Author: uclafaculty

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Is there a Changing State Attitude Regarding the UC Pension? Reading Between the Lines

Byuclafaculty

As blog readers will know, UC has had difficulties in getting the state to recognize that its pension liabilities were ultimately those of the state, just as CalPERS and CalSTRS liabilities are liabilities of the state.  Thanks to the two-decade hiatus of contributions, the state seemed to forget about UC’s pension.  However, there is beginning to be recognition that although you can say the pension is a liability of the Regents, in the end the Regents have no sources other than the state and tuition to deal with it. We noted recently that in his budget document describing his proposal…

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UCLA Meteorite Exhibit Now Open

Byuclafaculty

Both the LA Times and the Daily Bruin recently carried stories about a new meteorite museum/exhibit now open in the Geology Building.  Included is a chunk of the meteorite that created the well-known Meteor Crater in Arizona. http://www.latimes.com/science/la-sci-meteorite-museum-20140111,0,7358495.story http://dailybruin.com/2014/01/13/ucla-officially-opens-meteorite-gallery-with-interactive-exhibit/ Yours truly hasn’t been there yet, but here is the info: WHERE: The museum is in Room 3697 of the Geology Building on the UCLA campus in Westwood. The address is 595 Charles E. Young Dr. East. WHEN: Open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays, and some weekend afternoons. On weekends, graduate students will be on hand to answer questions…

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UCLA History: Almost 20 Years Since the Northridge Earthquake

Byuclafaculty

The 20th anniversary of the Northridge earthquake will be arriving this coming Friday.  These photos appear in the volume “UCLA: The First Century” and show damage to a dorm room (top) and post-quake repairs to Royce Hall (bottom).  Royce was closed for an extended period after the quake while repairs were made.

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Grand Hole

Byuclafaculty

Visited the Grand Hotel site after an intersession hiatus.  So far, the Grand Hotel seems to be mainly a Grand Hole where some remnants of parking structure #6 remain.  It is a big Hole, however, and you could pour a lot of money into it.  Not to worry, though.  Even though the Grand Hotel will cost over three times the donation that is paying for it, the business plan, we are assured by the powers-that-be, will eventually make us – well – wHole.

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Someone may want to see what you are doing

Byuclafaculty

Faculty should have received the email from Chancellor Block below regarding public documents requests for such things as emails.  The statement is good.  The two links provided are also useful.  But when you get through reading them, you should still regard virtually anything you email or write as potentially a public document.  Yes, various exemptions exist.  But there are gray areas.  In addition, an email you sent to someone else at another public institution – maybe in another state – might be made public there.  Even if you deleted it, the recipient may have it.  That is the reality.============ Dear…

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And While We Await the Governor

Byuclafaculty

The state controller has issued a cash report that more revenue to the tune of about $2.5 billion arrived in the first six months of 2013-14 than was projected in the budget last June.  Blog readers will recall that the governor insisted on conservative projections of revenue. Note that the really big revenues will arrive around (income) tax time in April.  If you looked at the reserve in the general fund at the moment, as seen by the controller, it is negative $18.3 billion, covered by internal and external borrowing.  As many have noted, California is heavily dependent on the…

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Budget Leaks Turn into a Flood of Biblical Proportions

Byuclafaculty

We noted in prior posts that there were some leaks of the governor’s proposed budget for 2014-15, which was supposed to be unveiled on Friday.  The leaks turned into a flood of Biblical proportions when first the Sacramento Bee published some summary information about the budget yesterday, said to come from the actual budget that the Bee had obtained somehow.  Then what appeared to be the budget “summary” – actually a document of 271 pages – appeared online.  And then it was announced that the official unveiling would be today at 9 AM instead of tomorrow, confirming that what was…

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Tops

Byuclafaculty

The governor is to propose his budget for 2014-15 this coming Friday.  And although the budget is baked by now, this headline from the LA Now blog of the LA Times can’t hurt as the budget process proceeds between now and June.  The guv loves online ed and he can’t give the money to USC. But UCLA would be happy to receive it. Full article at http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-college-online-20140107,0,7388397.story Nothing like being the top:[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vc7152gQK-U?feature=player_detailpage]

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Is the ball still in their court or has the train left the station?

Byuclafaculty

Hey! Let’s rebuild the old stadium! Sorry to mix metaphors.  But Inside Higher Ed today has a long story on Berkeley athletics which have recently been in the news for low graduation rates and problems in funding a stadium upgrade.  A white paper from the Berkeley Center for the Study of Higher Education suggests that the program is running as an autonomous and relatively uncontrolled business operation. It is written by a former vice chancellor – who can now tell all -and a Berkeley grad student. See http://cshe.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/shared/publications/docs/ROPS.CSHE_.12.13.Cummins%26Hextrum.CalAthletics.1.6.2014.pdf and http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2014/01/08/highlighting-berkeley-paper-explores-academic-damage-expanding-independent-athletics The issue is whether control can be retaken or whether…