Piyalli and good morning regents,
Every Board meeting this year, I have made a point to remind us all of the land on which we meet. In addition to acknowledging the Tongva as the stewards of the land, it is important that these acknowledgements are not hollow words but rather bring visibility to Indigenous communities and the continued harm that affects them. Yesterday, as you all know was Cinco de mayo, however the majority of Mexicans do not actually celebrate it. So instead, I would like to acknowledge yesterday, May 5th to raise awareness and honor the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. 84.3% of Indigenous women have experienced violence in their lifetime and over 56.1% of Native women have experienced sexual violence.
Today will be my final address for the 26-27 academic year. Between now and the next time this board convenes, UCGPC will go through their election process. I am accountable to the students I represent and ultimately the decision of who will be in this role come July 1st is in their hands. So, with that I would like to extend my gratitude to this board and the staff of UCOP who have worked collaboratively and reciprocally with the UCGPC board over the last year. Being here has been a privilege and not one I take for granted. It has been one of my greatest honors to have the trust of my fellow colleagues to represent the graduate and professional students from across all ten campuses.
Lastly before moving to UCGPC’s updates, I want to extend my gratitude to Chair Reilly for always setting the example of poise, strength, and action. Her leadership and philanthropic work have been a great inspiration to me.
Two weeks ago, UCGPC organized students from across the UC system to attend legislative advocacy days in Washington D.C. During these two days, 34 graduate and professional students from 8 UC campuses met with legislators and their staff to advocate for our legislative priorities. We met with the offices of 21 representatives and senators and also met with 9 members and both senators. This trip was 100% student-led and focused on defending higher education, research funding, and access to professional degrees. Additionally, I had the honor of connecting with HACU to give an address to their coalition kicking off their D.C. conference advocacy initiative to defend HSI funding.
UCGPC is thankful to the UC Federal Government Relations team for all of their guidance and constant support. In addition to our advocacy at the federal level, UCGPC has also been very focused on ACA18. In recent years, student representation on the Board of Regents has failed to keep pace with significant enrollment increase and the system’s rapid growth. The satus quo is a flawed arrangement that deprives the Board of valuable student perspectives and undermines the principles of shared governance, though we recognize that it is a complex issue with many moving factors.
ACA 18 was introduced by Assemblymember Caloza on February 20, 2026. This bill amends the California State Constitution to include an additional voting Student Regent position and a nonvoting Student Regent-Designate position. UCGPC is supportive of ACA 18 and the prospect of having the Student Regent positions mirror the Alumni Regent positions. This would promote equal representation between undergraduate and graduate/professional students. It is crucial that all undergraduate, graduate, and professional students are fairly represented on the Board of Regents, as being the largest population directly affected by the Board’s decisions.
While we support the concept behind ACA 18, UCGPC does not support the current language of the bill. UCGPC does not take a constitutional amendment lightly, and we are concerned with the rushed timeline, lack of consultation, and proposed bill language. If there is a negotiation to the proposal that results in alternating years between undergraduate and graduate/professional students as a compromise, then transfer and master’s students would be significantly disadvantaged if not completely excluded from the opportunity. UCGPC firmly stands against this prospect and will withdraw support.
It is our opinion that aside from ACA 18, a full analysis and revision to the Student Regent interview process and policy is necessary. The current process has raised serious concerns about representation, access, and professionalism. It has lost the confidence of many students and student leaders across the system, contributing to students’ lack of confidence in the Board of Regents as a whole.
Over this academic year, I have seen certain Regents using their power in inappropriate and violent ways. The role of being a Regent, comes with great power and also significant responsibility. Having a Regent come to a UCGPC Board meeting and reprimand one of my board members representing her entire campus or having a Regent write a public letter disparaging a student leader is not the way to move forward. Regents need to acknowledge that when they come to student leaders, they inherently represent the full board and the behavior that has been exhibited is wholly unacceptable. I have guided my board to act with integrity and respect; I ask for the leadership of the Regents to do the same. Rather than lashing out, I ask that the Regents engage in open conversations and set an example in which both sides can learn as we work through the complex issues before us. To be clear, I am not speaking to the content of what various Regents have said, but rather than manner in which they communicate and conduct themselves with student leaders.
The UC Graduate and Professional Council plays a vital role in the process for selecting the Student Regent and hopes to continue to work collaboratively with all parties involved through the re-envisioning of the role to best support students and the residents of California regardless of the outcome of ACA 18. UCGPC Director of Government Relations and Legislative Affairs, Dan Chulak, is in contact with UCSA and Assemblymember Caloza’s staff as we work together through the potential amendments to be sure they satisfy the UCGPC Board requests to be able to fully support ACA 18. As always, we appreciate UCSA’s partnership and collaborative spirit as both organizations have the shared goal and responsibility of advocating for the 300,000 students of the University of California. Additionally, we stand ready to work in partnership with the UC Regents and the UC Office of the President to develop policies that increase representation and ensure that application to this role is accessible to all interested graduate and professional students.
Thank you all for giving me this space over the last year to give you our insight into the student perspective and some of the most crucial issues facing us. You all have much to learn from students, because the world is very different from when you were our age. We all come from different walks of life with different vantage points and there is much growth to come from future collaborations.
My job now is to prepare UCGPC for transition, should another student step into my place I hope that you all welcome them with the same openness with which you have accepted me.
Tlazcamati, Thank you.
Stephanie Valadez, M.M. 
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