UCLA

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A Different Bill of Rights Pending in the Legislature

Byuclafaculty

From the Sacramento Bee: Four California universities with big-time sports programs are fighting a legislative effort that could radically change the way schools recruit, educate and retain student athletes. The schools are opposing the “Student Athlete Bill of Rights,” they say, because it would be too expensive, put their programs at a competitive disadvantage and may go against NCAA rules. Senate Bill 1525, by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Los Angeles, would require schools earning more than $10 million a year in media revenue from athletic programs to continue an athlete’s scholarship if he or she is no longer able to participate in…

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Phishing from Way Down Under

Byuclafaculty

The email below received by yours truly definitely seems phishy: This email is being sent to you because of violation security breach that was detected by our servers. Our server detected that one of the messages you received from a contact has already infected your mail with a dangerous virus. You can no longer be allowed to send messages or files to other users to prevent the spread of virus to other @UCLA.EDU users. Please follow the link below to perform maintenance work needed to improve the protection of the email for us to verify and have your account cleared against this…

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UCLA Study Indicates Santa Monica’s Lion Was Better Able to Negotiate the Freeways than Many Commuters

Byuclafaculty

…Recently released DNA results from the mountain lion that wandered into downtown Santa Monica confirm the young male was genetically tied to the local population and not a pet. Significantly, the animal was found south of the 101 Freeway and yet possessed genetic material from populations north of the freeway, a rare bright spot for a group of animals that is suffering from an extreme lack of genetic diversity. Out of concern for public safety, Santa Monica police killed the lion after attempts to sedate it failed. “The biggest threat to mountain lions in this region is the loss and…

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Maybe the New Guy Will Take a New Look at the UCLA Hotel Project

Byuclafaculty

From the LA Daily News: Kelly Schmader, an engineer who’s headed LAUSD’s Facilities Division for two years, is leaving his $218,000-a-year post to take the top facilities job at UCLA.  In a phone interview Friday, Schmader described his move to the University of California Los Angeles as a “once in a lifetime opportunity.” “I’ve always wanted to work in higher education, and a prestigious place like UCLA – as an engineer, I couldn’t pass it up,” Schmader said… Full story at http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_20866656/lausd-facilities-chief-resigning-take-job-at-ucla It’s time to scale the grand hotel back. Kelly Schmader! You can just hear this project cry out for a…

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More Catching Up: Academic Freedom Cases

Byuclafaculty

In the prior post on this blog, we caught up with the Anderson self-support model. There is also some catching up to do on academic freedom cases. As a prior post noted, a med school faculty member at UC-Davis (who was once at UCLA) was threatened for an op ed he wrote suggesting that PSA screening was being over-promoted.  The PSA to which he referred was not any of the items to the upper left but the test used for detecting prostate cancer.  The LA Times reports that the Davis “Representative Assembly” (Legislative Assembly) voted unanimously to condemn that action….

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Catching Up: Radio Interview on Anderson MBA Self Support

Byuclafaculty

This past Monday, Dean Judy Olian of the UCLA Anderson School of Management was interviewed on KCRW’s Warren Olney on the program “Which Way LA?” concerning the vote of the Legislative Assembly to endorse the plan of moving the regular MBA to a “self support” model.  Also interviewed was Prof. Anthony Carnevale of Georgetown University.  Prof. Carnevale opposed the move, mainly on the grounds that privatization represents a shift in philosophy from public support for higher ed.  At one point Prof. Carnevale suggested that if Anderson was privatized, it should pay taxes like other private enterprises.  I do have to…

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We’re Number One!

Byuclafaculty

We have noted the impending situation on Wilshire at the 405 in which various ramps to the freeway will be closed for construction for extended periods starting this summer. (See earlier posts.)  A group called INRIX rates congested areas and the 405 adjacent to UCLA has moved from #2 to #1 in the nation, outdoing the Long Island Expressway. That’s the afternoon.  The 405 coming south towards UCLA is #7 in the morning.See http://scorecard.inrix.com/scorecard/uscorridors.asp (Thanks to Bette Billet for passing along this item of good cheer.) What happened to the good old days?[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ip_pjb5_fgA&w=320&h=195] UPDATE: Sepulveda closed tonight and tomorrow night starting…

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Who Goes There? Wilshire and the I-405

Byuclafaculty

Just a reminder that bad things are soon to happen at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and the I-405 with various ramp closures, the first of which start June 22nd and continue for three months. From Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky:  …Similar ramp closures between two weeks and three months are also planned for the remaining six ramps.  The schedule for those ramp closures will be announced at a later date, but the contractor has to finish all of this work by next year. As many of you know, the Wilshire/405 interchange is where the nation’s busiest boulevard meets the nation’s busiest freeway….

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Aftershocks

Byuclafaculty

There continue to be aftershocks to the Legislative Assembly’s decision to override the Graduate Council and endorse the Anderson School’s self support plan in the form of additional news articles since our earlier posting on this decision.  Below are some examples and links.  Only one – in The Nation – expresses concern.  The others are largely descriptive or pick up quotes from those involved. Daily Bruin (a more elaborate article than original online posting): http://www.dailybruin.com/index.php/article/2012/06/council_approves_anderson_proposal_for_financial_independence Business Week (Bloomberg): http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-06-08/ucla-faculty-approves-making-anderson-mba-self-supporting The Nation: http://www.thenation.com/blog/168305/ucla-business-school-go-private-blow-public-university Daily Californian (Berkeley student newspaper): http://www.dailycal.org/2012/06/07/proposal-to-make-ucla-mba-program-self-supporting-passes/ LA Business Journal: http://www.labusinessjournal.com/news/2012/jun/08/anderson-schools-self-sufficiency-plan-progresses/ On the other hand, the New York Times…

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UCLA History: Breslow

Byuclafaculty

Earlier today, a memorial service was held at the Faculty Center for Lester Breslow, former dean of the School of Public Health (1972-80).  Here is a 1954 photo taken earlier in his career from the LA Public Library collection entitled “Smog Control Board Members.”  Caption reads:Sitting at front is Gov. Goodwin Knight. Standing from l-r: Dr. Seward E. Miller, U.S. Pub. Health Service Medical Director; Dean L.M.K. Boelter, College of Engineering, U.C.L.A.; Dr. Malcolm Merrill, Director, State Dept. of Pub. Health; Marls Hollis, Asst. Surgeon General; Dr. Lester Breslow, State Dept. of Pub. Health; and Dr. Louis C. McCabe.The LA Times…