the betterment of underrepresented groups. They plan to advocate for and center the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) community by increasing scholarships for African, Black, and Caribbean (ABC) identified students, advocating for the ethnic resource centers on campus, and hosting events that highlight Indigenous representations in media.

VPDI: The VPDI communicates with the campus’s resource centers, outreach and retention programs, and Educational Opportunities Program (EOP). Their responsibilities include chairing the Diversity Commission and communicating with offices that handle Title IX hate/bias reports.
Vice President of Academic Affairs: David Miller Shevelev

As the former Disability Student Union representative to the SUA, Shevelev plans to increase accessibility on campus through initiatives such as adequate staffing of disability services, advocating for student-led disability cultural centers, and disability centered living and learning communities.

VPAA: The VPAA is the main contact between the student body, faculty, and administration regarding academics. They sit on the Academic Senate Committee on Educational Policy and meet twice quarterly with the Student Academic Senate to hear student concerns about academic policy.
VPAA David Miller Shevelev. Photo courtesy of Shevelev.
VPSL Bella Bullock. Photo courtesy of Bullock.
Vice President of Student Life: Bella Bullock

Entering her third year as VPSL, Bullock plans to continue her initiatives to tackle food insecurity and mental health awareness on campus. She aims to collaborate with student organizations on campus and host large scale events like cooking classes, CalFresh workshops, and mental health workshops.

VPSL: The VPSL is responsible for communicating between the SUA and student organizations. They also coordinate student events throughout the year and strive to improve the student experience.