Hennessy was on NPR (All Things Considered) initially talking about Furd's move to online courses. Moderator Siegel then talk him through a host of topics, including the fate of pubic college education. Let me paraphrase his responses on this issue: Hennessy pointed out that the private endowment model only worked for a limited number of private colleges, and that most students are educated at public institutions which faced major budget shortfalls. He then looked at Cal, calling it the finest public school, and that he and others are deeply worried Cal will not make it, and that would be very bad thing for the country. It might be better to listen to exact words on a podcast, but it was not a put down - he sounded legitimately concerned (note: Hennessy has several degrees from public colleges). A wake-up call from the rival?

Not sure if "wake up call" is the right term. It seems to me that the posters on this board are keenly aware of the financial challenges facing Cal as state taxpayer support gradually dries up.

It is nice that a top official at an elite private institution of higher learning is calling out the continuing importance of public higher education.

hmmm..yep..kinda like when Mitt is "worried" about the "middle class" not making it..deeply touching..

I think everyone was woken up a while ago. The status quo no longer works and difficult decisions will have to be made regarding Berkeley and UCLA, not sure if the UC or congress are ready for that though.

This idea to turn universities into online brands is disgusting. How long until University of Phoenix buys a UC campus?

Maybe the regents shouldn't operate with unfunded pensions for over a decade. The UC issues are largely a self-inflicted would IMO.

The biggest problem is that college is getting too expensive for a large segment of the population that was served by the University and state college systems in California. Thats why the population of the silicon valley is home to such large Indian and Asian populations, societies which value education more than the US

socaliganbear;841912977 said:

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I think everyone was woken up a while ago. The status quo no longer works and difficult decisions will have to be made regarding Berkeley and UCLA, not sure if the UC or congress are ready for that though.

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what are these difficult decisions? Take Berkeley and UCLA private?

HaasBear04;841912987 said:

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what are these difficult decisions? Take Berkeley and UCLA private?

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No. But certainly more autonomy so that they can create a model that will actually sustain the university. Unless we just raise tuition to market rate levels for elite universities. Or raise taxes.

I guess the university needs a toshesque fund raiser. Isn't that the Prez's job?

Have you guys taken a gander at UM's endowment lately?

What is a pubic college education anyway?

Yes, this is certainly a good time dredge up new taxes for CA businesses. CA is such a business-friendly place - plenty of cushion here. At least we know the new revenue will go to good use- the porkomotive, legislative staff pay raises, money for the parks department to stash away and of course, all those $100k pensions to pay with Calpers earning 1%...

FingeroftheBear;841912999 said:

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I'm glad Hennessy said it but I think any serious educator or person interested in the public good would say it...because it's true.

So it looks like taxes will be raised, or education demolished.

Close the Loophole

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Use more of the tax revenues being collected towards UC instead of for prisons and government pensions.

Geez 72 do you have eyes to observe and reasoning ability and discernment? Have you looked objectively at the shambles of our economy and the huge unemployment we have after three and a half years of Obama policies? I can assure you that Romney is 100 fold more in touch with the middle class than Obama whose policies are bankrupting our country at an alarming rate. Romney policies favoring capitalism will help all classes and the most disadvantaged.

Did you notice that US poverty rates under Mr. Obama have reached the highest, worst levels in 40 years.

NVBear78;841913037 said:

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Geez 72 do you have eyes to observe and reasoning ability and discernment? Have you looked objectively at the shambles of our economy and the huge unemployment we have after three and a half years of Obama policies? I can assure you that Romney is 100 fold more in touch with the middle class than Obama whose policies are bankrupting our country at an alarming rate. Romney policies favoring capitalism will help all classes and the most disadvantaged.

Did you notice that US poverty rates under Mr. Obama have reached the highest, worst levels in 40 years.

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But but...Bush

It's a good thing that congress is always ready and anticipating things so that they can be proactive when any problem is placed before them.

:sarc:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/23/bain-capital-layoffs-dade-behring_n_1695960.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false

Here's a great story on Roney's economic skill

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mark-gongloff/federal-debt-ceiling_b_1695876.html

Another story on how that republican brilliance is helping

Mitt Romney is not even in touch with his own policies!!! To the extent he has any, say "trickle down", how well did that work??? And what are his policies for improving public education?

Anyway, GO BEARS!!!

diva1;841913063 said:

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/23/bain-capital-layoffs-dade-behring_n_1695960.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false

Here's a great story on Roney's economic skill

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If you are going to quote stories about Republicans...can you at least quote something not from Huffington Post?

how dumb discussions on this board get once they turn to politics. I'm not going to jump into the Romney-Obama debate, since it appears to be nothing more than a Glenn Beck v. Rachel Madow sound bite-off.

