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Lens on Expanding Middle-Income Housing

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Associate Professor of Urban Planning and Public Policy Michael Lens spoke to the Long Beach Post about increasing the availability of middle-income housing. While many tax breaks and credits are available to developers building low-income housing, there aren’t many incentives to build homes for middle-income earners. A new state program will issue bonds to investors who buy existing market-rate buildings and transform them into units that are affordable for middle-income households. Lens said creating new housing for any tier is a good thing. The need for lower-income housing remains great, but the housing market has become so unaffordable that a program like this may have been necessary, he said. “It only happens when you’re so worried about the affordability of housing driving those kinds of people out of the state,” Lens said. “I think we’re there, but whether or not we’ll find a bunch of money to do something about it, it remains to be seen.”

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Millard-Ball on Twin Concerns of Fire Safety and Housing Access

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Associate Professor of Urban Planning Adam Millard-Ball spoke to the San Francisco Chronicle about housing developments planned for parts of California that are prone to wildfire. The state Attorney General’s Office has opposed some of these developments, arguing that they pose grave danger in an era when uncontrolled wildfires threaten the state. The article notes that devastation in places like Santa Rosa, Paradise and Redding, in the so-called wildland-urban interface, has underscored how suburban sprawl is not only a target of fire but fodder for it, hastening the speed and intensity of blazes. Limiting development, however, can frustrate growth plans of small towns and cities and undermine progress on the state’s housing crunch. “There are really these twin concerns coming into conflict now,” Millard-Ball said. “The state’s housing crisis makes it an imperative to make it easy to build housing. At the same time, there’s the threat and tragedy of wildfires.”

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In Support Gifts and new initiatives focus on equality, patient care, gay sexuality, research and public discourse

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SUPPORT FOR UCLA LUSKIN’S UNDOCUMENTED GRADUATE STUDENTS

UCLA Luskin’s student body includes a sizable number of undocumented individuals, some of whom are first-generation or come from low-income families. Over the summer, alumni, faculty and staff contributed to a fund launched to support undocumented master’s and Ph.D. students at the School.

These students already faced adversity, and the pandemic has hit them harder than ever. Many have lost jobs yet do not benefit from government stimulus programs. Undocumented students are not eligible to receive federal financial aid. And in addition to supporting themselves, some also contribute financially to their households.

The UCLA Luskin community has come together to provide funds for those with the most need, but more help is needed. Your support can help these talented master’s and doctoral students bridge the gap during this particularly challenging time, allowing them to purchase books, pay for tuition and fees, and manage the high cost of living in Los Angeles.

If you would like to help make an impact, please contact Associate Director of Development Laura Scarano at lscarano@luskin.ucla.edu.

Scholarship recipients Devina Ortega, left, and Sylvia Hopkins chat remotely with benefactor Laura Shell.

2 UNDERGRADS RECEIVE 2020 SHELL FAMILY CENTENNIAL SCHOLARSHIP

Third-year public affairs majors Devina Ortega and Sylvia Hopkins are the inaugural recipients of the Shell Family Centennial Scholarship, which was launched to benefit the Luskin School’s undergraduate program.

Laura Shell, a member of the UCLA Luskin Board of Advisors, and her husband, Jeff, established the endowed scholarship in 2019 to support students who have declared the public affairs major and have demonstrated financial need.

It was among the first awards established to support UCLA Luskin’s undergraduate students and was matched by the UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match Initiative. The initiative matches gifts for such scholarships at 50%.

The Shells met Hopkins and Ortega over Zoom this fall to engage in a conversation about their futures in policy work. The students also had an opportunity to talk about their experiences as UCLA students who are civically engaged even during a pandemic.

WHY DO ALUMNI GIVE BACK?

UCLA Luskin is grateful to all of its donors, but we are especially proud of the alumni who have been donating for 10 years or more. So, we spoke with them about why philanthropy is important. Here are their stories.

Astrid Beigel MA ’67, Ph.D. ’69 is one of the Luskin School’s most loyal donors, with 23 consecutive years of giving. In 1996, Beigel helped establish an award in memory of her friend and former professor of urban planning, Julie Roque. She hopes that, with her award, students are able to treat themselves to something fun that they normally wouldn’t consider doing. That is what her friend Julie would have wanted. Beigel believes it is not important how much you give, but that you simply do it, and carry on the memory of others.

