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Previn Witana was a biology student at UC Davis (2006-2011). During his time on campus, he served as the 2010-2011 ASUCD Vice President after winning on the L.E.A.D. slate (with Jack Zwald for President) in the Winter 2010 ASUCD Election. He was formerly an ASUCD Senator with L.E.A.D., who won in the Winter 2009 ASUCD election.

See Jack Zwald for the 2010 candidate statement.

Winter 2009 Senate Candidate Statement and Activities

Vote Previn #1 for ASUCD Senate! Hi! My name is Previn Witana and I'm running for ASUCD Senate on the Leadership, Empowerment, Activism, and Determination (LEAD) Slate. I'm a 3rd year Bio-Sci major studying to be Pre-Med. I believe we are going through tough financial times and need a Senator that can stand up to the cuts in education. If you ever see me on campus don't hesitate say Hi. I'm always open to hearing any thoughts you might have on campus life.

EXPERIENCE:

• Former Vice President of Finance for the Davis College Democrats ('08)
• Vice President of Special Events for Davis College Democrats ('08-09)
• ASUCD Internal Affairs Commissioner ('09-'10)
• 8th Assembly District Delegate ('09-'11)
• Treasurer of the Environmental Toxicology Club

PLATFORM ISSUES:

WIRELESS INTERNET IN THE DORMS As many of you are undoubtedly aware, many of the dorms on campus still require students to use an ethernet cable to access the internet. In this day and age, when laptops are carried around with you, this makes absolutely no sense. Let me do the work for you and bring wireless internet to the dorms.

ENERGY EFFICIENT CUSTODIAL VEHICLES Once again, there exists a system in place that is entirely archaic. Why is it that UC Davis, a university in which many students make efforts to go green, still uses custodial vehicles which run on diesel? Allow me to work with Transportation and Parking Services (TAPS) to bring in more energy efficient vehicles for the custodial staff.

DEAD DAYS Some of you may not remember, but when I was a freshman there was ALWAYS a dead day between classes and finals, as there should be. However now, we don't even get ones that fall on weekends. Look at this quarter, the last day of classes is on a Monday and finals begin that Tuesday! Additionally, the administration has tried to compact the finals schedule, which may seem like a good idea, but not the way in which it is being implemented . There are now 8:30pm-10:30pm finals. If a student has an 8am final the next day, how is that student expected to succeed? I promise to lobby hard and do as much as I can to ensure there will, in the near future, be a dead day every quarter.

REMEMBER: Vote me, Previn Witana, #1 for ASUCD Senate and LEAD #2-6, and Lula Ahmed-Falol and Rebecca Schwartz for ASUCD President and Vice President!

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2009-01-24 16:23:30   I like Previn, but not his platform.

1. Wireless Internet in the dorms is already happening, people like Joe Chatham and Kevin Massoudi have been working on this over the past year. My sister currently enjoys wireless in Cuarto for example.

2. Senators do not have anymore ins with TAPS than regular students. This notion that you cannot start talking to people until you're elected is absurd.

3. Dead Days might be cool but if that means I have a shorter Spring Break than I really don't want Dead Day. I remember the short Spring Break of the 2006-7 school year, I don't want that back.

—GregWebb

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2009-01-24 18:52:49   Hi Greg I just wanted to put my two cents in regards to your concern with Previn's platform.

1. Wireless internet is expanding all over campus regardless of any work done by Chatham or Massoudi. Previn is focusing on the on-campus housing through moobilenet will work to focus development in that area. I'd also like to know why you've attacked Previn on this issue but have already backed Kevin Massoudi when both candidates have very similar wireless internet expansion plans.

2. Previn has an in with TAPS, me. I am a member of the Transportation and Parking Services Administrative Advisory Committee and I have already been a voice on that body against raising parking permit fees for a flawed incentive system. I support his plan and I will work with him to get a proposal drafted and sent to the Vice Chancellor.

3. Greg, those things are not mutually exclusive. A day can be pulled out of Winter or Summer, I can't speak for Previn on this, but that's my solution and I think that's on his table. That one day is valuable to student academic success and there are ways to avoid cutting a short Spring break shorter. —JackZwald

• Thanks Jack, I've asked Previn privately to clarify about the dead day and didn't get a very good response. With regards to Previn working with you to have an in with TAPS, doesn't that verify my claim that you don't even need to be a Senator to get things done? Furthmore Will Klein is also on that committee, does that make him a better candidate?

I differentiate between Previn and Kevin because Kevin's been working to expand wireless as a non-senator while Previn has not. Obviously I put my trust in the guy that's doing it even when he's not being paid.