As far as UC is concerned, someone asked about the President's role in fundraising. Actually, that has devolved to the Chancellors (a good thing, btw) because it done by campuses (try and raise money for Merced...). Birgeneau has been decent at that, averaging over $300 million/year. The current campaign is on pace to reach its target of $3 billion. Unfortunately, the area that is lagging FAR behind is funding for scholarships. Too many donors are wanting to fund ONLY bricks and mortar and refusing to fund scholarships because (quotes from a number) "I don't want my money to go to 'undeserving' students from the inner city." (read: black or Hispanic).

One of the constraints is the inability to pay for adequate fundraising support. We should be paying a top-notch fundraiser in the neighborhood of $500,000 to $1 million, but try getting that through the legislature (not to mention Nanette Asimov).

In terms of trying to 'save' Cal; the need is for Cal, UCLA, and probably UCSD to become more autonomous from the rest of the system. This would mean:
1. differential tuition
2. ability to admit more foreign/out of state students
3. Most important more autonomy from Regents/legislature in terms of funding building projects, negotiating contracts w/ vendors, etc.

In short, move Cal, UCLA, UCSD from public universities to 'public supported'.

Remember how Ronald Reagan spent his first term blaming the bad economy on Jimmy Carter? Oh, wait he didn't.

Darby;841912981 said:

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This idea to turn universities into online brands is disgusting. How long until University of Phoenix buys a UC campus?

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Why is there such animus against using all our technological abilities to bring education to as many people as possible? Online education is a real option to many folks who have constraints of family, time or distance.

We can continue to educate beyond the physical capacities using online resources. Why not use them?

The world economy has changed. So, too, will our educational models have to evolve if the US is to maintain its University educational dominance.

In other news Cal has joined MIT and Harvard 's edX online consortium

diva1;841913063 said:

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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/23/bain-capital-layoffs-dade-behring_n_1695960.html?utm_hp_ref=fb&src=sp&comm_ref=false

Here's a great story on Roney's economic skill

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I find it more amusing that the liberals here seem to turn innocuous or unrelated stories into some political hateful diatribe....is it insecurity or do you live in a prism of political hate all the time....seems like a wasteful way to live a life always looking at the political angle of things. See, I told you OaktownBear.

Cal_Fan2;841913127 said:

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I find it more amusing that the liberals here seem to turn innocuous or unrelated stories into some political hateful diatribe....is it insecurity or do you live in a prism of political hate all the time....seems like a wasteful way to live a life always looking at the political angle of things. See, I told you OaktownBear.

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Come on, that happens on both sides. Neither side is above it.

UrsaMajor;841913087 said:

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how dumb discussions on this board get once they turn to politics. I'm not going to jump into the Romney-Obama debate, since it appears to be nothing more than a Glenn Beck v. Rachel Madow sound bite-off.

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Agree. The political discussions here are pointless. Nobody ever changes their mind. It boils down to:

"You're a fvcking idiot"
"Shut up, you are. Idiot."

UrsaMajor;841913087 said:

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how dumb discussions on this board get once they turn to politics. I'm not going to jump into the Romney-Obama debate, since it appears to be nothing more than a Glenn Beck v. Rachel Madow sound bite-off.

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The smartest thing stated in this entire thread...

Cost of education is up and state funding down. When you look at the cost of a UC and Cal State education they are quite high, however when you break down the expenses, you see the tuition is still manageable ~12k a year. There are additional college related costs you can't escape, but the largest component to the overall cost is housing and food. It is my sneaking suspicion that the best solution for many families will simply to be cutting out the "going away" part of going to college. Perhaps not a sexy option, but lets face it, paying 150k for a college education is beyond most peoples means. 150k in debt is just a painful thought. 50k is more manageable.

I bring this up as it plays to California's strengths which are multiple UC and Cal State campuses spread across the state. Finding a state college near your home shouldn't be impossible, or at least as hard in states with only one or two state universities.

FingeroftheBear;841912999 said:

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I'm glad Hennessy said it but I think any serious educator or person interested in the public good would say it...because it's true.

So it looks like taxes will be raised, or education demolished.

Close the Loophole

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I don't expect a reporter to appreciate this (because they generally are superficial idiots), but most tenants don't have (or have limited) Prop 13 protection. That means any increase due to a change of ownership of the landlord is passed through by the landlord to the tenants via the standard triple net lease structure. Tenants, particularly smaller tenants or those with low margins (e.g., markets), will be driven out of business. This is why most cities look the other way (believe me, they city managers know who owns their city's major buildings), or are at least selective on who they go after. Enforce the rules and you might well ask for them to be changed as the businesses go under. Not that I would expect anyone in the media to get this but I hope this board is more sophisticated.