Elaine Leader BA ’68, MSW ’70 says giving back has always been part of her culture, instilled by her parents from an early age. Inspired by their commitment to helping others in need, Leader founded a nonprofit called Teen Line to assist distressed youths dealing with troubled relationships; verbal, emotional or physical abuse; substance abuse; peer pressure; and other challenges. Leader continues helping others as one of the Luskin School’s most loyal donors, with 26 years of giving combined. She encourages others to give back because it not only helps the giver feel good but is even more meaningful to the receiver.

Celia Yniguez BA ’88, MA UP ’90 lives in Sacramento and has given to the Luskin School for nearly 20 years. As an alumni volunteer, she was involved with reviewing UCLA scholarship applications and saw firsthand the great need for student support. Yniguez received a
full scholarship to what is now UCLA Luskin and believes it is her duty to give back. In Sacramento, she often encounters others from the Graduate School of Architecture and from the Luskin School of Public Affairs, and she is impressed by their passion and desire to implement change. The students she encounters always energize her, and she feels that alumni need to do whatever they can to support them.

Kara Heffernan MA UP ’00, now based in New York City, loved studying planning at UCLA and engaging with complex issues in various neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles. Heffernan works for the City University of New York (CUNY). As an insider of higher education, she knows firsthand the constraints public universities face, as well as the importance of giving back. When Heffernan was in school, she knew that many students did not have the resources or access to achieve their greatest potential. That is why she is compelled each year to help current students with financial need succeed.

Scott Kutner BA ’81, MA UP ’85 and Linda Kutner BA ’84, MSW ’88 received their professional degrees before their schools merged to become part of the School of Public Affairs. Both received fellowships as students and now pay it forward by supporting UCLA Luskin. Scott Kutner believes that people do what they can based on their own circumstances but, for them, feeling like they are part of something larger than themselves is important and meaningful. Although the Kutners have increased their giving over the years, the gratification they feel from being a donor was just as strong in the beginning as now.

John Petrilla MPP ’09 and his wife, Bree, donate annually. John Petrilla quips that he has a personal debt to UCLA Luskin because he landed his first job out of school through the connections he made on campus. He says even if a person doesn’t feel personally indebted, it still benefits them to give back because more funding helps attract the best students through scholarships. Then, the reputation of one’s alma mater increases and that can benefit alumni too. By donating each year, he wants to ensure that others will have an experience that is just as good or even better than he had.

Ricardo Quintero

RICARDO QUINTERO: WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES TO KEEP THE LUSKIN SCHOOL STRONG

Few students would recognize him, but Ricardo Quintero is among the most crucial people supporting students at UCLA Luskin.

As director of development, Quintero is responsible for raising funds for the School and its many programs, faculty, research initiatives and scholarships. His role is critical to UCLA Luskin’s mission to train change agents at both the graduate and undergraduate levels.

So who is Quintero and what drives him to work to improve the UCLA Luskin student experience? We let him tell his story.

Where are you from?

I was born in Queens, New York, and I grew up in Statesville, N.C., a small town just north of Charlotte. My family relocated there when I was 5 years old and I’ve lived in Los Angeles since 2007.

How long have you been at UCLA Luskin?

I’ve been at Luskin for four years, and I have 13 years of fundraising experience at UCLA overall.

Tell us a little bit about your personal history. Why does higher education mean so much to you?

I was a first-generation college student so higher education has always been important to me. It was my pathway to success, and the experience was deeply and personally rewarding. However, I wasn’t ready to attend a four-year university straight out of high school due to financial and other personal reasons. But I knew a college education was essential for my future. So to get there, I enlisted in the Marine Corps and utilized my GI Bill and a scholarship to pay for school after leaving the service.

What motivates you most to do what you do for Luskin?

I believe in our mission and supporting our amazing students. I’m always impressed by the caliber of their work and the impact our graduates are having in their communities and beyond. People establish scholarships and fellowships for many reasons, and each one is heartfelt, for the donor as well as for us at UCLA Luskin. These gifts help us compete for top students, provide unique opportunities and better prepare our graduates for career success.

Is there a particular student or a donor who has inspired you in your time at Luskin?

I have so many, but they all share a through-line: connecting donors with the students who benefit from their support. It is one of the most rewarding aspects of my job. Donors get to see the direct impact of their investment, and our students learn, as recipients of someone else’s philanthropy, the importance of paying it forward.

