Author: higbie

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UCOP Response to CUCFA on Health Options

Byhigbie

In April, the Council of UC Faculty Associations drafted a letter of concern over proposed changes to UC employee health insurance options. Over 2,500 faculty system-wide added their names in support of these concerns. Now we have a response from the UC Office of the President (UCOP): Subject: Health care options letter Date: Wed, 6 May 2015 23:40:06 +0000 From: President at UCOP dot edu To: info at cucfa dot org Dear Professor Hays: Thank you for sharing the Council of UC Faculty Associations’ letter of April 7 to President Napolitano regarding the possible restructuring of healthcare plans available to…

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College Diversity Requirement Passes

Byhigbie

The requirement for students in the UCLA College of Letters and Sciences to take one course on diversity passed by a wide margin in an Division-wide vote. After faculty in the College passed the requirement earlier this year, a small group in opposition petitioned the Senate leadership appealing to an obscure provision in the Senate by-laws. Senate leaders upheld the petition over the protest of the College FEC and scheduled a vote of the entire UCLA faculty. That vote, held last week, yielded 916 in favor and 487 opposed. The requirement goes into effect for students entering UCLA in the…

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Faculty Coalition at Work in Sacramento

Byhigbie

As the budget battle grinds on in the state capital, the Council of University of California Faculty Associations (CUCFA) has been advocating on behalf of system faculty. In February, CUCFA weighed in on a proposal to alter UC governance. In a letter to legislators from Joe Kiskis (UC Davis), CUCFA noted While some actions of the Regents and the UC administration generate criticism with which we concur, we do not believe that the UC governance structure itself is fundamentally flawed. The University’s long term goals of access, affordability, and excellence are well served by an independent, diverse Board of Regents…

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UCOP Study Shows Decline in Faculty Compensation

Byhigbie

A year ago Colleen Lye and James Vernon, co-chairs of the Berkeley Faculty Association, drew the attention of faculty across the ten campuses of the University of California to the continuing degradation of their pensions, benefits and salaries. Increasing employee contributions to health insurance and pensions were compounding the negative impact of slow salary group, they argued, and retirees faced fewer choices for healthcare. Now UCOP’s own study of total remuneration has confirmed much of their argument. The executive summary of this document contains the following depressing bullet points: Between 2009 and 2014, UC’s total remuneration fell from 2% below…

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Univ. of Wisconsin Faces Big Changes under Walker

Byhigbie

Wisconsin’s Republican governor Scott Walker recently proposed a $350 million cut to the University of Wisconsin system budget, and a fundamental shift in the university’s relationship to the state. Currently, the multi-campus system is a state agency. The new law would make the UW system a “public authority.” In a lengthy analysis, UW professors explain what this change will mean and why system administrators are not fighting it: They [system leaders] recognize the cuts as a “DEAL” with the state in exchange for what they call the ‘flexibilities’ of the public authority model.  This desire explains why no UW System…

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CUCFA Statement on “Civility” and Academic Freedom

Byhigbie

This week the Council of University of California Faculty Associations (CUCFA), with representatives from 9 UC campuses including UCLA, issued the a statement reflecting concern over academic freedom cases around the country: Statement on “Civility” and Academic Freedom On Friday Sept. 5, Chancellor Dirks of UC Berkeley circulated an open statement to his campus community that sought to define the limits of appropriate debate at Berkeley. Issued as the campus approaches the 50th anniversary of the Free Speech Movement, Chancellor Dirks’ statement, with its evocation of civility, echoes language recently used by the Chancellor of the University of Illinois, Urbana…

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UCLA FA to Rejoin CUCFA

Byhigbie

Some years ago the UCLA Faculty Association was a member of Council of University of California Faculty Associations (CUCFA), but dropped out.  With new leadership at CUCFA and the UCLA FA, it seemed like a good time to revisit our membership in the Council, and recently the Executive Board voted unanimously to pursue a renewed membership with CUCFA. What is CUCFA you ask? CUCFA (or “the Council”) is a coalition of the faculty associations at University of California campuses.  Each campus chapter is an independent organization with the Council serving as a coordinating and information sharing body.  Each campus chapter…