A week in UC student news

UC investments buys Half Moon Bay’s Ritz-Carlton for $193 million

The University of California’s investment arm purchased the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Half Moon Bay for about $193 million, with no disclosed plans for use or management. 

The UC investment arm maintains an investment portfolio of $236 billion, much of which is used to fund pension accounts for more than 80,000 system retirees. The Office of the Chief Investment Officer manages the UC investment portfolio, to which the Chief Investment Officer, Jagdeep Singh Bachher, has independent investment authority. Bachher does not need UC Board of Regents approval for real estate deals. 

The luxury oceanfront hotel has 261 rooms across the nearly 35,000 square feet property. According to county records, as reported by the Coastside News, the hotel buyer is listed as a limited partnership called Regency Half Moon Bay with the address of the UC’s headquarters in Oakland. 

The Office of the Chief Investment Officer oversees UC Investments’ portfolio, which includes endowment funds, cash assets and the University’s retirement fund. 

Judge orders immediate release of UC Berkeley student detained by I.C.E.

UC Berkeley student Paula Valentina Albornoz Hernandez was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.) at San Francisco International Airport on Oct. 30. 

Albornoz Hernandez, a 23-year-old who immigrated to the U.S. from Colombia to study business administration, is now being held in I.C.E.’s California City Immigration Processing Center, a detention facility north of Los Angeles County for an overstayed visa. 

The student’s attorney, Nikolas De Bremaeker, told the Daily Californian that Albornoz Hernandez was applying for asylum due to the “gender-based violence” she experienced in Colombia. He also confirmed that she has a work permit.

According to a campuswide email, UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons is actively working with Albornoz Hernandez’s family to provide legal support to ensure the student has “access to advice and representation.”

In response, hundreds of UC Berkeley students and community members gathered on Nov. 4 to protest the detainment and demand Albornoz Hernandez’s release. De Bremaeker described the conditions of the detention center she is being held in. 

“It’s an atrocious facility,” De Bremaeker said. “I’ve been there several times. It’s not where human beings should be. It’s in the middle of the desert. The facilities are horrendous. There’s wholly insufficient medical care. Food is incredibly problematic. Human beings should not be there.”

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Dena Coggins ruled that I.C.E. violated Albornoz Hernandez’s right to due process, granting her a habeas corpus petition and temporary restraining order. Coggins ruled that noncitizens who overstay their visa and are not detained within a reasonable time after expiration gain a protected liberty interest in which I.C.E. must notify them before detainment. 

The ruling prohibits I.C.E. from electronically monitoring Albornoz Hernandez and requires seven days’ notice and a bond hearing before re-detainment. 

Proposition 1 passes, the UC obtains $175 million for student housing

Proposition 1, also known as the Veterans and Affordable Housing Bond Act of 2026, was approved by voters on the Nov. 3 midterm election ballot. 

With its passing, the UC will receive $175 million for student housing development. The $11.25 billion bond has allocated $350 million for student housing across California’s public universities, divided equally between the UC and the California State University system. 

“The passage of Proposition 1 is a vital step in addressing the state’s housing crisis,” UC President James B. Milliken said in a press release. “As the University of California works with the state to enroll more California students, the demand for affordable student housing has risen. This historic investment will enable the construction of necessary and new housing on our campuses. I am grateful for the state’s partnership and to those across the university community who advocated for Proposition 1. We have much work ahead to address housing in California, but this is an important victory in the effort to bring down costs for students.”

Since 2021, the UC has added nearly 19,000 more California resident students. Despite this population increase, state funding per student remains below pre-recession levels. With the UC’s share of the funding, which will be available through the Higher Education Student Housing Grant Program, the University will be able to expand affordable housing options for students.

A version of this article appeared on p. 2 of the Nov. 12 print edition of the Daily Nexus.