This year’s ASUW director of diversity efforts, Sabrina Fields, has a true passion for representing people’s needs.

Fields is half-black, half-Mexican and a fluent Spanish speaker. As director of all of the diversity commissions within the ASUW, Fields wants to address the issue of biracial and transnational identity, because most of the commissions are single-ethnicity based, a factor that has limited the conversation on diversity.

“Out of all the eight positions that are part of the board of directors, this is the one where you really have to be in tune with the community that you are supposed to represent,” Fields said.

There are eight diversity commissions within ASUW, all of which are supervised by Fields, who is also a member of the board of directors

Her duties also include being a liaison to the Ethnic Cultural Center (ECC), Q Center and Women’s Center. She is also responsible for maintaining a diverse applicant pool for the ASUW volunteer positions.

Diversity is a big word necessary for Fields to define, as it is part of her job title.

“I define it as people being heard,” she said. “The past [presidential] election was a great display of that because you had intellectual diversity, political diversity, cultural diversity and religious diversity. I think diversity can’t be limited to just what people look like, but rather what people contribute to any given situation.”

In addition to her job as director of diversity efforts, Fields is also a community assistant at Stevens Court, a co-chair of the Student Advisory Board and a member of the Black Student Union.

“There is a lot on my plate,” she said.

Asian Student Commission (ASC)

asc.asuw.org/

“I am kind of like the bridge between Asian-ism and ASUW,” said ASC director Paul Boupha. He said that the ASC functions in a more hierarchical way than the other commissions because he is a liason between his very large constituency and Fields or other members of the ASUW board of directors.

Last year Boupha was the assistant director of the commission and helped organize the first ASC Fried Rice Fair, which happens again at the end of this month.

American Indian Student Commission (AISC)

aisc.asuw.org/

AISC is an inter-tribal organization which exists to promote native culture, education and native students’ interests, needs and welfare, according to its Web site. The biggest event that the commission organizes is the annual AISC Winter Pow Wow, which takes place in January.

AISC director Emma Noyes was not available for comment as of presstime.

Black Student Commission (BSC)

bsc.asuw.org/

The BSC has many events coming up in the next few months including an AIDS awareness week, a Kwanzaa celebration at the ECC and a variety of events to celebrate Black History Month in February.

The BSC will be coordinating with the Northwest African American Museum (NAAM) to create exhibits on campus for Black History Month, said director Krysten Legette.

“We are really striving for unity within the community, mainly the black community, but once we have that unity formed, we can start working with the larger campus,” she said.

Gay, Bisexual, Lesbian, Transgender Commission (GBLTC)

gbltc.asuw.org/

“GBLTC does what all the diversity commissions are supposed to do: serve members of the university community from traditionally marginalized groups,” said director Michael Balderas.

The GBLTC and Student Disability Commission are the only diversity commissions that are not based on ethnicity, he said. One of the challenges it faces is the misconception that the Q Center is a part of the commission. While both have similar goals and purposes, the Q Center is not part of the ASUW and is only five years old, while GBLTC has been around since the 1970s.

“The Q Center is a much more public face of what the commission used to do,” he said.

Balderas works with groups outside of the UW like Gay City, Lambert House and Ingersoll Gender Center.

“Seeing the commission in action, I definitely thought it would be a very good way, not only to build my leadership skills, but give back to the community,” said Balderas about why he ran for director. He also wanted to be the first trans-identified director of the GBLTC.

La Raza Student Commission

laraza.asuw.org/

La Raza Commission Center was originally founded by Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlan in 1981, although the commission changed its name to La Raza Commission Center in 1997 in order to include all Latinos and to prevent divisions based on nationality, according to the Web site. The director is Renato Mendoza.

Mendoza was not available for comment as of presstime.

Pacific Islander Student Commission (PISC)

pisc.asuw.org/

The Pacific Islander Student Commission (PISC) was created in March 2000 to give the Pacific Islander (PI) students a voice separate from the ASC.

Like all of the commissions, the goal is to serve the community that it represents, put on events and educate the campus community. Spring quarter is the busiest time for PISC in terms of events, such as the Pacific Heritage Days.

One of the biggest issues for the Commission is recruiting and retaining PI students and staff. PI students make up only 0.7 percent of the undergraduate student population, and there is only one PI faculty member — Enrique Bonus, associate professor of American Ethnic studies.

“Whereas every other commission has faculty or staff to connect with, we have one person for our 0.7 percent,” said the director of PISC, Christina Pelesasa. “Dr. Bonus is our best friend.”

Student Disability Commission (SDC)

asuwswds@u.washington.edu

The SDC works with Disability Advocacy Student Alliance (DASA) to promote awareness about disability, inclusive attitudes and disability pride.

One of the largest challenges students with disabilities face is ignorance, said director Holly Siegrist.

To combat this, the SDC and DASA will be putting on a disability information session in the residence halls, tentatively scheduled to take place Dec. 4 in McCarty Hall.

The event will give students information on different disabilities and advice on how to interact with people with disabilities.

“I am hard of hearing, and I have had people think that I was totally ignoring them,” Seigrist said.

SDC and DASA reach out to students by speaking in disability studies classes to emphasize the need for note takers for students with disabilities.

Women’s Action Commission (WAC)

women.asuw.org/

The WAC works toward increasing women’s visibility and advocating on behalf of women on campus, according to its Web site.

Director Maria Guillen was contacted, but did not respond to the request for an interview before press time.

Like some of the other commissions, WAC was founded during the political turbulence and activism of the 1960s and 1970s.

After budget cuts during 1993 and 1994, WAC lost its funding. The commission fought to get the money back but lost and was reestablished in 1997 as a “coalition.” The commission status was regained two years later, according to its Web site.

One of the most popular events that WAC is known for is the annual Vagina Monologues production during winter quarter.

Reach reporter Sonia McBride at features@dailyuw.com.