The AS Senate is a group of elected student representatives which serves as the policy-making body of Associated Students. Every Wednesday at 6:30 PM, the AS Senate convenes to pass bills and resolutions, hear reports from Boards, Committees, and Units (BCUs), and hold public forum.
KCSB’s Tatiana Jacquez brings you a recap of their latest meeting on January 28th, 2026.
- Campus Housing Updates: Chief of Staff for the Internal Vice President, Casey Carnow, reported to the Senate regarding the San Benito housing project. It is scheduled to open Fall 2027, with apartment-style units and housing units similar to the Tenaya Towers. Construction is set to begin following Santa Rosa’s demolition, alongside Ortega Dinging Hall.
- Carnow also asserted there would be heavily tripled rooms with the removal of 500 beds, and the Chi 5 would be significantly impacted. However, she noted that 300-400 second years would be allowed to select off-campus apartment housing as a result of the loss of Santa Rosa.
- More on the Efforts to Save Student Services: Associate VC for Student Life Suzanne Perkin returned to the Senate to discuss the Save Student Services fee increase initiative.
- 18 entities are involved currently involved in the campaign, and are having their students and staff reach out to the student body to sign the petition.
- AVC Perkin clarified the Return-to-Aid provision for students under the initiative. 25% of the total fee charged is allocated to the Financial Aid office, which would cover the cost for students who qualify for financial aid.
- Internal Vice President Enri Lala spoke to the Senate regarding a recent discussion he had with Chancellor Assanis and Interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs, Mike Miller. He met over the
- Lala also noted the Chancellor’s interest in hosting a campus commencement ceremony on the Chemistry lawn for all graduating students.
- Another Senator Resignation: Qhawe Manala announced his resignation as International Senator.
Notable Bills Referred to Committees/Tabled:
A Bill to Add a Position and Update the IVTU Legal Code (Jones-Ly): This bill would add an Administrative Director position to IVTU, and would change grammatical and formatting issues in the legal code. The Senate referred the bill to Liaison Committee.
A Resolution to Introduce a Constitutional Amendment to Rationalize the Senate’s Size and Constituency (Luken- Sussman): This resolution seeks to decrease the size of the Senate, and assign Senators “At-Large” positions as opposed to the current distribution of “Residential” Senate positions. The Senate was tabled indefinitely.
The Senate passed/adopted the following pieces of legislation:
A Resolution Condemning Antisemitism and Affirming the Commitment of the Associated Students of UC Santa Barbara to Safety, Inclusion, and Accountability (Harter): This positional resolution condemns acts of antisemitism at UCSB, and affirms AS’s commitment to creating a safe environment for students. The resolution passed in a 13-0-1 vote.
