Vice President of Graduate Student Affairs

Statement:

Hi Gauchos!

My name is Patrick Tugwell, and I’m a first-year Ph.D. student in the Department of Religious Studies. Prior to UCSB, I completed master’s degrees at Yale and Boston University, representing student interests on several student-faculty committees focused on institutional ethics, affordable housing, community engagement, and campus safety, all of which were especially difficult throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. My commitment to healthcare ethics began during my undergraduate years through volunteering at Moses Cone Memorial Hospital, deepened through clinical chaplaincy rotations at Bridgeport and Yale New Haven Hospitals, and continues now in my work in hospice and palliative care chaplaincy in Santa Barbara. In each of these settings, confronting both individualized neglect and systemic pitfalls has required more than observation; it has meant actively joining (and at times reigniting) advocacy efforts that challenge profit-oriented systems and push for equity and access. Alongside this work, my recent academic writing addresses resource misallocation and institutional failures in healthcare, seeking to give voice to those silenced by outdated or unresponsive bureaucratic structures.

This combined academic and professional path—shaped by graduate training in nonprofit leadership, ethical formation across multiple theological and religious studies programs, and intensive study as a FASPE Professional Ethics Fellow—has prepared me with the skills in communication, organization, and advocacy that I believe are essential for this role. With experience across corporate, nonprofit, and clinical settings, I’m ready to help build meaningful, collaborative relationships between GSA, UCShip, housing services, and the broader graduate student community as your Vice President of Graduate Student Affairs.