Higher Education News From Around The Web
Dan Mithcell’s UCLA Faculty Association Blog:
- by UnknownFor several years, a mysterious topic appeared from time to time on Regents' agenda, always in closed-door sessions, entitled "Pension Administration Project." It was never clear what that Project was and since the meetings were closed, there was no way to find out. But a hint appeared in a recent Forbes article which was really […]
- by UnknownWilshire Bl and Gayley Av: Manhole Access WorkSummary Metro contractors will access a pressure-rated manhole on Wilshire Blvd and Gayley to continue work at the UCLA Station. The work will require temporary closures restricting traffic along Wilshire Bl, Gayley Av, and Midvale Av. Please follow the traffic restriction signage. Date: Ongoing to April of 2025Work hours: Monday to […]
- by UnknownI have recently noted various criticisms on social media and elsewhere on LA and California politics regarding lack of water pressure to fight the fires, policies that might have mitigated fire damage, etc. Undoubtedly, there will be investigations, reports, and commissions to examine what happened. There has long been a fascination with the LA area as […]
- by UnknownWe now have the state controller's cash statement for the first half of the fiscal year. Receipts during this period to the general fund were running $8.4 billion ahead of projections when the budget was enacted. Personal income taxes and corporate taxes are the main contributors. On the other hand, disbursements are running ahead of […]
- by UnknownTikTok is supposed to expire somehow tomorrow, although I wouldn't count on that happening. But the idea of short little videos has caught on and can be found on other social media. Our new chancellor seems to have decided to go with the flow, as this image from UCLA's YouTube channel suggests.**https://www.youtube.com/@UCLA.
Chris Newfield & Michael Meranze’s Remaking the University
- by Chris NewfieldMLA New Orleans on January 9, 2025by Rebecca Colesworthy“A democracy worth its name won’t abandon some people to a principle of non-participation.” — Judith Butler, speaking at the MLA convention on Jan 11, 2025This is not an exposé. It won’t be a barn burner. It may be a bridge burner despite my efforts to avoid […]
- by Chris NewfieldSan Francisco Bay on May 30, 2024by Unspecified EmployeeQ: Why does a large university, such as Northeastern, merge with various small colleges, such as Mills College or Marymount Manhattan College or New College of the Humanities? A: Because it can.And because these agreements, while they are announced as mergers, are basically giveaways, and usually come with […]
- by Chris NewfieldMLA New Orleans on January 11, 2025This is the first section of my talk at the MLA Convention, "Humanities Dies in Darkness," an extension of a theme. It's paired with the Public Humanities paper. I go into more detail in another section about why I think anticipatory obedience is the right term for the profession's relation […]
- by Chris NewfieldMLA Convention Hallway Meeting on January 10, 2025The organization has chosen an interpretation of fiduciary responsibility beyond the wildest hopes of Chicago School economists.by MATT SEYBOLD (This is cross-posted from his blog American Vandal, where you can find his important podcast.)JAN 08, 2025In March, I was nominated to for the Executive Council of the Modern Language […]
- by Chris NewfieldMississippi River from MLA Convention Hilton on January 8, 2025I'm cross-posting our ex-presidents letter from Lit Hub, updated to reflect the addition of Michael Bérubé. He co-chaired the Ad Hoc Committee that authored the review policy that the EC used to justify blocking the Delegate Assembly debate of the BDS resolution. For other materials, please see […]
Here are the latest posts from the Berkeley Faculty Association:
- by Michael BurawoyOn May 14, John A. Pérez, Chair of the Board of Regents, and Michael V. Drake, UC President, made a joint statement, congratulating Governor Newsom for “proposing the largest state investment in UC’s history.” The statement waxed enthusiastic about the transformative impact of the revised budget. Reading between the lines and examining the often–elusive details, […]
- by Michael BurawoyShared governance, the concept of administration and faculty making policy and decisions together, has a long history at Berkeley. Our campus’s Academic Senate has more power than most such bodies across the country: the Budget Committee plays a central role in determining FTE, granting tenure and promotion, and other Senate committees control curriculum and set […]
- by Michael BurawoyJust in time for Mother’s Day, parents with children in campus childcare faced plans for increased tuition, shorter hours, and reduced staff next fall. Meanwhile, UCOP is putting the final touches on an improved paid family leave program that is still worse than that of comparable employers throughout the state. Why is the University of […]
- by Michael BurawoyIn early April, the UC unveiled their “Proposed Revisions for UCPD” plans. One proposal is the creation of “Systemwide Response Teams”—in effect, a UC paramilitary force that can be mobilized in response to protest actions, and to provide crowd management and “riot control.” These teams would be armed with body armor, chemical agents, and explosive […]
- by Michael BurawoyThe lecturers’ union (UC-AFT) and UCOP have been bargaining over a new contract for more than two years, with little to show for it. Despite the legal obligation to bargain in good faith, the UCOP negotiators have refused to bargain on basic issues, while regularly demonstrating their disrespect for their UC-AFT interlocutors. Senate faculty who have […]
National higher education blogs of interest, starting with AAUP’s Academe Blog:
- by Hank ReichmanBY HANK REICHMAN The American Federation of Teachers and its state affiliate, the California Federation of Teachers, have established a disaster relief fund to assist “displaced members and their families—our educators and school staff, pre-K through college, in Southern California.” In an email to members, AFT President Randi Weingarten and CFT President Jeff Freitas wrote,…
- by John K. WilsonBY JOHN K. WILSON The new year brings a wide range of different events related to academic freedom and deadlines for opportunities. Here’s a quick summary of some activities, and you are encouraged to add any additional opportunities (such as AAUP state conference and chapter events) in the comments. The AAUP’s Journal of Academic Freedom…
- by Guest BloggerBY KATHERINE FRANKE The following is the text of a statement issued on January 10, 2025 by Katherine Franke, formerly the James L. Dohr Professor of Law at Columbia University. It is posted here with her permission For the last year and a half, as students at Columbia University and across the globe have protested…
- by Guest BloggerBY RENEE L. BOWLING AND MATTHEW J. MAYHEW Some good news for the new year: Over three hundred campuses have partnered with the Interfaith Spiritual, Religious, and Secular (INSPIRES) Index to assess and improve their campus climates for diverse worldviews. Encouragingly, many campuses participate repeatedly in the annual research-based assessment and share their names or…
- by Guest BloggerBY DANIEL A. SEGAL An opera based on Michael Chabon’s novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, with music by Mason Bates and libretto by Gene Scheer, had its world premiere at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music on November 15. The opera is glorious, and the performance, with every note sung and played…