News

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Someone let the cat out of the bag on the state budget

Byuclafaculty

Normally, the governor’s budget proposal (reminder – it is a proposal, not an enacted budget) would be made public January 10.  Someone in the governor’s entourage apparently goofed and posted it on the web today.  So there was a hasty unveiling without the usual leaking of bits and pieces for days before January 10. As it happens, yours truly is about to go to Chicago for three days so only a rough perusal of the budget was possible.  But here are some highlights.  First, take a look at the chart on the left.  The dark part of the bars are…

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UCLA History Book

Byuclafaculty

There was a nice review in yesterday’s LA Times of the new history of UCLA that recently was published. Lots of old photos are included in the book.  You can learn such things as while Berkeley may have been the main connection to the World War II Manhattan Project, UCLA handled the payroll! The book can be ordered at http://www.uclahistoryproject.ucla.edu/Book/default.asp I’d like to give you the web address of the LA Times review but the Times’ website is so clunky that all you will find if you try to locate the book review – and if you are very lucky –…

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Washington Dysfunction to be Reflected in Your Paycheck

Byuclafaculty

Excerpt from an email circulated at Anderson – in case you did not get one similar: This notice is in regards to the Social Security (OASDI) tax deducted from the January 3, 2012 paychecks. In 2010, President Obama signed into law the Tax Relief Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010.  Included in the Act was a provision that reduced the Social Security withholding rate from 6.2% to 4.2% for 2011.  This change was effective with wages paid on or after January 1, 2011 and included an expiration date of December 31, 2011.   In order to comply with…

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Ballot Initiative Offers Online Route into UC

Byuclafaculty

With a formal title and a favorable fiscal analysis in hand, backers of an initiative to broaden access to online college preparatory classes will begin gathering signatures today to qualify for the November ballot.The proposed initiative would give students the right to go elsewhere for a course required for admission to a UC or CSU campus if their school doesn’t offer it. While they could drive to a nearby district, they also could take the course online. It would establish a California Diploma, which would be awarded when a student completed the 15 required courses, known as A-G… (The sponsoring)…

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Tuition Bargain at UCLA

Byuclafaculty

Despite skyrocketing tuition costs, three University of California schools were named among the nation’s best public school bargains in rankings published Tuesday by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. UC Berkeley, UCLA, and UC San Diego finished seventh, ninth and 10th, respectively, in the magazine’s annual analysis, which honors 100 schools for their combination of quality and affordability. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was ranked first for the 11th consecutive year… Full story at http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2012/01/uc-schools-ranked.html What a bargain!  We just need someone to get the word out: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QeWO9K7Egs&w=320&h=195]

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KPCC Radio Event on Higher Ed

Byuclafaculty

A KPCC AirTalk Event: Higher Education – What Is Its Future? Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2012 6:30 p.m. – 8 p.m. The Crawford Family Forum 474 South Raymond Avenue Pasadena, CA 91105 Rising tuitions, student unrest, and trimmed budgets — what is the future of higher education? Join AirTalk’s Larry Mantle on Wednesday, January 11th as he hosts a distinguished panel of university heads representing California’s diverse higher education institutions. Chancellor Gene Blockassumed the chief executive officer position at UCLA in 2007 and President C.L. Max Nikias was appointed president of USC last year, but has been a part of the…