UC Davis is joining its sister UC campuses in an unprecedented grassroots initiative to preserve state support for California higher education and to highlight the university's contributions to the state economy.
The advocacy campaign, timed to coincide with budget deliberations ongoing in Sacramento, to date has enlisted more than 4,000 volunteers -- UC alumni, friends, faculty and staff -- in an online letter-writing blitz. On Tuesday, UC Davis Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef sent an e-mail to 27,000 alumni inviting them to join the effort.
The advocates are telling legislators that California must continue to invest in university activities that contribute to economic growth, including new research innovations, quality health care and a highly educated workforce.
UC Davis alone annually contributes between $2.7 billion and $3.4 billion to the state's economy. And for every state dollar invested in UC Davis, California gets at least $5 in return, according to a recent study commissioned by the campus.
"Unfortunately, our ability to help the state out of this current economic crisis, through research, education and collaboration with industry, is being threatened by a fourth year in a row of state budget cuts. For the first time in our history, the university can't afford to enroll every qualified student," Vanderhoef wrote in his letter to alumni. "We need to make support for public higher education a budget priority, and the university needs us to send that message to our leaders in Sacramento."
UC Davis is deploying a new electronic advocacy tool that will allow volunteers to quickly and easily send personalized messages to the governor and their own legislators. Since several campuses began using the software a few weeks ago, every state lawmaker has been contacted and asked to support higher education.
Anyone affiliated with UC Davis, including students, faculty and staff members, is welcome to join in the campaign by signing up to join the UC Davis AggieAdvocates online at http://www.ucforcalifornia.org/davis/home.html/.
Participation is voluntary, and campus employees are under no obligation to take part. Volunteers can opt out at any time, and devote as much, or as little, time as they have available.
UC's effort is modeled after other successful efforts to communicate with elected officials online and through e-mail. Numerous non-profit organizations such as the American Lung Association, PBS, Planned Parenthood and the AFL-CIO have used this tool to keep in touch with people who care about their issues.
The advocacy software has been made available to UC Davis by the UC Office of the President at no cost to the campus. The Cal Aggie Alumni Association has chosen to use other components of this software to communicate with its members via e-newsletters and listservs.
In addition to the e-mail efforts, the university is enlisting other groups to meet personally with lawmakers. Industry leaders have been traveling to Sacramento to testify about the value of UC to the state.
UC students themselves held more than 90 meetings with lawmakers on April 19. And plans are under way for faculty members to also take the message about the value of the university to the Capitol. Advocacy efforts will also be concentrated on UC Day May 26, when hundreds of alumni and friends of the university meet with lawmakers.