 

Park on Unintended Consequences of Development Restrictions

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Assistant Professor of Public Policy Jisung Park spoke to the New York Times about potential unintended consequences of climate change development restrictions on poorer communities. A new study found that many Americans support aggressive government regulation to fight the effects of climate change, including mandatory building codes in risky areas and bans on building in flood- or fire-prone areas. While development restrictions could reduce disasters in the future, Park noted that they could also hurt low-income and minority families who can’t afford to live elsewhere. If local governments follow public opinion and impose new restrictions on development, it’s important that they consider the effects of those changes on poorer communities, including communities of color, Park said. He suggested that governments could make it more expensive to live in vulnerable neighborhoods, but subsidize low-income residents who want to move. “Doing both is certainly possible,” he said.

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UCLA Study Cited in Essay on Why Movies Portray Developers as Evil

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A 2018 article about anti-development attitudes, authored by UCLA Luskin’s Paavo Monkkonen and Michael Manville, is mentioned by the Libertarian magazine Reason in an essay that focuses on the propensity of Hollywood to portray real estate developers as bad guys. The essay traces the movie trope of an evil developer as far back as Frank Capra and his Depression-era movies like the 1946 Christmas classic, “It’s a Wonderful Life.” That movie presents one of the best-known rich-guy villains in movie history: Mr. Potter. Such characters reflect circumstances explored by Manville and Monkkonen when they wrote about how the high cost of land and the complexity of regulations can make real estate development difficult. Reason quotes directly from the UCLA article, saying, “These circumstances could select for developers who are both affluent and out-of-step with conventional ways of behaving: Only deep-pocketed, hard-charging and confrontational people will be willing and able to lobby elected officials and get rules changed in order to build.”

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Lens Weighs In on Suit Against L.A. Development

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Michael Lens, associate professor of urban planning and public policy, spoke to the Los Angeles Times about the AIDS Healthcare Foundation’s decision to sue the city of Los Angeles over real estate developments related to Councilman Jose Huizar, who has been charged with bribery, money laundering and racketeering. The lawsuit aims to block at least four city projects tied to Huizar and former Councilman Mitchell Englander that have allegedly violated California’s Political Reform Act. The AIDS nonprofit has been vocal on housing and development issues in the state. Some critics questioned whether the new lawsuit was an attempt by the foundation to slow or stop local development, regardless of its merits. Lens, who opposed a 2017 ballot measure championed by the foundation to crack down on “mega projects,” told the Los Angeles Times that “this seems to be a convenient excuse for them to say, once again, ‘We need to stop development.’”

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In Support Fellowships, memorial funds and other support for UCLA Luskin students, faculty and research

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PRITZKER FAMILY FOUNDATION SUPPORTS FELLOWSHIP IN OFFICE OF CHILD PROTECTION

For the past four years, UCLA Luskin has awarded a full-year fellowship to a hardworking student seeking to measurably improve child safety in Los Angeles County. Thanks to the generous support of the Anthony & Jeanne Pritzker Family Foundation, the Luskin School will offer this prestigious award again for the upcoming 2020-21 academic year.

“I leveraged the knowledge and skills gained at [the Office of Child Protection] to apply for doctoral programs in social welfare and have received three offers of admission — from UCLA, UC Berkeley and the University of Washington — to continue my studies and conduct research in child welfare,” said Anthony Gomez MSW ’20, who received the fellowship in the most recent year. “I would like to thank the Pritzker Foster Care Initiative for providing a fellowship that has served as the launching pad for the next chapter of my career.”Each year’s fellowship recipient is chosen through a competitive process. A staff and faculty committee evaluates applicants and coordinates interviews with staff from the Office of Child Protection to select the student who is best-qualified for the needs of the position.

BANK OF AMERICA SUPPORTS LATINO ECONOMIC MOBILITY

The Luskin School has received a $125,000 gift from Bank of America to support a social mobility and economic opportunity agenda for Latinos in California.

At nearly 18.5% of the national population, Latinos are a central engine in the growth of the American economy. Despite high rates of employment and entrepreneurial activity, Latinos own fewer homes and have smaller savings and significantly fewer investments than other ethnic groups in the United States.

The gift will be used by the Latino Policy & Politics Initiative (LPPI) to evaluate and identify scalable interventions and best practices across California. It will help expand mobility and opportunity through applied research under the direction of
LPPI faculty experts.

Award recipient Amy Zhou, left, with Astrid Beigel.

SUSTAINING DONOR HONORS FRIEND’S MEMORY

Astrid Beigel MA ’67, Ph.D. ’69 is a sustaining donor of the Julie Roque Award for Environmental Justice, a memorial fund that honors her longtime friend and former professor of urban planning, Julie Roque.