- GregWebb

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2009-01-24 21:33:26   Well Previn is working out his campaign and you could have spoken to him privately about your concern with his Dead Day plan instead of calling him out in public, especially since I both of you meet every Wednesday at 6pm in Wellman 230 for DCD and at IAC every Monday. Two scheduled times to chat!

I think that Previn working with me would show the Administration that students care about this. We both know the unresponsiveness of the UCD Administration to the concerns of individual students and as a Senator Previn would have the added clout and resources to fight the good fight. Will Klein is on the TPAAC, you're right there. He also voted to raise student fees as a member of the TPAAC, I think that in part shows why Previn is the better candidate.

I have to put my trust in Previn because he has a clear and measurable goal of expanding service in one area as opposed to a general promise to expand wireless. —JackZwald

• "I've asked Previn privately to clarify about the dead day and didn't get a very good response." = I did ask him first. And again, the dorms are already getting wireless. GregWebb

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2009-01-24 21:51:19   I talked with Previn, you sent him a message and he responded. You then gave no feedback. If you consider asking a question and not liking what you hear and then saying his proposal is lacking asking, then yes you asked.

Then why is Massuodi's proposal different. Sure he's worked on wireless in the past, but if it's happening anyway what's the difference? Would that be him running on something that has already/will soon be done? Something you spoke out against during your last run. —JackZwald

• The difference is that dorms are pretty much covered, I'm not sure to what extent the pilot program covers dorms but Student Housing has shown willingness to cover the dorm areas. Kevin Massoudi will be focusing on undercovered areas of campus, and has been doing so with Joe Chatham for the past year. The administration has been slow to act for students but under Joe Chatham's leadership, much has been accomplished and I think Kevin Massoudi is the most qualified candidate to continue this progress. - GregWebb

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2009-01-25 00:51:47   According to my information Tercero is not covered and my area in Segundo as of a few months ago was unable to support a private router let alone University network access.

Well that's your opinion that he's the best to continue the process, but to say that Previn's wireless issue is moot is unfounded. Also the fact that it takes years of wrangling with Student Housing and the administration to extend service to the dorms, an area with thousands of residents, it will take people with resources to make changes in TAPS. He can start talking you're right, but he'd be wasting his breath. Previn is working out his plan for Dead Days and your accusation that his response was inadequate is tempered by your unwillingness to help improve it privately and using it as ammunition for public debate. That's not how I'd treat a fellow Democrat. —JackZwald

• It is my understanding that student housing allows freshman to bring their own routers, which means the issue is moot. Now, we can have the debate about the real power of an ASUCD Senator but it will get us nowhere. To address the Dead Day concern, I'm not interested in the politics of things, I just want proper discourse and the best people elected to the senate. That being said, I don't treat people any differently because of party affiliation, just ask Pete Markevich. I think it's regrettable that me asking questions is somehow a bad thing, perhaps it's the way I go about doing it but this is just the way I do things. I am an unreasonable man. - GregWebb

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2009-01-25 01:53:55   My neighbors last year had to circumvent the entire system to get their router set up. They can bring one, we did, and it just doesn't work. It takes some serious work and tech expertise to make it happen. Your solution to have students buy routers out of their own pockets during severe economic crisis is less than satisfactory, especially when they are nearly impossible for the average student to install. I know I wasn't able to.

Greg, it's great that you ask questions, but asking a question privately, not liking what you hear and then blasting Mr. Witana in public on it without providing constructive criticism beforehand seems similar to your charge that LEAD went on a "witch hunt" two Falls ago.

—JackZwald

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2009-01-25 12:35:45   Allowing individual students to run their own wireless access points is irresponsible. To begin with, the density in the dorms is as such that it is easy for all three clear wi-fi channels to be occupied. Secondly, most people cannot correctly configure an access point to save their lives. Network administrators have enough to worry about without students opening up security holes.

Also, the fact that this candidate says he's talking to TAPS about "green vehicles" tells me he doesn't know what the hell he's doing. As any university employee who drives a university vehicle can tell you, the appropriate people to talk to is Fleet Services. —WilliamLewis

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2009-01-25 14:34:11   William you're 100% right about Fleet Services being the authority on that issue; however, the TPAAC also does a review of Fleet Services and through that channel we draft and pass a new proposal. —JackZwald

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2009-01-25 19:49:21   Wireless internet is an issue that needs continual work done on it and a lot of people pushing for it. Wireless internet expansion is not the highest priority for the administration and faculty because it only benefits students and not them as much. student representatives need to push this issue in the Campus Council for Information Technology to make sure that wireless expansion is prioritized and given funding. So, while Joe Chatham and I are running a campaign focused partly on wireless expansion its not overkill to have multiple people focusing on this issue due to the scale of project we are talking about. —ChrisDietrich

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2009-04-13 12:46:18   Previn is a standup guy. He's a pro. Trust me. —EliYani