More Minority Students, Faculty Urged at UCI

UC Irvine Chancellor Jack W. Peltason met Monday with student protesters who demanded increased recruitment of minority students and faculty at UCI, establishment of an African American studies department and increased funding for minority-student programs.

The meeting with Peltason followed a noon news conference at which representatives of five student groups presented demands and circulated petitions seeking the resignation of UC President David Gardner because of what they called “his lack of response in addressing the needs of under-represented UC students.” The students also planned a “teach-in” protest today at the Bren Events Center.

“They’ve got to start opening doors today,” said Stephanie Lopez, a representative of the Associated Graduate Students of UCI, “or we’re going to kick the doors down tomorrow.”

In an hourlong session with 16 students Monday afternoon, Peltason said that recruiting minority faculty and students “is very high on my list of priorities.”

“More than one-half of the offers being made to prospective faculty members (for the 1989-90 academic year) are being made to women and minority faculty,” the chancellor said. “And almost 20% of the admissions for next year are for persons of under-represented minorities.”

4 Instructors Left

Last fall, UCI had five black and 22 Latino faculty members with tenure among 637 total tenured faculty. At least four black faculty members left the school in 1988, three because they were not promoted. Black and Latino undergraduates at UCI totaled 10.5% last fall, compared to an average 13.8% for all eight UC undergraduate campuses.

The protesters--representing black, Latino, gay and lesbian, and graduate student groups--met with Peltason, Executive Vice Chancellor Chang-Lin Tien and Vice Chancellor Horace Mitchell in the campus Cross Cultural Center, a $750,000 gathering place for minority students that was finished in March.

However, no Asians--who now make up more than a third of UCI’s undergraduate students--joined in the protest.

In addition to recruiting and other minority-related demands, students called for appointment of a full-time paid director of the Gay and Lesbian Student Union, opening married student housing to gay couples, providing low-cost health insurance for graduate students and student employees, and allowing greater student control of facilities that are funded with student fees, such as the University Center.

None of the complaints appeared to be resolved by the end of the sometimes-contentious session, in which administrators argued that more money is being funneled to minority organizations but that no campus group had gotten funding for everything on its wish list.

Melissa Soto of the gay and lesbian group called Peltason’s statements “rhetoric. Changes are not being made,” she said.

University Ombudsman Ron Wilson said the protesters are representative of many UCI students.

‘Concerned and Serious’

“We are dealing with students who are frustrated, angry and who are concerned and serious about their concerns,” Wilson said, adding: “We have not adequately dealt with the needs of gay and lesbian students here.

“We are now trying to aggressively pursue minority faculty and staff, but we haven’t in the past. And we’ve attracted (minority) students; we just have not been successful in retaining them.”