For over two decades, Beigel, who is an established leader in mental health services in Los Angeles, has been supporting the fund annually to keep Roque’s memory alive. The award provides funds to students whose research and community activities demonstrate an awareness of and commitment to environmental justice and pollution prevention, with an emphasis on social issues pertaining to communities of color, particularly Filipinos and Asian Americans.

This year’s recipient, urban planning student Amy Zhou, met with Beigel over lunch on campus prior to the “Safer at Home” order in Los Angeles and personally thanked her for giving back.

Jim and Judy Bergman are UCLA alumni who fund a mental health fellowship at UCLA Luskin.

GIFT FROM BERGMAN FAMILY CLOSES OUT CENTENNIAL CAMPAIGN

Jim and Judy Bergman, UCLA alumni and longtime supporters of the Luskin School, have made a generous gift to augment their existing Bergman Family Mental Health Fellowship in Social Welfare by utilizing the UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match Initiative.

Their endowed gift, which was matched at 50%, supports graduate students whose field of study is directed toward the improvement and advancement of programs and services for the mentally ill.

Approximately one in five adults in the United States suffers with mental health issues in any given year, with some of the Bergmans’ loved ones among them. In Los Angeles, concerns are growing around issues of homelessness, incarceration and use of emergency services among people with severe mental illnesses.

The Bergmans’ meaningful gift to UCLA Luskin closed out the Centennial Campaign for UCLA, one of the most ambitious fundraising campaigns ever by a public university. When it ended on Dec. 31, the university had raised a total of $5.49 billion and the Luskin School had exceeded its goal, raising over $74 million in gifts during the course of the campaign.

Barbara Yaroslavsky

BARBARA YAROSLAVSKY MEMORIAL FUND: AN UPDATE

When the Barbara Yaroslavsky Memorial Fund was established by Zev Yaroslavsky, it was an unprecedented campaign for the Luskin School. It has also turned out to be one of the most successful.

The campaign included additional support from friends and family to honor the legacy of advocacy and commitment to health care for all by Yaroslavsky’s late wife. The fund will support fellowships and internships for graduate students focusing on health and public health policy at UCLA Luskin.

“Barbara dedicated her life to the core belief that health care should be a right, not a privilege. She served on multiple state,
city and nonprofit boards in that quest,” Yaroslavsky said. “We believe that the most appropriate way to honor her memory is to support a new generation of students who will tirelessly pursue the goals and policies to which Barbara committed herself until
the very end of her life.”

So far, the Barbara Yaroslavsky campaign has raised more than $811,000 from individual donors and received an additional match of more than $400,000 from the university through the UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match Initiative.

In Support New scholarship funds, regional salons and a Centennial milestone

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LUSKIN SCHOOL SURPASSES CENTENNIAL CAMPAIGN GOAL

With support from individual, foundation and corporate donors, the Luskin School surpassed its $70M Centennial Campaign goal and celebrated the milestone with the Luskin Board at its March meeting. Since then, the School has continued to raise funds for students, faculty, research and programs. Additional support is still needed in these key categories to ensure that we continue to produce exceptional results.

UCLA LUSKIN ESTABLISHES BARBARA EDELSTON YAROSLAVSKY MEMORIAL FUND

Barbara Edelston Yaroslavsky was an extraordinary activist and community leader who made an indelible impact on the lives she touched. Before her death in December 2018, she was an advocate for access to quality health care for all, and a champion for families and education — fiercely devoting herself to improving the lives of every Californian.

Barbara Edelston Yaroslavsky and Zev Yaroslavsky

In her memory and spirit, the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and faculty member Zev Yaroslavsky are joining together to create the Barbara Yaroslavsky Memorial Fellowship and Internship Fund.

“While Barbara has left an enormous legacy, this project will ensure that her passion for equity and access to quality health care will live on in future generations of policymakers who share her commitment,” said her husband, Zev. “It is here at UCLA that our courtship started 52 years ago, and it is appropriate that this fund be established at this university she loved so much.”

The fund will reflect Barbara’s relentless dedication and joyful spirit by honoring students who exemplify the meaningful impact that individuals can make in their communities. Fellowships and internship stipends will be awarded to students who demonstrate exemplary leadership among their classmates and service to their communities, with a particular emphasis on health and public health policy.

Gifts to the Barbara Yaroslavsky Memorial Fund will help defray the cost of tuition, fees and other educational expenses so students can focus on their studies.

“These gifts will make a difference in the life of someone who will go on to make a difference in our world as a practitioner, researcher or policymaker,” said Nicole Payton, executive director of external relations at UCLA Luskin.

