News

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Gambling on Online?

Byuclafaculty

Prof. Michael Meranze pointed me to an article in the Chronicle of Higher Ed concerning UC’s apparent change in policy regarding funding for its online education initiative. Apparently, there will now be borrowing to launch the project, although previous plans were to rely on fund raising. Dan Simmons, chair of the Academic Senate, was quite cautious about the initiative in the Chronicle article: (excerpt) Daniel L. Simmons, chair of the system’s academic senate, said on Friday that he supported the pilot program and understood the need to experiment with online education even during times of crisis. The senate formally endorsed…

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AAUP Data on Faculty Pay

Byuclafaculty

The AAUP data for salaries and compensation of faculty in 2010-11 are now available. UCLA is reported to pay the average full professor $153,700 and $203,000 in total compensation (including benefits). The data are at http://www.aaup.org/NR/rdonlyres/1D1C8A5B-7A93-42DB-BB1F-6840B2A20387/0/ALFL.pdf Figures for other UC campuses are also reported with Berkeley at the top and Santa Cruz at the bottom. According to the AAUP documentation, the numbers include faculty in law, dentistry, nursing, and management but exclude those under the health services compensation plan. So the averages will be affected by the presence or absence of these programs on particular campuses. The relevant footnotes are…

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Something that could be done on the UC Budget: Time to Ask

Byuclafaculty

On The Record (Excerpt) Gov. Jerry Brown recently announced that he was ending talks with Republican legislators over a temporary tax increase. What can be done to prevent partisan standoffs in Sacramento and improve the UC’s financial circumstances? Daniel 
Mitchell, 4-11-11, Daily Bruin When the state legislature spends time in the midst of a major budget crisis debating about whether to ban shark fin soup, you know we’re in trouble. The current focus on soup is not because legislators don’t know about the dire budget situation. Rather it means they don’t know what to do about it. And that is…

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Is There Any Construction Work Needed Apart from a Hotel/Conference Center?

Byuclafaculty

A year ago, California Watch published a listing of buildings in the UC system with poor or very poor seismic ratings. Below is a subset from that listing of just the UCLA buildings. Scroll below the list for a link to information on each building. If someone at UCLA is looking for construction work to undertake, apart from a new hotel/conference center, here is a possible list: UCLA: Center for Health Sciences – Jules Stein Eye Institute UCLA: Center for Health Sciences – Marion Davies Children’s Center UCLA: Center for Health Sciences – Neuropsychiatric Institute (low-rise) UCLA: Center for Health…

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Some Pleasant Thoughts for the Weekend

Byuclafaculty

State Senate hearing on all-cuts budget solution Wyatt Buchanan, San Francisco Chronicle, April 8, 2011 Democrats in the state Senate raised the prospect of closing some University of California campuses, shortening the school year and reducing the number of law enforcement officers as they began considering what California would look like if the Legislature took an all-cuts approach to solving the budget deficit… Sen. Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, said she has spoken with distinguished faculty members at UC Berkeley who have told her they would leave the school because of cuts. Hancock raised the prospect of closing some UC campuses to…

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The Hotel/Conference Center: Is a Change of Heart Possible?

Byuclafaculty

In the light of last night’s public forum on the proposed hotel/conference center at UCLA, an interesting question was put subsequently to yours truly: Can a UC campus actually have a Change of Heart on spending priorities and activities in the light of the current state/UC budget crisis? Is it possible to stay focused on the core mission? From UC-San Diego comes one hopeful answer: UCSD, Cal Western talks for law school suspended (excerpt) Pauline Repard, April 6, 2011, San Diego Union-Tribune SAN DIEGO — The University of California San Diego and California Western School of Law have suspended merger…

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Audio of Last Night’s Public Forum on the Proposed UCLA Hotel/Conference Center

Byuclafaculty

A public forum was held on UCLA’s proposal to demolish the Faculty Center and replace it with a hotel/conference center. Most – not all – of the public comments and questions opposed the project or raised issues with it. Comments were made by neighborhood residents, local hotel operators, faculty and emeriti, and students. The forum began with comments in support of the project by EVC Scott Waugh. Chancellor Block joined the forum about half way through and indicated he had had airplane trouble that caused his late arrival. The chancellor in brief comments echoed the remarks of EVC Waugh. Below…

Court Rules for Free Speech Rights of Faculty at Public Universities

Byuclafaculty

An earlier post on this blog noted the controversy over demands for a faculty member’s emails at the University of Wisconsin. Insider Higher Ed today features a story on a court ruling protecting free speech rights of faculty at public universities. An interesting side note is that earlier court rulings that seemed to limit such speech rights stemmed from a U.S. Supreme Court decision related to a situation at the LA District Attorney’s office. Excerpt: Free to Speak Out April 7, 2011, Scott Jaschik. Inside Higher Ed A controversial professor suing his university in North Carolina won a key ruling…