Wanted: someone with 'fire in the belly' to speak to regents for all staff
BY Wendy soderburg
Today staff writer
If you: a) are a career employee who has worked at UCLA for at least five years; b) care deeply about the quality of life on campus for all staff; and c), feel you have strong leadership ability, the two Daves are looking for you.
Dave Miller of UCLA and David Bell of UC San Francisco have just completed the first six months of a two-year pilot program in which they have filled a unique and historic role: as the first staff advisers to the UC Board of Regents. They’re now searching for someone to step in when Bell leaves the post in July.
Miller, manager of client services for UCLA’s Communications Technology Services, and Bell, communications liaison for UCSF’s Work-Life Resource Center, were appointed as non-voting members of the board by UC President Robert C. Dynes last spring. Both were chosen because they are the two most immediate past chairs of the Council of UC Staff Assemblies (CUCSA).
When Bell steps down, a new staff adviser will join Miller, who will continue in his role through 2006-07. The two have been traveling to UC campuses to encourage people to apply and brought their message to UCLA Dec. 13 when they joined a panel discussion hosted by UCLA’s Staff Assembly to talk about the prestigious appointment.
Panel member Lubbe Levin, assistant vice chancellor of UCLA’s Campus Human Resources and herself a strong advocate for staff involvement in university affairs, noted that as far back as 1974, university leaders realized there was a key role for staff. “But that wasn’t always the case,” she said. “People like the two Daves, and like many of you in this room, are responsible for that progress over the years.”
The regental committees on which Miller and Bell serve — Grounds and Buildings for Miller, Educational Policy for Bell — were deliberately chosen by Dynes as areas in which staff have expertise, Bell explained. The ability to serve on those committees and attend regents’ meetings requires “fire in the belly” and a substantial time commitment, Miller added. “Everywhere we go, there are people who are absolutely capable and ready to take over this role,” he said. “I’m hoping that not only will they be interested, but that they will have the level of support from their management that David and I enjoy.”
When Bell served as chair of CUCSA and he was chair-elect, Miller recalled, laughing, “We’d walk into their meetings and the regents would say, ‘Oh, the Daves are here. What are they going to do to us now? They’re going to wrestle us to the ground to get something for the staff.’
“But now,” Miller continued, “they’re starting to get a sense that we have the same passion about this university that they have, and we are very much into being collaborative. We are there to assist and support them in making good decisions for everyone, not just staff.”
Bell added, “Regent (Odessa) Johnson will tell you she felt we weren’t a whole family until the staff arrived. And now we’ve got faculty, staff, students and alumni all having some communication with the regents. A lot of times, it seemed like a terrible struggle and that it would never happen. But here we are today.”
All eligible UC staff and non-Senate academic employees who are interested in serving as the 2006-07 staff adviser can go to www.ucop.edu/staffadvisor for more details. |
