Overarching Goal
UCLA must strive to prioritize the academic mission and retain its deeply embedded institutional values. Using the interim UCAD Report as a model, the UCLAAD Task Force (UCLAAD) will proactively identify risks and systematically derive responses that are appropriate for the local environment. UCLAAD will develop response strategies that aim to uphold the academic mission at UCLA, with a primary focus on research and instruction, in the context of disruptions, uncertainties, and evolving shifts in the higher education landscape.
Charge
The Task Force will:
- Conduct relevant analyses and align UCLA-specific planning efforts with UCAD’s recommendations,
- Assess current and potential serious long-term threats, and
- Develop viable response options across multiple scenarios in each of the following four priority areas:
- Restructuring of academic programs,
- Prioritizing resource allocations for academic programs,
- Refocusing campus resources to the academic mission, and
- Identifying untapped funding sources to support academic mission- related activities
The Task Force is expected to approach issues analytically, with data whenever possible, and to contribute recommendations to near-term academic and operations maintenance, as well as for long-term planning. The Task Force will draw on the expertise of Academic Senate and administrative leaders and consider a broad array of perspectives through timely consultative outreach beyond its membership, as needed.
Task Force Membership
- Kathy Bawn, Political Science (UCLAAD Chair)
- Evelyn Blumenberg, Urban Planning
- Yogita Goyal, English, African American Studies
- Brent Fogel, Neurology, Human Genetics
- Jeff Maloy, Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology
- Michael Meranze, History
- Dimitri Shlyakhtenko, Mathematics
Timeline & Deliverables
The Task Force will assemble during fall 2025, with meeting frequency and deliverables determined in response to both UCAD’s activities, anticipated disruptions, and the shifting political and funding landscape at UCLA. The expectation is a preliminary report by spring 2026.
Task Force Staff Support
April de Stefano, Executive Director, UCLA Academic Senate
Elizabeth Feller, Associate Director, UCLA Academic Senate
Makenna Cavanaugh, Senior Policy Analyst, UCLA Academic Senate
