To: Members of the Los Angeles Division of the Academic Senate
Dear Senate Faculty:
Higher education in California (and beyond) is at a crossroads as we transform graduate education and, in some fields, the research model. The impacts of contract settlements between the UC and the UAW will affect most of you, some profoundly, by prying apart graduate student research done for pay from that done for educational credit, recalibrating the relationship between graduate and undergraduate education, possibly (but not necessarily) altering Ph.D. cohort size, modifying the income and wellbeing of many graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, and restructuring academic relationships and roles. Unless our campus works together to avoid it, research and teaching budgets may be cut, whether by design or default.
This is our opportunity to rethink a graduate education model that has been breaking for years: this moment comes with major risks and also with the possibility of creating a better world in higher education.
Faculty ideas, concerns and questions must be heard, and we strongly encourage all Senate faculty to participate in a May 9 town hall on the impact of recent contract agreements. More information is below. The strength or weakness of faculty engagement will shape our campus’s direction.
With new contract-related costs to UCLA projected at around $100 million over the next three years, budgetary matters are front of mind. The Academic Senate continues to advocate that any resulting cost-cutting be borne by administrative, not academic, budgets.
As discussed below, the Council on Planning and Budget (CPB) and Executive Board of the Academic Senate are advocating for increased participation by the faculty (through FECs and CPB) in budgeting, commensurate with the Senate’s delegated responsibility. This may sound boring or bureaucratic, but it is only with sound, mission-driven budgeting that UCLA can advance our academic mission and do right by our community.
Many faculty are exhausted. The job keeps growing, and crises pile on more responsibilities that seem to become the new normal. But now is the time to shape how UCLA will remake graduate education and our budget. Please make your voice heard, individually or collectively, at the town hall, through departmental or research group letters, or via emails. The Administration and the Senate need to hear your stories, ideas, priorities and even just a dashed-off sentence or two matters. Please do not wait: time is of the essence.
See below for updates on Senate elections, post-strike and budgetary matters, newly revised CAP guidance, and faculty rebuilding and renewal.
Thank you,
Jessica Cattelino
Chair, UCLA Academic Senate
Academic Senate Updates
May 2023
In this issue:
→ Vote in Academic Senate Elections
→ Important May 9 Town Hall on Impacts of Recent Contract Agreements
→ Faculty Role in Campus Budget Process
→ New Council on Academic Personnel (CAP) Guidance
→ Provide Feedback to Faculty Rebuilding and Renewal Joint Task Force
→ Your Academic Senate
Vote in Academic Senate Elections
Please vote for the next Vice Chair/Chair-Elect of the Academic Senate and for members of the Committee on Committees (ConC). Voting is open until May 12, 2023 at 12:00 p.m. via the Academic Senate Ballots page. The elected officers represent the faculty to the campus administration and throughout the University of California. For more information, visit the Academic Senate Elections page.
Important May 9 Town Hall on Impacts of Recent Contract Agreements
We are sounding the call for Senate faculty to participate in an important town hall. On Tuesday, May 9, 3:30 – 5 p.m., EVCP Hunt will host a virtual town hall for Senate faculty to discuss implementation of the recent UC-UAW contract agreements and answer faculty members’ outstanding questions. Senate Chair Jessica Cattelino and Graduate Council Chair James Bisley, along with representatives from the Division of Graduate Education, Office of Research and Creative Activities, Academic Personnel Office, Human Resources and Labor Relations will participate. Please RSVP for the May 9 Town Hall by Monday, May 8.
Faculty Role in Campus Budget Process
One Academic Senate goal this year was to increase the role of the “academic” in campus academic planning and budget, and we appreciate the partnership with Administration, including Interim Chief Financial Officer Allison Baird-James, in this effort.
CPB and Senate leadership are advocating for increased involvement of faculty (through CPB and Faculty Executive Committees [FECs]) in the campus budgeting process. These recommendations stem from past UCLA practice and current practice at other UC campuses.
As noted in our March 2023 Newsletter, the faculty, as represented by the Academic Senate, have a formal advisory role on financial matters, which means that the Administration is obligated to consult with the Academic Senate on the budget, but the Senate does not hold decision-making power.
New Council on Academic Personnel (CAP) Guidance
CAP has added newly revised guidance on Accelerations and Diversity, as well as Team Science, Collaborative Research, Innovation Transfer and Entrepreneurship, to its CAP Guidance web page.
Provide Feedback to Faculty Rebuilding and Renewal Joint Task Force
Individual faculty, departments, FECs and all are invited to provide your stories, ideas and concerns to the Faculty Rebuilding and Renewal Joint Task Force, which will issue its report this quarter. Enrollment growth, post-pandemic recovery, and rebalancing student-to-faculty ratios to advance educational and research excellence require an investment in faculty. Make your voice heard by emailing OVCAP@conet.ucla.edu.
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 (PDF), 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 Twitter at @UCLASenate.
Download this BruinPost PDF Here