BTW, property tax funding is not the problem facing UC or the state college system. Income taxes revenues are no longer being allocated to higher education. There are various ways to fix this:

1) Become a more effective lobby/union in order to reallocate the budget cuts
2) Raise income taxes (Brown's proposal, btw, is temporary, and therefore only a temporary fix)
3) Cut costs (which may impact quality)
4) Some combination of all or some of the above.

bearister;841913002 said:

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What is a pubic college education anyway?

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I think really the issue is difference between private and public schools. Candidly, a substantial portion of the education cost at Cal and Furd is paid by us, the federal taxpayers, and then there is tuition paid by those who can afford same. Private schools, like Furd at least, have an endowment (or receive grants) that covers the remainder of the cost for those that can't pay tuition readily, while state schools traditionally relied on the state government money to keep tuition costs down. Admittedly a subsidy to those families that could afford tuition. That is why I probably refer to state schools as public education, though there are a lot more nuances to the picture.

Then, to confuse things more, there is UCLA's Anderson Business School, which has gone "private." I don't fully appreciate all the distinctions or consequences of this action, but this means Anderson is free of most UC oversight, can charge whatever fees they want, and can get donors without short sighted limitations imposed by UCLA or the UCLA faculty (e.g., they can name things like classrooms or buildings after a business). BTW, you probably could cure Cal's budget shortfall in the long run by simply eliminating the Cal faculty restriction on naming rights to individuals (yes, I know about Levine
Fricke is a business - I use them, and I don't know how they got around the prohibition). So how about the Nike student union? (Meant as a joke). Lot of tough issues to be dealt with as what is public vs. private collides. Really good question Bearister.

UrsaMajor;841913087 said:

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how dumb discussions on this board get once they turn to politics. I'm not going to jump into the Romney-Obama debate, since it appears to be nothing more than a Glenn Beck v. Rachel Madow sound bite-off.

As far as UC is concerned, someone asked about the President's role in fundraising. Actually, that has devolved to the Chancellors (a good thing, btw) because it done by campuses (try and raise money for Merced...). Birgeneau has been decent at that, averaging over $300 million/year. The current campaign is on pace to reach its target of $3 billion. Unfortunately, the area that is lagging FAR behind is funding for scholarships. Too many donors are wanting to fund ONLY bricks and mortar and refusing to fund scholarships because (quotes from a number) "I don't want my money to go to 'undeserving' students from the inner city." (read: black or Hispanic).

One of the constraints is the inability to pay for adequate fundraising support. We should be paying a top-notch fundraiser in the neighborhood of $500,000 to $1 million, but try getting that through the legislature (not to mention Nanette Asimov).

In terms of trying to 'save' Cal; the need is for Cal, UCLA, and probably UCSD to become more autonomous from the rest of the system. This would mean:
1. differential tuition
2. ability to admit more foreign/out of state students
3. Most important more autonomy from Regents/legislature in terms of funding building projects, negotiating contracts w/ vendors, etc.

In short, move Cal, UCLA, UCSD from public universities to 'public supported'.

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Or at least was being pushed by Chancellors B and Block. Good post (and on topic) Ursa. This may not surprise you that Yudof and the other Chancellors are against the idea.

As for Asimov, read my post about superficial reporters. I once listened to her on 15 minute segment on NPR and I gave-up counting all the inaccurate and incorrect remarks she made. How does a reporter get to anoint themselves an expert in an area anyway? write articles quoting a few disgruntled faculty members? Sorta like that reporter Caroline Jones, the Chronicle's expert on all things CEQA (still explaining Cal's crushing defeat to the City of Berkeley no doubt). Do terrible reporters just gravitate to the Bay Area (to paraphrase Ben Bradlee)?

It is time to take a long, hard look at the University's business model. Why are there nine campuses that are basically redundant? Why not specialize each campus?

Berkeley and UCLA should focus their attention exclusively on graduate programs. The next tier, Davis, Irvine, San Diego, Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz, should focus on undergrads with each campus emphasizing a specific curiculum. Merced and Riverside should be closed.

It is time to take a radical approach to the state's educational structure. It is time for some serious deliberation regarding the future. The current course of action, watching the University being slowly bled to death, is the alternative.

FingeroftheBear;841913335 said:

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Personally my mother has benefited from Prop 13 protection on the house but that's not what the loophole is trying to close. Stuffed inside Prop 13 is a corporate tax loophole that should be shut down.

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I'm no fan of Prop. 13, however, it does put the tax burden on newer home owners which are usually younger people. The same people who are most likely to have school age children. Older home owners are less likely to have school age children, and if they stay in their home, aren't having to pay for services they aren't using (schools). Compare that to NJ where the property taxes are high for everyone, even if you're retired and don't have school age children.