NAPOLITANO: Well, I don’t know but I think, you know, as the leader of the nation’s largest public research university -- where openness and tolerance and intellectual achievement are celebrated and practiced every day -- I think that is a huge set of American values that the university will represent that I will be able to represent. I think going to the Olympics with a delegation that you have, we have athletes, we have openly gay athletes, you have leaders of public service that represents the diversity of America. I think that sends a powerful message, too.
SHAFER: The big issue that everyone is talking about ahead of the Games is security. Of course you’re former secretary of Homeland Security for the United States, which gives you an interesting perspective on all the concerns going into the Games. Obviously, a lot of steps have been taken to make sure that these Games are safe. What concerns do you have as both someone heading up our delegation and as also former secretary?
NAPOLITANO: I think that all security precautions that can be taken are being taken in a world where there are no guarantees. I think that as the Games open and continue, the focus will shift. And I hope it shifts to where it should be, which is on these athletes and what they are able to do, whether it be skiing or skating or curling or what have you.
SHAFER: As you mentioned, one of the messages, I think, of this delegation is there are three openly gay athletes, Billy Jean King and Brian Boitano among them. Russia has some troubling policies about LGBT issues. I am wondering, first of all, have you talked to any of the entire delegation? Have you talked to, say, Billy Jean King and Brian Boitano about that part of the symbolism of the U.S. delegation?
NAPOLITANO: I haven’t talked specifically about that, but I know that they are proud to go and proud to represent and we are all proud to represent, the fact that the United State is a very open and tolerant society.
SHAFER: Let me ask you at least one question here about your job as president of the university. And, by the way, do you see the head of the delegation as part of your job in some way?
NAPOLITANO: Well, I think wherever I go I am president of the University of California. So I don’t segregate it out that much. It’s a huge honor to be asked by the president to go, and I go as the president of the University of California.
SHAFER: One of the first things you did when you came in was to say we’re going to set aside $5 million for undocumented students, and then recently you’ve divvied that money up among the different campuses. When you divide it up, it’s really not that much money, in a way, per campus. Is there anything particularly innovative or interesting or creative that any of the campuses are doing or all the campuses are doing?
NAPOLITANO: Well, it actually is a good chunk of money, given the population of undocumented students is still fairly small.
SHAFER: Is it about a thousand?
NAPOLITANO: Yeah, for the whole system. I think there are more. I think as they recognize that the university is open, the state policy of California and our policy at the university and my policy as the president of the university, your documentation or lack thereof is not a concern in respect to your ability to get your education. So we cement that in, and then what I’ve done with the money is we’ve divvied it up, but we’ve asked the campuses now to come back to us by the end of February with their plans on how they intend to use it.
SHAFER: Question about diversity: I know you’re very committed to increasing the diversity, especially in places like UCLA and Berkeley, and part of that strategy is increasing the transfer of students from community colleges and CSU campuses. What needs to be done that hasn’t been done to make that a more efficient system of transfer?
NAPOLITANO: What I’ve been hearing is, I’ve gone around to the campuses and talked with transfer students and so forth, is that it can be a bit opaque. What you need to do, what classes you need to take, what would qualify for what credit where? I think we can do better in that regard and be much more transparent. Another thing I’ve heard is that students don’t know what financial resources are available, and so they self-select out of applying to the University of California. We need to do a much better job of talking about the financial resources this university will provide.
SHAFER: Back to the Games. There are some 20 athletes, I think, from California that are going to be in Sochi. You are not one of them. But if you were, which event would you have participated in?
NAPOLITANO: If I were in the Games! Oh, Lord! (laughs) Well, this is going to sound funny, but I got into curling. I was into that in Vancouver; which is kind of like bocce or shuffleboard on ice with brooms, and, there is actually a fair amount of strategy involved. So, and I am not particularly athletic myself. I am not sure I’d be a good curler, but, that would be kind of fun.
SHAFER: It beats the alternative (laughs).
NAPOLITANO: Luge would be fun.
SHAFER: President Napolitano, good luck in Sochi. We’ll look for you out there playing curling.
NAPOLITANO: (Laughs) Thank you.
