December 1997

A publication of the Academic Senate, University of California Notice Vol. 22, No. 3, December 1997 NEWS FOR THE UC FACULTY Who is Eligible to In Close Vote, Regents Approve Domestic- Attend UC? Wealth Partner Benefits for UC Faculty and Staff Of Data Come from The University of California is not the governor lost, he told the press usually a center of high drama, but it following the meeting that he doesnt New State Study briefly became one last month as the UC believe weve seen the last of this, Regents approved, by the narrowest of though he was not specific about what What proportion of Californias margins, domestic partner benefits for may come next. various high school populations are University faculty and staff. The close-margin by which the eligible to come to the University of The Regents decision came in the measure was approved did nothing to California? In November, the University form of a 13-12 vote in which those in diminish the sense of elation felt by those got a cart-load of information on this favor of the benefits prevailed only University faculty and staff who subject in the form of a long-awaited because of a last-second abstention by a supported domestic-partner benefits at report from Californias Postsecondary Regent who earlier had seemed to oppose UC. The Regents vote was welcomed Education Commission (CPEC). Some the proposal before the board. More nearly universally by the UC faculty of the major messages from the report fundamentally, the benefits measure which, through the Academic Senate, were that not as many California high prevailed despite the determined has formally supported such benefits school students are fully eligible for UC opposition of California Gov. Pete since 1994. Last years Academic Council as state educational policy requires; that Wilson who, just hours before the final Chair, Duncan Mellichamp, whose the proportion of black students eligible discussion of the issue was to begin, request to the Regents last spring was for UC is not only low but dropping; and appointed two new Regents who then instrumental in bringing about the that there is a very large pool of students went on to side with him on the measure. boards deliberations, said the Regents including minority students who The governors actions prompted Lt. vote was a vote for fairness and would be eligible for UC if they simply Gov. Gray Davis like Wilson, an ex- competitiveness, as UC will now join took all the SAT tests the University officio Regent to say he was offended the ranks of first-tier academic requires. by this effort to make midnight institutions offering such benefits. He The question of eligibility for the appointments in an attempt to pack noted that the faculty did not get all it University is different from the question this board at the last moment. Though of admission. To be eligible for the (Please See: Domestic, Page 3) University means to be minimally eligible, a status that brings with it a Californias Virtual University Aims to guarantee of admission to a campus of the University, though not necessarily Be A Digital Center for Higher Education to a students campus of choice (or to a This coming May, the State of such a system will bring about an major of choice within any campus). The California will inaugurate a digital-age educational synergy in California, central question before CPEC was: What adjunct to its higher education efforts as prompting institutions to increase the proportion of the states public high it opens the California Virtual University transferability of their courses and school graduates meet the minimum (CVU). bringing about the development of on- standards of eligibility for UC and for The name of the new entity may be line educational tools and courses useful California State University? something of a misnomer, since there throughout higher education. The commissions means of are no plans for CVU ever to be a stand- The CVU had its beginnings in a answering this question was to collect alone, degree-granting university. At 1996 decision by the Western Governors the transcripts of about 15,000 randomly root, it will be a website with some Association to form a degree-granting, selected 1996 high school graduates and content of its own and with links to the on-line institution called the Western then turn the transcripts over to UC and websites of most of the higher education Governors University. After receiving CSU with a request that they make a institutions in California. Beyond this, advice on this project from state determination as to whether each of the in line with the goals of the CVU, the educators, California Gov. Pete Wilson graduates selected was eligible for three public California higher education decided that California would not be a admission. A determination of who institutions will seek funding from the part of it, but instead would form its actually was eligible among this group state for the development of on-line own, limited virtual university. of students presumably then yields the courses and for some upgrading of on- Through an executive order issued last proportion of all graduates who are line infrastructure. April, Wilson established a design eligible for admission to the institutions. The hope is that the existence of team for the CVU. Initially made up For UC, the proportion who are eligible strictly of higher education turned out to be 11.1 percent, while for administrators, the team came to include CSU it was 29.6 percent. Inside Notice: faculty from all the segments of These numbers stand in contrast to California higher education after two clear standards imposed by Davis Says No To Semester System concerns about the original makeup of (Please See: CPEC, Page 4) (Please See: Virtual, Page 3) Notice Following Senate Vote, UC Davis Abandons Semester Proposal A negative vote by the UC Davis with the shortfall having implications was the process of conversion that would Senate has prompted the UCD for everything from facilities to number help, as it would provide the faculty administration to shelve a proposal for of faculty hired. with an opportunity to undertake a converting the campus from a quarter- Grey did not make the case that the comprehensive consideration of whether system to a semester-system. Saying that semester system per se would solve UCD students are receiving enough unit- the faculty must be our principal guide UCDs problem. Rather, he believed it credit for the course work they do. Such on the question of changing the academic a consideration is difficult to do calendar, Davis Chancellor Larry piecemeal, he said, since a change in Vanderhoef announced on December 9 course credit instituted by a given that he would not pursue the conversion, Letters to Notice academic unit stands to affect other units which he first proposed at a campus as well. convocation in September. Effects of Prop. 209 In mail balloting that concluded on December 3, 810 UCD faculty said they To the Editor: preferred to remain on the quarter In response to the letter of NEWS IN BRIEF system, while 251 said theyd prefer to Michael J. Glennon [Notice, November convert to the proposed early semester 1997, p. 2], Proposition 209 says that FEBRUARY ASSEMBLY MEETING system, which would have begun in the University shall not discriminate August and ended before Christmas. against African-Americans and The Senates Universitywide Eighty-six of the divisions 2,066 eligible other racial, ethnic or national origin Assembly will hold its second meeting voting members expressed no groups. Prop. 209 also says that UC of the academic year on Tuesday, preference. Of the eligible voters, more shall not grant preferential treatment February 24, at UC Irvine. Agenda than 500 are emeriti; fewer than 20 to Anglo-Americans as well as other materials will be sent out to Assembly percent of emeriti voted, however, ethnicities. These prohibitions require representatives prior to the meeting. meaning that about 1,150 of some 1,500 remedies and one cannot remedy At the Assemblys first meeting of active faculty cast votes in the balloting. discrimination against African- the year, on October 29 in Berkeley, The Senate vote was one of several Americans (or against a white male) Assembly members heard from, and advisory votes held on the issue; if African-Americaness (or whiteness) asked questions of President Atkinson; Academic Federation (non-Senate) is disregarded. received a report from UC Provost faculty voted narrowly against the Prop. 209 says absolutely nothing Judson King on UCs recently signed change, while Davis students were about prohibiting the use of racial, sexual, Department of Energy laboratory overwhelmingly against it. The campus ethnic and national origin categories in management contracts; heard from Staff Assembly favored the change by a the elimination of preferences. In fact, Board of Admissions and Relations with slight margin. the Bakke case would have been Schools Chair Keith Widaman on Despite the negative vote, the Davis insoluble without addressing the fact admissions issues; and considered at Senate seems to be in good agreement that he was white and male. some length the question of course add/ with the administration that there are a Prop. 209 nullifies the Regents rules drop policies on the campuses and number of campus problems that the in so far as the latter totally prohibit the systemwide. proposed conversion might have helped, use of ethnicity (or sex) as a criterion for The Assembly concluded that it did but that now need to be addressed by applying a legal remedy. The not want the statewide Senates other means. Davis Provost Robert Grey suppression of information about Committee on Educational Policy to draft and Senate Chair Bryan Miller have ethnicity, etc., would block a systemwide add/drop policy, though agreed to a process by which Senate and desegregation as well as the it did vote, almost unanimously, that administration will divide these issues application of Prop.

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