Author: admin

  • UC’s Pension at Least Gets a Mention

    Byadmin

    UC’s pension system (and its funding problem) is often lost in articles about public pensions in California. Usually the focus at the state level is on the big CalPERS and CalSTRS funds. Or it is on particular municipal pensions such as the pension of the bankrupt city Vallejo. The calpensions.com website, in an article today, did mention UC as part of a general discussion. The full article is at:http://calpensions.com/2010/07/22/pensions-the-good-the-bad-and-california/ The UC excerpt: “The UC Retirement System ended a two-decade contribution “holiday” this year. Neither employer nor employee paid into the system, while costs were covered by investment earnings. A required…

  • Things-Could-Be-Worse Dept.: Rolling Back the Budget at Texas A&M

    Byadmin

    A&M may flush free TP in dorms By MAGGIE KIELY The Eagle Published Wednesday, July 21, 2010 12:10 AM Elaine Benes sits in a bathroom stall, pleading with a stingy toilet-paper hoarder to “spare a square.” “Excuse me. I’m sorry. This is, a, kind-of embarrassing but there’s no toilet paper over here.” “Are you talking to me?” the stranger asks. “Yeah, I just forgot to check. So, if you could spare some.” Nope. More awkward banter. “Three squares? You can’t spare three squares?” Benes shouts. The woman leaves after saying: “No I don’t have a square to spare. I can’t…

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    After the Faculty Assn. Letter to the Regents of June 2009, Where Are We?

    Byadmin

    In a previous post, I noted a proposition that the governor promised – but that never appeared – to insure that California spent more on higher ed than on prisons. In mid-June 2009, the Faculty Association sent a letter to the Regents and President Yudof asking that the Regents treat the UC budget crisis as an emergency. It gave examples of the impact of budget cuts on campus operations and the difficulties facing UC in funding the retirement plan. The letter is reproduced below. It produced a front-page headline in the San Francisco Chronicle. The response from President Yudof and…

  • Just Asking: Where Is the Proposition on Higher Ed vs. Prisons?

    Byadmin

    Yesterday I posted the LAO’s guide to various November ballot propositions. Perhaps it might be of interest to ask about a proposition that is not on the ballot in November – and which was not on the ballot last June, either. Remember the governor’s State of the State speech in early January? If not, you can read it at: http://gov.ca.gov/index.php?/speech/14118/ You might recall that the governor proposed a constitutional amendment that was supposed to guarantee that spending on higher ed would exceed spending on prisons. His accompanying press release http://gov.ca.gov/index.php?/press-release/14124/ summarized the plan as follows: Constitutional Amendment to Increase Higher…

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    LAO analysis of Nov ballot propositions

    Byadmin

    Various propositions will be on the November ballot thanks to Governor Hiram Johnson (elected 1910) who brought us direct democracy. Some may have indirect implications for the state and therefore the UC budget. None deal directly with higher ed financing. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) has now released its analysis of each of the ten propositions. You can read the LAO’s views at http://www.lao.ca.gov/laoapp/ballot_source/Propositions.aspx (Be sure to click all 3 pages. Note that there have been moves to pull the water bond off the ballot.) Among the propositions for November is one that would allow passage of the state budget…

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    UC Davis Chancellor cautious regarding online degrees

    Byadmin

    July 19, 2010UC Davis Chancellor cautious regarding online degrees From The Swarm blog, Sacramento Bee The editorial board met with University of California, Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi this afternoon in a wide-ranging recap of her first year on campus. Last year, she spoke to the board about the challenges of fulfilling the public mission of the university in an era of reduced state funding. “That mission,” she said, “has been compromised by the inability to fund it. … The struggle is to keep quality in place and to keep it affordable.” That challenge remains. On Monday, she handed out a…

  • Pay to View at Once-Free UC-Berkeley Archive

    Byadmin

    (Scroll down to bold) UC water archive to leave Berkeley campus, go to two campuses in south state By Mike Taugher Contra Costa Times Posted: 07/19/2010 04:36:49 PM PDTUpdated: 07/19/2010 05:25:01 PM PDT The West’s premier archive of historical materials about water development is being moved from UC Berkeley to two universities in Southern California.The Water Resources Center Archives, a unique collection of technical reports, speeches, photographs and other historical materials, has been housed at the Berkeley campus for more than a half-century.However, budget worries and concerns that the Agriculture and Natural Resources Division of the UC president’s office lacked…

  • LA Times: UC gets smarter about budget cuts

    Byadmin

    LA Times Editorial http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-uc-20100720,0,4866950.story UC gets smarter about budget cutsCentralizing some administration and allowing more out-of-state and foreign students will help the University of California weather decreased revenue. July 20, 2010 Dwindling state funding has presented the University of California with a menu of unappetizing options during the past few years. Its first efforts to cover the gap were clumsy, harming students as well as its prestigious reputation. This year, university officials have gotten smarter about surviving the recession intact. With the state unable to fund the number of California students who should be accepted, according to the Master Plan…

  • Recording Regents Meetings in Future

    Byadmin

    In a prior posting, I listed instructions for listening to part of the recent Regents meetings. The meetings are in fact streamed live. But unless you record them yourself, they disappear into the ether. The earlier posting also listed the fuss that developed when someone was prevented from videoing the meeting. Apparently, a change in UC policy is underway. See below. However, it would be nice if the Regents themselves made available a recording accessible after the fact on the web. State senator questions UC decision to bar filmmakerOakland TribunePosted: 07/19/2010 08:29:18 AM PDTUpdated: 07/19/2010 08:29:19 AM PDThttp://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune/localnews/ci_15541279?source=rss SAN FRANCISCO…

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    Phishing Aimed at UCLA Folks

    Byadmin

    You may be getting emails purportedly from UCLA computer authorities telling you that your email account is about to be voided unless you click and give personal info. This is phishing aimed at identity theft. Don’t respond; just delete the messages. The latest seem to come from “vc@ucla.edu”. No such address exists. But because the messages seem to come from a UCLA email address, they may get past whatever spam filters you have.