Author: admin

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    The Taxman Looketh

    Byadmin

    Inside Higher Ed today reports that the IRS has been studying the tax payments (or nonpayments) of colleges and universities for their semi-commercial activities.  As we have noted in prior posts,  a couple of lawsuits have been filed against UCLA’s grand hotel plan, one of which challenges the University’s claim of tax exemption for the hotel and other activities.  You can find the Inside Higher Ed report at:http://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2013/04/29/irs-publishes-report-wide-review-colleges The article has links to the IRS report and earlier preliminary reports by the IRS.  You can also find the IRS report at:http://issuu.com/danieljbmitchell/docs/cucp_finalrpt_042513 It can be hard to get away from the…

  • How to answer any question with appropriate erudition

    Byadmin

    Yours truly first noticed that truly smart people – particularly those who make presentations at UCLA seminars – began a year or two ago starting the answer to any question with “So…”  Then it spread to public radio.*Now radio commentator Harry Shearer has a new feature on his “Le Show” program called the “So’s of the Week.” Here are the last two weeks of so’s: So…  What do you think? *http://chronicle.com/blogs/linguafranca/2011/12/02/so-it-turns-out-that-everyones-starting-sentences-with-so/

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    UCLA History: Mortality – Then and Now

    Byadmin

    This December 1954 photo shows a mock funeral held in protest of a decision by the university administration to change the selection process of the editor of the Daily Bruin. There isn’t much about this issue on the web other than Wikipedia.  Apparently, the administration considered the newspaper to be controlled by left-wingers and demanded that editors be elected.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daily_Bruin On a more contemporary – but somewhat related – note, many faculty are users of Gmail and other Google services (Picassa, YouTube, etc.).  In some cases, faculty forward their UCLA email automatically to Gmail or they use Gmail as a…

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    Audio of Steinberg & Powell on Online Higher Ed at State Senate Committee Hearing 4-24-13

    Byadmin

    An earlier post dealt with the state senate hearing on online higher ed this past week and provided a link to a video of the hearing.  Embedding the official video of the hearing into the posting did not work well so a link was provided instead.  However, that link also doesn’t work especially well.  Below is a link to two excerpts from that hearing.  They are audio tracks with a still picture, first of Senate president Darrell Steinberg and then of UC Academic Chair Robert Powell.  Steinberg is the proposer of a bill which in its original form mandated 50…

  • We still have the extra dough, but…

    Byadmin

    Prior posts have noted the fact that around the beginning of this calendar year, an unanticipated $4+ billion arrived in personal income tax (PIT) receipts.  The reason is unclear but may have to do with high-end taxpayers anticipating some bump up in tax rates in 2013.  The issue then became whether the extra money was simply an advance that would dissipate or whether it would stick.  So far, it seems to be sticking.  However, the Legislature Analyst in a posting as of yesterday is cautious as you an see below.  The Analyst also notes that much of the extra funding…

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    Justice?

    Byadmin

    There are all kinds of courts. UCLA chemistry professor Patrick Harran was ordered Friday to stand trial on felony charges stemming from a laboratory fire that killed staff research assistant Sheharbano “Sheri” Sangji more than four years ago. Concluding a preliminary hearing that began late last year, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Lisa Lench denied a defense motion to dismiss the case, believed to be the first such prosecution involving a U.S. academic lab accident. Harran, 43, is charged with willfully violating state occupational health and safety standards. If convicted, he faces up to four and a half years…

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    Oil Tax for Higher Ed Initiative

    Byadmin

    As we have noted many times, it is very hard to get an initiative on the ballot without hiring signature-gathering firms (which will cost $1-$2 million).  And if the initiative gets on the ballot, millions more will be needed for TV ads, etc., if there is opposition.  An oil severance tax to fund higher ed would clearly have such opposition – from the oil industry.  All that said, there is such an effort underway (as noted in prior posts): …Conceived by UC-Berkeley students, the California Modernization and Economic Development Act places a 9.5 percent tax on oil and gas extracted…

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    Another Campus Climate Incident Reported

    Byadmin

    The story above can be found in more detail at http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/04/26/uc-irvine-fraternity-issues-apology-after-blackface-video-sparks-outrage/.  So far, yours truly found no official response on the UC-Irvine website. Blog readers may recall a somewhat-related video that became known as “Asians in the Library” at UCLA and which sparked an official reaction from Chancellor Block. Possibly, this matter will be discussed at the upcoming May Regents meeting, possibly in conjunction with results – are there any yet? – from the campus climate survey taken this past winter.  

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    Yesterday’s State Senate Hearing on Online Higher Ed Bill

    Byadmin

    A California State Senate committee held a hearing yesterday on SB 520, a bill that in its original form mandated 50 online courses at UC, CSU, and the community colleges.  The bill is being pushed by Senate President Steinberg. At the hearing, he offered amendments setting 50 as a goal rather than a mandate and allowing “public-public” partnerships as opposed to public-private.  The latter refers to deals with private MOOC companies.  Public-public would include, for example, cross-campus courses.  He also offered an amendment that no public monies would be used for the private side of any public-private partnerships. (It’s not…

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    And the good news is…?

    Byadmin

    Actually, buried within the article is the info that although the entire project is now scheduled to be completed June 2014, part of the segment near UCLA will – so it says – be done next fall: …Officials now aim to complete the bulk of the project by June 2014, with work on the problematic middle segment between Montana Avenue and Sunset Boulevard lasting perhaps until next fall, according to Michael Barbour, the veteran engineer overseeing the project for the L.A. County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Kiewit has said “it could go as far as September,” Barbour said, “but we think…