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politics | UC-Riverside

Aftermath of Recently-Ended Political Season at UC-Riverside: Provost Candidate in the Soup
Byadmin December 18, 2010

Campbell withdraws as UCR provost candidate Duane W. Gang, Dec. 17, 2010, Riverside Press-Enterprise Former California congressman and U.S. Senate hopeful Tom Campbell withdrew today as a candidate for UC Riverside’s open executive vice chancellor and provost position, the university announced. Campbell interviewed on campus Dec. 10, but some faculty and students raised objections to his candidacy because of his stance on immigration. During his unsuccessful primary campaign this year for the Republican Senate nomination, Campbell expressed support for Arizona’s SB1070, a controversial law targeting people suspected of being in the country illegally. In a statement, UC Riverside spokeswoman Kris…

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miscellaneous | UC | Yudof

New Funding Model for UC: Details Uncertain
Byadmin December 18, 2010

Word has been circulating on campus of a new systemwide funding plan for all the campuses coming out of Oakland and President Yudof. It is referred to as a “revenue allocation model” for the campuses, whereby each campus will retain its own revenues. A “tax” will be imposed on each campus to support the central UCOP operation. The new model is slated to go into effect as a pilot program in 2011-12, with full implementation in 2012-13. Exactly what is entailed in this model is not clear, nor are its implications for campus operation or the faculty. Since we are…

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fund raising | UC-San Diego

Congratulations to UC-SD: But are they sure there what they are getting?
Byadmin December 17, 2010

Geisel gives $2 million to fix chancellor’s residence: House used in fundraising and UCSD events is currently uninhabitable Pat Flynn, Dec. 16, 2010, San Diego Union-Tribune Audrey Geisel, a longtime benefactor of the University of California San Diego, has donated $2 million to jump-start renovation of University House, the currently uninhabitable residence meant for use by the campus’ chancellor. Geisel, the widow of Theodor “Dr. Seuss” Geisel, author of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” among many other books, was given in honor of the university’s 50th anniversary, which is being celebrated this year. In 2004, engineers determined that University House…

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privatization | State Budget | UC budget crisis

In Radio Interview with Marketplace Yudof Eschews Privatization; Says Most State Politicians Don’t Understand UC
Byadmin December 17, 2010

In a radio interview today, UC President Mark Yudof discussed UC in the context of the state budget crisis. Issues that came up include privatization, faculty pay, and relations with the state in the context of the budget crisis. The portion aired was an excerpt. A full transcript – not just the excerpt – and audio of the full interview is below: Yudof Full Interview on Marketplace Jeremy Hobson: Mark Yudof is the President of California’s system and he joins us now. Mark Yudof, welcome to Marketplace. Mark Yudof: Well thank you. Thank you for inviting me. Hobson: The University…

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CalPERS | pension | pensions | politics

Observations and Worries Over at CalPERS
Byadmin December 16, 2010

The excerpt below from calpensions.com deals mainly with a state contribution cut to CalPERS, ostensibly due to increased employee contributions. Some things to note: 1) the state contribution rate to the plan is already roughly at our “normal cost.” 2) CalPERS may come down to UC’s assumed 7.5% rate of expected earnings – or possibly lower. Lower would put pressure on UC to do the same. 3) CalPERS is concerned about federal legislative proposals in the new Congress regarding public pension plan discount rates used for estimating unfunded liabilities. CalPERS state rate hike cut by $200 million (except) Ed Mendel,…

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politics | State Budget | tuition | UC

Chair of UCLA Faculty Assn. Comments on LA Times Article Concerning Legislative Challenges to UC Autonomy
Byadmin December 16, 2010

Below is a note from Chair Dwight Read followed by excerpts from the LA Times article to which he is responding. A link to the full article is also provided. A Note from the Chair of the UCLA Faculty Association Professor Dwight Read Today, Dec. 16, the LA Times ran an article, “State Wants Say in UC, CSU Budgets,” about a constitutional amendment that would strip the University of California of its autonomy. To provide historical context, the excerpt below explains how UC gained its autonomy, why the citizens of California voted for it in 1879, and why it is…

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pension | pensions | UC Regents | uc retirement | UCOF

CUCFA statement about the Dec. 13th special Regent’s meeting
Byadmin December 16, 2010

Council of UC Faculty Associations statement about the Dec. 13th special Regent’s meeting At their Special Meeting on Monday, December 13, the Regents of the University of California will be making decisions on two significant issues– endorsing the principles of the UC Commission on the Future (UCOF) and drastically changing the University of California Retirement Plan (UCRP). “One thing we can agree on, said Robert Meister, President of the Council of UC Faculty Associations “is the first sentence of the UCOF Report: ‘UC is at a crossroads.’” Meister continued, “Unfortunately the University leadership has ignored the outcome of this year’s…

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State Budget

Internet Rumor: Zero for Higher Ed?
Byadmin December 15, 2010

Here is a re-posting from the liberal calitics blog which suggests that Governor-elect Brown will present a shock budget that would provide zero for higher ed. No other reports on the meeting Brown held at UCLA reported a literal zero for higher ed. It was not mentioned in the segment I previously posted from Which Way LA? on the Brown meeting. That there will be a shock budget seems a sure thing. Cuts for higher ed could certainly be part of it. I would be surprised by a total zero. But here is the entry:============ Jerry Brown as Jacob Marley…

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pension | pensions | UC Regents

Agitation Around Public Pensions in California Continues
Byadmin December 15, 2010

As prior posts have noted, there has been an active campaign – with varying intensity – behind a ballot initiative that would affect all public pensions (including UC’s) in California. Although the Regents have now enacted a plan for UC, their decisions could be overridden by such an initiative. The image accompanying this entry indicates that the issue continues to simmer. Whether the proponents of such an initiative have the $1-$2 million needed in practice to gather signatures to get it on the ballot, or the considerable amount that would be needed for a campaign thereafter, remains unknown. When Meg…

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miscellaneous

Yahoo’s Decline Will Affect the Blog
Byadmin December 15, 2010

In the past, various meetings of the Regents and hearings related to UCOF, Post-Employment Benefits, and the general budget situation have been posted on this site by way of Yahoo-video. Yahoo is generally in commercial decline, thanks to competition from Google and others such as YouTube. As a result, Yahoo has discontinued its video service. Any video content embedded from Yahoo-video will be unavailable on this blog after March 14, 2011. I will decide whether to try to move the video/audio content – which is a royal pain to do – to some other site. If you have an interest…

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News

Aftermath of Recently-Ended Political Season at UC-Riverside: Provost Candidate in the Soup

New Funding Model for UC: Details Uncertain

Congratulations to UC-SD: But are they sure there what they are getting?

In Radio Interview with Marketplace Yudof Eschews Privatization; Says Most State Politicians Don’t Understand UC

Observations and Worries Over at CalPERS

Chair of UCLA Faculty Assn. Comments on LA Times Article Concerning Legislative Challenges to UC Autonomy

CUCFA statement about the Dec. 13th special Regent’s meeting

Internet Rumor: Zero for Higher Ed?

Agitation Around Public Pensions in California Continues

Yahoo’s Decline Will Affect the Blog

UC Faculty Associations

Higher Ed Policy

Labor and Advocacy

UC Faculty Associations

Higher Ed Policy

Labor and Advocacy

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