politics

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A little online education for the folks in Sacramento

Byuclafaculty

From the LA Times: In a crossing of swords between academics and politicians, the University of California’s top two faculty leaders on Friday strongly criticized legislation that would allow students bumped from overcrowded core courses at state schools to instead take online courses from other colleges or private companies. The bill, authored by state Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), “raises grave concerns,” Robert L. Powell and Bill Jacob, the chairman and vice chairman of the UC system’s faculty Senate, wrote in a letter to colleagues. Among other things, “the clear self-interest of for-profit corporations in promoting the privatization…

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Oh! So Clever!

Byuclafaculty

When it came to unveiling a new push to create a series of online courses for California college and university students, Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg thought it was fitting to deliver the news in a decidedly digital fashion. So instead of holding a traditional press conference, the Sacramento Democrat and other supporters of the effort logged into Google to stage a “Hangout” video conference. “(Technology) is overwhelmingly I think a positive force in our lives we want to use it to try to help as many young people, as many students, as possible be able to keep their dreams and compete in the modern…

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Now here’s a bright idea…

Byuclafaculty

From Inside Higher Ed today: A powerful California lawmaker wants public college students who are shut out of popular courses to attend low-cost online alternatives – including those offered by for-profit companies – and he plans to encourage the state’s public institutions to grant credit for those classes. The proposal expected today from Darrell Steinberg, a Democrat and president pro tem of the state Senate, aims to create a “statewide system of faculty-approved, online college courses,” according to a written statement from Steinberg’s office. (A spokesman for Steinberg declined to discuss the bill.) Faculty would decide which courses should make the…

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Windfall Revenue Remains

Byuclafaculty

In January, the state controller reported a surprise windfall of about $4 billion arrived in personal income tax revenue.  It was unclear why but possibly it had to do with speculation by wealthy taxpayers about the fiscal cliff or prospective income tax changes at the federal level.  No one knows.  An interesting question was whether the windfall would unwind in February, i.e., come in below estimates.  It did unwind a bit.  But basically, there still is an unforeseen extra $4 billion in revenue so far this year. What the impact might be on the state budget for the coming year…

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A Modest Proposal from Joe Mathews

Byuclafaculty

…The University of California badly needs a president who knows how to fight. For 25 years, the UC has been playing nice and doing the right thing. And that’s gotten the system nowhere. The UC opted to be responsible and not buy the kind of Prop 98-style protection that the K-14 system bought. The result: UC made itself easy to cut. The UC made a series of compacts with governors on cuts and spending – only to see those cuts exceed what was agreed to. And more recently, the UC has stood back, meekly, as the governor and legislators have…

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Tobacco Tax Initiative for UC/CSU Student Aid Advances

Byuclafaculty

As prior posts have noted, an initiative was filed featuring a tobacco tax to be used mainly for student aid at UC and CSU.  Unlike many initiatives that are filed, there seems to be serious money behind it since it is being handled by a professional law firm that deals with electoral matters. The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) has now come up with an analysis of the initiative, a step towards petition circulation. According to the LAO, about $730 million, net, would be raised by this initiative annually. Once the initiative is approved for circulation, we will see whether someone…

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You never know what the legislature might do

Byuclafaculty

Since the Republicans like any tax cut and the Democrats might go for the one described below, it could conceivably happen.  What Gov. Brown might do if such a bill reached his desk is another matter. An Inland Empire assemblyman wants to shave up to 9 percent off the cost of every college textbook sold in the state. On Wednesday, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly, R-Hesperia, announced the introduction of Assembly Bill 479, which would exempt college textbooks sold in California from the state’s sales tax. Only three in 10 college students in the Golden State purchase their college textbooks, according to his…

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Pressure Mounts to Lift Cap on UC Student Health Insurance

Byuclafaculty

Rep. Nancy Pelosi and nine other members of Congress are urging the University of California to lift its caps on student health insurance – limits that for the rest of the country are illegal under the Affordable Care Act and that jeopardize students with catastrophic medical problems. “It is troubling that the health plan of one of the world’s most prestigious university systems would not adopt this industry standard,” the representatives wrote UC President Mark Yudof last week. “UC students and student workers should have access to the same health-care protections that millions of other students, student workers and Americans already enjoy,” said the letter from California’s Democratic…

Supermajority Gone for Now

Byuclafaculty

There were many speculative stories around about what the legislative Democrats would do in the current session with their new two-thirds supermajority.  In theory, they could enact taxes, override vetoes, and put constitutional amendments on the ballot.  Of course, all of these speculations hinged on total Democratic unity. But there is the old Will Rogers quote: “I don’t belong to an organized political party; I’m a Democrat.”  So some of these possibilities were fanciful.  In any event, now one state senate Democrat has quit to go to work for Chevron.  [In this instance, oil seems to be troubling the political waters…

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Why the Lt. Governor Favors Online Higher Ed at the Regents (Maybe)

Byuclafaculty

Lt. Governor Newsom appeared on The Colbert Report on Feb. 14 to promote a book that seems to have something to do with online government participation: C The Colbert Report Update from Sacramento Bee Capitol Alert blog: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom was describing his new book, “Citizenville: How to Take the Town Square Digital and Reinvent Government,” on Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report” on Thursday when the host, Stephen Colbert, asked him, ‘What the (bleep) does any of that mean?” Newsom had been talking about the “broadcast model of governing” and about how “big is getting small and small is…