Charles Adkins for VP of External Affairs
As an advocate and proud enrolled member of the Yurok Tribe, Charles’ has spent his career working at all levels of government to improve the lives of Indigenous people and students. He previously worked as a Legislative Policy Analyst for the Tulalip Tribes, focusing on Education, Housing, and Indian Child Welfare. Charles also serves as the first Indigenous elected school board member for the Everett School District.
As a teenager, Charles was sent to one of the remaining Indian Boarding Schools run by the US federal government, where his experiences helped inform his fight for social and economic justice. When faced with the choice of going back to the boarding school or returning to an abusive home, he became homeless for the remainder of his high school years. Charles’ passion to help others like himself inspired him to earn a degree and rise to prominence in the Washington State political community. As Vice-President of External Affairs, Charles would use his experience to lobby for affordable tuition, address housing issues, help students meet their basic needs, and allow research assistants to unionize.
Platform
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As your VP of External Affairs, I will advocate for food security by urging the BC government to establish a non-repayable food security grant program.
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I will lobby for the BC Access Grant to be made available to graduate students.
I will advocate for a cap on the rise of international student tuition and fees.
I will work to close the loophole in B.C’s tuition limit policy that allows universities to get around the 2% cap on raising tuition fees by creating and increasing ancillary fees.
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I will lobby the BC government to recognize that research is work and student workers are employees, and to ensure that the employment of student workers is adhering to the employment standards act which would allow them to unionize.
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I will organize lobby days so graduate students can meet with their representatives and learn how to advocate for themselves.
I will organize legislative advocacy town halls to give students the chance to share what issues are affecting them and what changes they would like to see.
I will bring elected officials and candidates to campus so students can get connected with them and ask questions.
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I will lobby the BC government to amend the Residential Tenancy Act to include student housing.
I will also advocate for increasing the housing security of our students by funding wrap-around supports for housing insecure students.
Experience
Director of Legislative Affairs, Evergreen State College, Geoduck Student Union
Wrote and advocated for various bills, including creating wrap-around supports for homeless students, tuition waivers for transgender veterans who lost benefits because of Trump administration policies, and allowing First Nations to create their own state-funded opportunity scholarship programs. Organized several lobby days, invited elected officials to speak at the college, and held “legislative polls” for students to give input on the student government’s advocacy agenda.
VP of Federal Affairs, Washington Student Association
Advocated on behalf of the hundreds of thousands of public university students in Washington state to the United States federal government.
First Indigenous Member of the Everett School Board
Successfully advocated for the hiring of an indigenous student success coordinator, the creation of an Indian parent committee, and the creation and funding of two school-based health centres.
Legislative Policy Analyst for the Tulalip Tribes
Lobbied state, local, and federal governments, organized lobby days around indigenous education and indigenous child welfare, wrote and successfully advocated for the passage of the Native American Apprenticeship Assistance Program, successfully recruited and managed the campaigns of two indigenous women running for school board, and lobbied the federal government regarding the reform and abolition of taxpayer-funded Indian boarding schools.
Health Policy Director, Children’s Alliance
Advocated for children’s oral healthcare and successfully advocated for homeless youth to be able to get healthcare.