SHELL FAMILY ESTABLISHES CENTENNIAL SCHOLARSHIP MATCHING FUND

Laura and Jeff Shell

Laura Shell, a member of the UCLA Luskin Board of Advisors, and her husband, Jeff, have established an endowed scholarship to support students in the new undergraduate program. The UCLA Chancellor’s Centennial Scholars Match Initiative, which matches gifts for such scholarships at 50 percent, will establish the Shell Family Centennial Scholarship Matching Fund. The funds will support scholarships for students who have declared the new public affairs major and have demonstrated financial need. The first recipients of the scholarship will be announced in 2020.

“We want to make the excellent college education provided by the UCLA Luskin School possible for students without the worry of tuition,” Laura Shell said. “We are thrilled our contribution will support the education of future leaders in our community, who will undoubtedly work in public service after graduation.”

Shell, who earned a B.A. in political science from UCLA and a master’s in public administration from USC, has maintained a 25-year career working in local government and with environmental organizations. The Shells’ gift is part of a network of support inspired by the launch of the UCLA Luskin undergraduate program.

Professor Manisha Shah at a September salon.

 

REGIONAL SALONS HIGHLIGHT FACULTY RESEARCH

The Luskin Development team is partnering with Luskin alumni in New York, San Francisco, Washington, D.C., and other areas to showcase our impressive faculty research and milestones of the School. It is wonderful to share the great work of UCLA Luskin throughout the United States. Be on the lookout for upcoming events in your area. A September salon featured Manisha Shah, professor of public policy and director of the International Development and Policy Outreach initiative. She spoke about her research, which spans the globe in pursuit of health, education and economic development policy solutions to challenges faced by women, adolescents and children. In November, R. Jisung Park of the public policy faculty spoke in San Francisco about climate change, extreme heat and its adverse effects on disadvantaged communities, especially students and workers.

Laura Scarano

DEAN’S ASSOCIATES OFFER LEADERSHIP AND SUPPORT

This year, UCLA Luskin is bringing back the Dean’s Associates, a leadership giving society comprised of donors with cumulative giving of $1,000 or more annually to any facet of the School of Public Affairs. In addition to our deep appreciation for your support, Dean’s Associates receive reserved seating at popular events, a designated point of contact at the School and more. If you would like to learn more or have any questions, please contact Associate Director of Development Laura Scarano at lscarano@luskin.ucla.edu or (310) 794-2174.

Marcia Choo of Wells Fargo.

WELLS FARGO GIFT WILL SUPPORT RESEARCH AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

Wells Fargo made a generous gift to support research and fellowships that address issues relating to poverty, affordable housing, transportation and the environment. Funding from this gift will also be used to promote civic engagement opportunities and leadership development, including workshops, UCLA Luskin Day at Los Angeles City Hall and other advocacy programming that influences policymaking.

Taylor on the Incomplete 710 Freeway

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Brian D. Taylor, director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at UCLA Luskin, spoke to KCRW’s Greater L.A. about shelved plans to expand the 710 Freeway through the San Gabriel Valley. Taylor, a professor of urban planning, said the project was one of many freeway expansion proposals to face opposition. The major difference, he said, was that much of the 710 project was completed. “The dilemma we have is, as we built fewer and fewer of the projects that were to be the planned network, we ended up making the freeways that were built larger and larger,” disrupting surrounding communities, Taylor said. Now that the freeway will not be extended on land that had been procured, officials have an opportunity to develop an already built-up area, he added. “The larger nut to crack, which is how not to have chronic congestion, probably doesn’t lie in building more of these kinds of highways,” Taylor concluded.

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Yaroslavsky on Future of Single-Home Neighborhoods

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Zev Yaroslavsky, director of the Los Angeles Initiative at UCLA Luskin, was featured on an episode of 89.3 KPCC’s “AirTalk” about the future of California housing policy. The state’s affordable housing crisis has increased the pressure for bills like SB50, which would increase the density of housing in single-family neighborhoods close to transit lines. The bill was shelved in the last legislative session, but a second iteration is returning with provisions that Yaroslavsky called “very minimal and cosmetic.” The need for affordable housing is dire, he said, but “there hasn’t been a thorough discussion about what the SB50 bill does.” According to Yaroslavsky, “New construction in California is not going to produce affordable housing — it produces high-end housing, market-rate housing.” He criticized SB50 for failing to “demand anything in return from the landowners” and suggested setting aside 40 to 50 percent of new units for affordable housing. “If you rezone all the single-family homes in California, you’re not creating more affordable housing but you are destroying communities,” Yaroslavsky said.

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