BERKELEY STUDENT COOPERATIVE

Berkeley, CA   |  www.bsc.coop

Mission

The Berkeley Student Cooperative is dedicated to providing a quality, low-cost, cooperative housing community to university students, thereby providing an educational opportunity for those who might not otherwise be able to afford a university education.

Ruling year info

1960

Executive Director

Kim Benson

Main address

2424 Ridge Rd

Berkeley, CA 94709 USA

Show more contact info

Formerly known as

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA STUDENTS COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION

UNIVERSITY STUDENTS COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION

EIN

94-0948140

NTEE code info

Housing Owners, Renters Organizations (L50)

Student Services and Organizations (B80)

Business, Youth Development (O53)

IRS filing requirement

This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.

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Communication

Programs and results

What we aim to solve

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Increasing costs of living and attending college pose an obstacle for students seeking to take the steps towards success in their lives. Often, there is a compromise between the effort that a student can put into education and their quality of living, with many prospective students having to give something up entirely.

The Berkeley Student Cooperative, true to our 501(c)(3) charitable nonprofit mission, is changing who gets to go to college and stay in college. We provide a quality, low-cost, cooperative housing community to students at UC Berkeley and other Bay Area colleges and universities.

The BSC is a student-run organization that provides meaningful experiences to prepare students for the next step. We are democratically run by our students and all contribute labor to keep us affordable.

Our programs

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?

Student Housing

The Berkeley Student Cooperative was founded by 14 students in 1933, during the Great Depression. Today, the BSC provides affordable housing to nearly 1,300 students in 20 properties surrounding the UC Berkeley campus. We serve the same mission as we did during the Great Depression -- to provide low-cost, cooperative housing so that students can afford a college education.

We serve low-income and traditionally marginalized students. Our room and board rate is $735/month, which is less than half the cost of a triple UC Berkeley dormitory room. We also have an African-American, substance-free, LGBTQ, and a People of Color theme house so that traditionally marginalized students can have safe spaces to live in our campus community.

We provide work and leadership experience, thanks to our unique cooperative model. We are student-governed and student-operated, supported by a permanent staff of 23 employees that work closely with the students. There is no other place on campus where a large number of students gain sustained real world experience in a $10 million budget, a portfolio of properties, member policy, and other concerns of a nonprofit serving 1,300 students.

Population(s) Served

Where we work

Our results

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.

Number of applications for housing received from targeted population

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

The BSC receives over 2,000 applications a year. We accept 1,260 members and have a waitlist of over 1,400.

Number of low-income families housed in affordable, well-maintained units as a result of the nonprofit's efforts

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Low-income students who have received affordable housing in the BSC system. 50% of the total membership.

Number of children with a disability supported to live at home

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

Students with disabilities who have received affordable housing in the BSC system. 14% of total membership.

Total dollar amount of scholarship awarded

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

145 scholarships provided to member applicants in financial need of at least $8,606/year.

Number of students who receive scholarship funds and/or tuition assistance

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

The BSC provides one of the lowest-cost housing options in Berkeley and further awarded 145 member applicants with scholarship towards financial aid.

Number of people in the area with access to affordable housing as a result of the nonprofit's efforts

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

The BSC provides one of the lowest-cost housing options for students attending UC Berkeley and other colleges in the Bay Area.

Number of first-generation college students who have received access to afforadable housing

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

45% of our membership are first-generation college students.

Number of college transfer student who have received access to afforadable housing

This metric is no longer tracked.
Totals By Year
Related Program

Student Housing

Type of Metric

Output - describing our activities and reach

Direction of Success

Increasing

Context Notes

25% of our membership are students who have transferred colleges, usually from a local community college to UC Berkeley.

Goals & Strategy

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.

Charting impact

Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.

Our overall goal is ultimately to increase the number of low-income students we serve while also ensuring that our housing is open and accessible to all those students who truly need it. The fact that there are currently a little over 7 times as many low-income and working class students at UCB as there are total bed spaces at the BSC indicates to us that we can do better and it inspires us to try to find new ways to do so.

-Increased collaboration with UC Berkeley to target recruitment of low-income and underprivileged student population.

-Expansion of BSC's housing counseling and scholarships programs.

-Theme housing to support students who want to live in specific communities in which they find support.

We have a robust and committed student governing board, an experienced and committed staff of 23 professionals, and a communications and training infrastructure that reaches each one of our students.

- Rent stabilization over the past five years. Through creating further efficiencies, we have maintained steady room and board rates and kept our cost at less than half of UC Berkeley dormitories.

- Improvements in training and orientation at all levels of membership -- new members, student managers, and the student board.

- Addressing the needs of marginalized students, including measures like opening the Person of Color Theme House (POCTH) in the Fall of 2016.

- Not accomplished: comprehensive seismic retrofits so that all our students live in safe buildings. We have completed over $18 million in seismic retrofits, financed primarily by our own students. We have over $27 million in further seismic retrofits.

Financials

BERKELEY STUDENT COOPERATIVE
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Operations

The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.

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Connect with nonprofit leaders

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  • Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
  • Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
  • Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations

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BERKELEY STUDENT COOPERATIVE

Board of directors
as of 03/30/2020
SOURCE: Self-reported by organization
Board chair

Emery Martinez

UC Berkeley Student

Term: 2019 - 2020

Board leadership practices

SOURCE: Self-reported by organization

GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.

  • Board orientation and education
    Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes
  • CEO oversight
    Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Yes
  • Ethics and transparency
    Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes
  • Board composition
    Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes
  • Board performance
    Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes