News

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Regents: The Bell is Ringing – UC Needs a Pension Solution

Byuclafaculty

Yesterday, I noted that events are threatening to overtake the Regents on pension funding if they do not have a plan in place by the time the next governor takes over. Even the recent scandal in the City of Bell – vastly overpaid and corrupt city officials – is pushing the pension agenda. In today’s LA Times, Steve Lopez has a column entitled “Maybe we should thank Bell’s Rizzo for shedding light on pension excesses.” You can find it at: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-0801-lopezcolumn-20100801,0,2585758.column Here is a quote: “Both candidates for governor, Meg Whitman and Jerry Brown, have made pension reform proposals for…

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Two-Tier/Two-Part Pension Stew?

Byuclafaculty

The latest in discussion of two-tier pension plans for the state – not specifically UC – is two-tier/two-part. That is, there would be a degraded pension for new hires which would be a mix of defined-benefit and partly defined contribution, cooked into a single plan through some formula. See the report: http://calpensions.com/2010/07/31/pension-reform-brown-picks-up-where-he-left-off/ Relevant quote by an official of a group pushing pension issues:Fritz said she has been talking to a labor representative about a “hybrid” plan. Salary up to a certain level, for example $50,000 a year, could be covered by a pension. Then any part of a salary above…

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U of Texas Has a UCOF-Like Committee: Endorses Online Ed

Byuclafaculty

Report: Shift colleges’ focus Committee suggests better use of online classes and ‘no-frills’ education By MELISSA LUDWIGSAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS An advisory committee tasked with making Texas higher education more efficient recommended Thursday that the state make better use of online courses and “no-frills” education and tie state funds to course completion rather than enrollment. Other suggestions included pushing students to finish college in four years and requiring them to complete 10 percent of their degrees outside the classroom. Mandated last year by Gov. Rick Perry, the 20-member committee of business and education leaders presented a draft report to the Texas…

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Brown Statement on Higher Ed in California

Byuclafaculty

Gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown released a plan for education. Most of it deals with K-12. However, there is a section on higher ed reproduced below. It picks up on the prisons vs. higher ed theme that the current governor sounded back in January – although there is no promise of an initiative that the governor outlined at that time. From:http://www.jerrybrown.org/sites/default/files/Education%20Plan.pdf Higher EducationThe California Master Plan was created in 1960. When I was Governor in the 1970s, the Master Plan was working far better to provide college access and success. In recent years, however, the master plan has been undermined, and…

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Op Ed on Michigan Model in New York State

Byuclafaculty

Prof. Shane White of UCFW forwarded the op ed below to me from the NY Times. It indicates something like the “Michigan Model” is at the center of a state budget debate in New York.——————– Stop Raiding the Ivory Tower By PETER D. SALINS Published: July 27, 2010 Stony Brook, N.Y. IT is not a disagreement about expenditures or taxes that is preventing the New York State Legislature from passing a 2011 budget. No, it is a piece of legislation called the Public Higher Education Empowerment and Innovation Act, which has the enthusiastic backing of Gov. David Paterson and grudging…

NPR Program: Homeless Students at UCLA

Byuclafaculty

College Students Hide Hunger, Homelessness by Gloria Hillard July 27, 2010 (excerpt below) For many college students and their families, rising tuition costs and a tough economy are presenting new challenges as college bills come in. This has led to a little-known but growing population of financially stressed students, who are facing hunger and sometimes even homelessness. UCLA has created an Economic Crisis Response Team to try to identify financially strapped students and help keep them in school. The complete story (audio or print) is at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128778321&ft=1&f=1001

Wondering About the State Budget?

Byuclafaculty

There isn’t one. There are occasional reports of the governor meeting with legislative leaders but no sign of an accord in the legislature – where a 2/3 vote is required – or with the governor. At a meeting with the LA Chamber of Commerce yesterday, the governor sometimes seemed to say there would be a budget in a few weeks and sometimes that there might not be one until a new governor takes office. About a week ago, a reporter sent me an emailed question about the accuracy of the governor’s deficit clock posted outside his office: I wondered… about…

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Reports to the Regents on Graduate Education

Byuclafaculty

An “Accountability Subreport on Academic and Professional Degree Students” presentation to the Regents on graduate education at UC is available at: http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/regents/regmeet/jul10/j2attach.pdf The presentation contains data on enrollments, time to completion, etc. Conclusions (last slide) are: UC Leads Nationally* Attracting high-quality graduate students, an essential condition to recruit & retain the best faculty* Training high percentage of URM (Underrepresented Minority) students* Training a high percentage of STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) doctorates* Training a high percentage of the nation’s Ph.D.s UC continues to strive for improved student qualityUC has not yet met its aspirational goals for:* Diversity* Student Support*…