California’s public higher education is at a turning point due to the state’s systematic defunding of the Community College, Cal State, and University of California systems. Most immediately, the University of California Regents will vote at their November 17-19 meeting on a proposal to increase student fees by 32% over the next year. This fee increase would…
by Bob Meister, President, Council of UC Faculty Associations I said this to the Regents Committee on Audit and Compliance. It was a “Regents” meeting in name only. Only two Regents were physically present (at least one more was on the phone). All of the other places at the table were taken by UCOP people,…
by Bob Meister, President, Council of UC Faculty Associations Professor of Political and Social Thought, UC Santa Cruz (A pdf version of this document is available.) On October 20, UC issued a press release[1] (10/20/09) in which VP’s Taylor and Lenz respond to my Open Letter to Students: “They Pledged Your Tuition.” The UC press…
by Bob Meister, President, Council of UC Faculty Associations Professor of Political and Social Thought, UC Santa Cruz (A PDF version of this document is available.) Faculty colleagues have many questions about my open letter to students, “They Pledged Your Tuition.” Most of the questions come down to, “So what if students didn’t know that…
Nelson Lichtenstein Department of History Chair, Ad Hoc Teach-In Committee University of California, Santa Barbara October 14, 2009 Welcome. We expect to have an exciting day before us. The term “teach-in” had its origins in the 1960s when students and faculty sought to understand and therefore become active participants in the debate over the war…
UC on Wall Street: Another Reason Your Tuition Goes Up Bob Meister, President, Council of UC Faculty Associations (CUCFA) Professor of Political and Social Thought, UCSC (Download a PDF of this document. This is a summary of a longer piece.) How does UC sell $1.3 billion in construction bonds immediately after declaring an “extreme financial…
An Open Letter to UC Students From Bob Meister, President, Council of UC Faculty Associations Professor of Political and Social Thought, UC Santa Cruz (Download a PDF version of this document or view a one page summary.) As students, you pay tuition in order to get an education at UC, and you know that the…
Is the privatization of UC just part of a national trend beyond the control of UC leadership and Governor Schwarzenegger? No. In a September 27, 2009, New York Times interview UC President Mark Yudof was asked: “UC is facing a budget shortfall of at least $753 million, largely because of cuts in state financing. Do…
UCOP’s press release: The University of California Commission on the Future will meet for the first time on Tuesday, Sept. 8, at UC San Francisco’s Mission Bay Community Center. The commission was created by Board of Regents Chairman Russell S. Gould to help ensure excellence, innovation and access to opportunity across the UC system amid…
(Download PDF for printing) Why are student fees skyrocketing at the same time courses are being cut and faculty and staff furloughed, reducing classes and services to students? Throughout his term in office, Governor Schwarzenegger has cut state support for higher education and sought to shift most of its costs to its immediate users: students and their…
