UCLA

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Former UC President Kerr Recalls Legislative Ban on UC Sales That Compete with Private Sector

Byuclafaculty

The issue of the proposed hotel/conference center planned to replace the existing Faculty Center has raised the question of the degree to which UC entities can provide services that compete with private providers. Prior posts on this blog have noted that issue. In an interview in the 1990s, which dealt in large part with the development of UC-Davis, former UC president Clark Kerr recalled a legislative ban on such sales. He noted that agricultural products produced at Davis could not be sold, especially wine. But the campus could hold free wine tastings which members of the legislature were happy to…

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Follow Up

Byuclafaculty

The dismissal (or is it nonrenewal of funding?) of a researcher at UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center has periodically made the news, particularly on the right, over the past year or so. His website at UCLA no longer operates but the Google-cache function produces the past page with the following description: Since 1974 Dr. James Enstrom has conducted research on the epidemiology of cancer, particularly examining the health practices and cancer risk in several well-defined populations within California and the United States. His significant findings relevant to cancer include: identification of unusually low-risk populations, like health-conscious Mormons; measurement of an…

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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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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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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…

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The Faculty Center Issue: Fungibility and Purpose

Byuclafaculty

Yours truly will be posting the audio from the public forum of earlier this evening on the hotel/conference center that was proposed to replace the Faculty Center. That posting won’t happen until tomorrow. (The audio needs to be converted to video and then divided into segments that meet certain technical limits.) However, one issue that came up this evening was the flexibility of use of the Luskin gift. Did the Luskins exclusively want a hotel/conference center along the lines originally proposed? That question was not precisely answered. There were general comments about donors having particular visions. On March 18, a…