To: Members of the Los Angeles Division of the Academic Senate
Dear Senate Faculty:
I hope you are all doing well as we march through Winter Quarter. Among many other things going on, it’s budget season. In January, Governor Newsom released his preliminary state budget for next year. State revenue is expected to decrease, and thus the governor is proposing a number of changes that impact the UC, including deferral of budget increases promised under the multi-year compact (PDF) . Campus units are now preparing their budgets, and we urge you to communicate the priorities and concerns of faculty to your department chairs and FEC representatives, so that they may work with the Deans in setting priorities for your school (more information below). The campus has also announced its 2023–28 Strategic Plan. Importantly, the plan is currently with the individual schools/units, so we again encourage you to work with your department chairs, FEC representatives and Deans to make sure faculty voices are heard in the planning process for all units.
We’re also nearing Senate elections, which occur in early Spring. We encourage you to consider serving in the Senate, either through elected positions or through volunteering for our councils and committees.
Please read on for more information on the budget, elections, volunteering for the Senate, and other updates.
Have a great end of quarter, and please let us know what you think, alert us to issues, and stay in touch!
All the best,
Andrea Kasko
Chair, UCLA Academic Senate
Academic Senate Updates
February 2024
In this issue:
→ Save The Dates
→ Senate Elections Info Session
→ New Council on Academic Personnel (CAP) Guidance
→ Formal Advisory Role on Budget Matters
→ UC Guidance for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communication
→ UCLA Academic Senate Certified as a “Green Business”
→ Your Academic Senate
Save The Dates
Chair Office Hours
Drop by monthly informal "office hours" with Senate Chair Kasko at the Playa Café in the UCLA Faculty Club from 10:30 a.m. to noon on the first Tuesday of the month.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Awards Call for Nominations
The UCLA Academic Senate welcomes nominations for the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Awards for faculty. The eligibility criteria and nomination instructions for the awards are outlined in the Academic Senate's DEI Awards Brochure (PDF). The nomination deadline is Friday, March 14, 2024, at 5:00 p.m. in DMS.
Senate Elections Info Session
Interested in running for one of the Senate’s elected positions? For the 2024–25 academic year there are vacancies for the next Vice Chair/Chair-Elect of the Senate, five members of the Executive Board and ten members of the Committee on Committees. We welcome you to attend an informational meeting about Senate Service and the 2024 Elections on March 7, 2024, from 4:00-4:30 p.m. via Zoom. Please RSVP online to attend.
New Council on Academic Personnel (CAP) Guidance
CAP has published new guidance on Community-Engaged Scholarship on the Senate website. Community-engaged scholarship includes research or scholarship conducted in partnership with non-academic organizations and community scholars and practitioners. This type of research is sometimes conducted outside the standard framework of peer-reviewed scholarship and can involve components that may not produce conventional interim milestones or traditional final products. CAP recognizes that community-engaged scholarship involves collaborations with many different bodies, and in its guidance, provides recommendations for candidates and their departments on how to provide contexts for, and insights into, the intellectual significance of their community-engaged research or scholarship in their dossiers.
Formal Advisory Role on Budget Matters
The Academic Senate, which includes the Faculty Executive Committees (FECs) of each School and Division, has a formal advisory role over campus and University budgets per Regents Bylaw 40.1. FECs provide important faculty feedback about budget priorities that support the academic mission of research, teaching, and service. We encourage FECs to ask to participate in setting school priorities with respect to the budget.
UC Guidance for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Scholarly Communication
The University of California’s Office of Scholarly Communication has created a DEI in Scholarly Communication resource to assist faculty in considering diversity, equity, and inclusion in scholarly communications. This resource provides answers to commonly asked questions, and clearly identifies ways to address inequalities in authorship practices.
UCLA Academic Senate Certified as a “Green Business”
The UCLA Academic Senate promotes sustainable office practices to support UCLA’s larger commitment to be an environmentally responsible campus. We have partnered with the City of Los Angeles Green Business Program to help reduce the environmental impacts of our office work. Our department is recognized as a certified green business (PDF) under the California Green Business Network. The Academic Senate encourages all departments to consider the impact of their business operations and to apply for certification.
Your Academic Senate
The Academic Senate is only as strong as its engaged faculty. We uphold the principle of faculty governance in higher education only when faculty exercise their governing authority. We welcome you to volunteer, contact your Legislative Assembly representatives, reach out to your Faculty Executive Committee Chairs who serve on the Council of Faculty Chairs, visit the Academic Senate website, and follow us on X at @UCLASenate.
Download this BruinPost PDF Here.
