Thousands heed UC's e-mail appeal
BY ANNE BURKE
UCLA Today Staff
Christine Wessel never had a college fund. Her dad died when she
was 13, and his small life insurance policy didn’t go far.
Despite her lack of money, she was able to earn two prestigious
degrees — a bachelor’s from UC Santa Barbara and an
’04 UCLA law degree that recently helped her land a job with
a big international firm.
Wessel figures she owes a lot to the UC system. So when the UCLA
Alumni Association sent the Laguna Niguel resident an e-mail asking
her to join a campaign to fight for UC funding, Wessel agreed immediately.
Using a software program that makes it easy to communicate with
lawmakers, she wrote an e-mail to state Sen. Dick Ackerman, R-Tustin,
urging him to “make financial support for California’s
public universities a top priority.”
“I feel very strongly that providing an education for those
who are less privileged than others is imperative,” said Wessel,
32.
Wessel is among the growing ranks of alumni and other affiliates
who are heeding UC President Robert C. Dynes’ call to help
convince state government officials that an adequate budget is crucial
for the future of California and public higher education.
So far, more than 6,400 friends of the UC system — among
them, 1,120 UCLA alumni — have responded to Dynes’ appeal,
flooding the e-mail inboxes of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Senate
and Assembly representatives with reminders of the important role
that UC plays in California’s economy and quality of life.
At UCLA, the Alumni Association distributed Dynes’ appeal
in a special e-mail blast last month to more than 94,000 California
alumni. Systemwide, more than a quarter million Californians have
received the Dynes letter.
At press time, similar e-mail appeals were planned in coming weeks
for UCLA students, staff and faculty. Because of prohibitions on
political activity by UC employees, staff and faculty should not
use university time, equipment or supplies in the advocacy effort,
said Manuel Baldenegro, director of advocacy programs for UCLA Government
and Community Relations. These restrictions do not apply to students.
The UC campaign uses software provided by a Berkeley-based company
called GetActive that helps large organizations, especially those
in the nonprofit and education sectors, engage members in advocacy
campaigns.
Using a member’s nine-digit ZIP code, GetActive finds names
and e-mail addresses for appropriate state Assembly and Senate representatives,
as well as Gov. Schwarzenegger. Members may send a form letter or
craft their own message, as Wessel did. For those who want to buttress
their argument with hard facts, the software makes available easy-to-read
reports about UC’s contributions to the California economy
and the potential impact of budget cuts.
The campaign comes as budget wrangling kicks into high gear with
the unveiling of the governor’s revised budget proposal later
this month.
But with no end in sight to California’s budget woes, the
advocacy campaign will continue far into the future, said Keith
S. Parker, assistant vice chancellor for government and community
relations.
“What we’re doing is raising people’s consciousness
about the importance of the university to California’s economic
well-being,” Parker said.
For more about UC advocacy, visit www.ucforcalifornia.org/campaign/uclaaction.
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