a major contributor to the music industry. Past recipients have included Stevie Wonder, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, James Taylor, Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Quincy Jones,[125] Lionel Richie, and in 2009, Julie Andrews.[126] The Dinner for 12 Strangers, a common tradition among universities, is a gathering of students, alumni, administration and faculty to network around different interests.[127] The week before the USC rivalry football game, there is a "Beat 'SC Bonfire and Rally." The bonfire

dents raise money and dance to support the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, Project Kindle, One Heartland, and the UCLA AIDS Institute. Dancers are required to fundraise a minimum amount of $250 before the event, which is a 26-hour dance marathon. Dancers are not allowed to sit (except to use the restroom) during the marathon, literally taking a stand against pediatric AIDS, and symbolizing the suffering of children around the world infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS. In 2012, Dance Marathon at UCLA raised a record-breaking $451,000. Since 2002, the Marathon has raised over $3 million.[122]
UCLA students also participate in "Midnight Yell" during finals week, a tradition where every night at midnight (starting on that week's Sunday), students yell as loudly as possible for a few minutes, giving a chance to take a short break from studying and to release some stress.
The quarterly Undie Run takes place during the Wednesday evening of Finals Week, when students run through the campus in their underwear or in skimpy costumes. The run first began in Fall of 2001 when a student, Eric Whitehead, wearing what he described as "really short shorts" walked around singing a song and playing a guitar to protest the Police restrictions on the Midnight Yell.[123] With the increasing safety hazards and Police and Administration involvement, a student committee changed the route in order to satisfy concerns but keep the event. It was changed to a run through campus to the fountain in front of Powell Library, which now culminates with students dancing in the fountain.[124] As attendance increased, committees in charge of organizing the event deemed it necessary to employ the UC Police during the event, to ward off vandalism and dangerous activity.[124] In 2007, the route was changed again to begin at Strathmore and Gayley Avenues instead of Landfair and Gayley Avenues. The Undie Run concept has since spread to other college campuses around the United States, including the University of Texas at Austin, Arizona State University, and Syracuse University.


Spring Sing 2009
The Alumni Association sponsors several events, usually large extravaganzas involving huge amounts of coordination. An example of this is the 60-year old Spring Sing, organized by the Student Alumni Association (SAA). Spring Sing is UCLA's oldest tradition—it is an annual gala of student talent, which is held at the Los Angeles Tennis Center on campus. In 2009 the event was held in UCLA's Pauley Pavilion. The committee bestows the George and Ira Gershwin Lifetime Achievement Award each year to a major contributor to the music industry. Past recipients have included Stevie Wonder, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, James Taylor, Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Quincy Jones,[125] Lionel Richie, and in 2009, Julie Andrews.[126] The Dinner for 12 Strangers, a common tradition among universities, is a gathering of students, alumni, administration and faculty to network around different interests.[127] The week before the USC rivalry football game, there is a "Beat 'SC Bonfire and Rally." The bonfire did not take place in 2006 due to fire hazard issues. Nonetheless, UCLA won the football game, upsetting the #2 ranked Trojans. This led many to believe that dispelling of the tradition led to the victory.
The USAC Cultural Affairs Commission hosts the JazzReggae Festival, a two-day concert on Memorial Day weekend that attracts more than 20,000 attendees. The JazzReggae Festival is the largest, entirely student produced and run event of its kind on the West Coast.[128]
Student government[edit]


Kerckhoff Hall houses the offices of student government and the Daily Bruin.
The Associated Students UCLA (ASUCLA) is the official entity encompassing student government and student-led enterprises at UCLA. ASUCLA has four major components: the Undergraduate Students Association, the Graduate Students Association, Student Media, and services & enterprises. However, in common practice, the term ASUCLA is often more narrowly used to refer to the services and enterprises component. This includes the Student Store, Bookstore, Food Services, Student Union, etc. These commercial enterprises serving the UCLA campus community generate approximately $90,000,000 in annual revenues, making it financially the largest student government operation in the world.[129] As a nonprofit corporation, the financial goal of ASUCLA is not to maximize return or "profit" but to provide quality services and programs to the campus community at reasonable prices. ASUCLA is governed by a student-majority Board of Directors. The Undergraduate Students Association and Graduate Students Association each appoint three members plus one alternate. In addition to the student members, there are represent