Campaign

UCLA appears to have launched a "True Bruin" campaign featuring faculty on Instagram and Facebook: 

Or direct to https://ia600406.us.archive.org/14/items/newsom-briefings-oct.-1-2026/UCLA%20True%20Bruin%20campaign%20Jorja%20Leap%20downloaded%2010-20-2026.mp4.

A note on the Facebook version indicates these clips disappear after a day or so. Not sure about Instagram.

Swap

Not sure exactly how this works but Mom is onboard...

From the Daily Bruin: A new platform is aiming to help UCLA students swap enrollment stress for smoother schedules. Joseph Borna, a fifth-year history student, created ClassSwap over the summer to connect students looking to exchange classes and allow users to share course recommendations and feedback... Students can upload the class they are currently enrolled in alongside their desired class with information detailing the discussion section number, professor and location. “If we’re both in a section we’re unhappy with, maybe we can find a way to meet or drop each other’s courses and find a way to exchange sections in a way while abiding UCLA’s code of conduct,” he said...

Maya Borna, Joseph Borna’s mother, said she manages ClassSwap’s social media and meets with students to promote the software...

Full story at https://dailybruin.com/2026/10/15/classswap-platform-hopes-to-solve-enrollment-woes-help-students-graduate-on-time.

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge? - Part 207

From the Harvard Crimson: Harvard’s endowment grew up by more than $11 billion to nearly $68 billion in fiscal year 2026 after posting a roughly 27 percent investment return, its highest since 2021, according to the University’s annual financial report... Harvard also reported a $100 million operating surplus — a modest 1.5 percent margin on $6.7 billion in revenue — following a major deficit last year. The $2.6 billion endowment distribution now makes up nearly 40 percent of the University’s operating revenue...

Full story at https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/10/16/harvard-68-billion-endowment/.

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From the Harvard Crimson: Harvard received a record $684 million in current-use gifts in fiscal year 2026, a 9 percent increase that marked the second consecutive year of record giving, according to the University’s annual financial report... But after donors redesignated $41 million in gifts from previous years to the endowment, Harvard recorded just $643 million in current-use operating revenue — an increase of roughly 2 percent from the $629 million reported last year. The University reported more than $1.5 billion in total gifts for fiscal year 2026, and philanthropy now accounts up 48 percent of operating revenue, including both current-use gifts and endowment distribution.

The two consecutive years of record giving stand in stark contrast to fiscal year 2024, when major Harvard donors paused or withdrew gifts following the University’s response to campus antisemitism. Though current-use gifts still increased that year, total philanthropic contributions fell significantly by $151 million, one of the steepest drops in a decade...

Full story at https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/10/16/harvard-current-use-gifts-2026/.

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From the Harvard Crimson: Harvard reported sharp declines in federal sponsored research revenue and overall research activity, according to the University’s annual financial report... Harvard’s federal research revenue fell by nearly 20 percent to $506 million, while federally sponsored research activity fell by roughly one-third on a comparable basis, according to the report. Total sponsored research support dropped 14 percent, from just over $973 million in 2025 to about $839 million this year...

Full story at https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/10/16/harvard-federal-research-revenue-2026/.

Straws in the Wind - Part 500

From Inside Higher Ed: The job market for humanities scholars may be bleaker than ever—except for the handful of academics who specialize in the philosophy of artificial intelligence. 

Although a small subset of philosophers have long worked at the intersection of science and technology, the rapid integration of generative AI into daily life over the past four years has heightened demand for their expertise. Philosophy departments across the country have already hired faculty for new, AI-specific positions, and a quick scan of the online job board PhilJobs.com shows that the trend isn’t slowing down. So far this fall, more than a dozen philosophy departments—including at Purdue University, the University of Illinois at Chicago and the Georgia Institute of Technology—have announced searches for AI-focused tenure-track faculty...

Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty/2026/10/15/universities-have-gone-ai-philosopher-hiring-spree.

Strikes and Protests

The Cornell School of Labor and Employment Relations has put out a "Labor Action Tracker" that lists known strikes and other labor-related "protests" back about 6 years. If you ask it for strikes at the University of California, it lists 12 strikes in that period and identifies where they occurred, the union involved, and other strike characteristics. Be aware that the maps may not be accurate. A Westwood protest, for example, showed a map location at what seemed to be a random area in LA. It's probably best to look at the particular strikes and/or protests listed and not worry about maps and overall counts. Just list "University of California" as the employer. The tracker is at:

https://striketracker.ilr.cornell.edu/.

Stanford as the next Cornell

On its face, the Stanford case seems less legally fraught than the Cornell case:

From the California Post: A Stanford graduate who was allegedly raped in her dorm room at 19 has blasted the school for its handling of her case — revealing her attacker can finish his degree this fall. The woman, who has remained a Jane Doe, detailed her ordeal in a blistering first-person account published in The Stanford Daily, the student-run campus newspaper, accusing officials and cops of repeated delays and mistakes that left her fighting for accountability for years.

“Over the last four years, I have struggled to make sense of what happened to me, and what continues to happen,” she wrote, questioning why the student was allowed to retain a path to graduation after Stanford found him responsible for “vaginally, digitally and orally raping her.” ...

The survivor also questioned why the university did not expel the student, asking: “If finding a student responsible for vaginally, digitally and orally raping their peer didn’t warrant an expulsion, what would?”

Stanford said the decision wasn’t its to make.

“Independent outside arbitrators—not the University—conduct Stanford’s Title IX hearings, impose sanctions, and hear appeals from either party,” the university said in a statement to The California Post.

University policy states that rape and domestic violence are “particularly egregious and likely warrant separation/termination or expulsion,” according to the statement, with the arbitrator applying that policy to the facts of each case...

Full story at https://nypost.com/2026/10/18/us-news/stanford-girl-scorches-elite-college-after-traumatic-dorm-room-rape-as-she-slams-cornell-7-case/. 

The Stanford Daily story is at https://stanforddaily.com/2026/10/15/a-stanford-jane-doe/. "In response to The Daily’s request for comment on this op-ed, the Santa Clara District Attorney’s Office wrote that the office has filed a criminal case and is preparing for trial..."

NOTE: A follow-up story in the Stanford Daily refers to documents that suggest university authorities have a less passive role than just following the decision of an outside arbitrator. See https://stanforddaily.com/2026/10/18/stanford-responds-rape-case-failures/.

Night Owls Beware

From the Santa Monica Mirror:

Caltrans crews will install concrete barriers and repave lanes during a multi-night rehabilitation project starting Oct. 19.

By Sarah Lin

https://smmirror.com/caltrans-announces-overnight-405-freeway-closures-in-sepulveda-pass/

Motorists traveling through the Sepulveda Pass should prepare for significant late-night delays next week as state transportation crews begin widespread pavement rehabilitation along Interstate 405.

Caltrans announced that workers will implement overnight lane reductions, ramp shutdowns, and major connector closures along the 405 freeway from Monday, Oct. 19, through Friday, Oct. 23. Work is scheduled each night from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. to accommodate paving work and K-rail barrier installation.

To enhance safety around work zones, officials are lowering the speed limit to 55 mph across selected northbound and southbound stretches.

The planned overnight closure schedule includes:

• Northbound 405: Up to four lanes will close between Wilshire Boulevard and Skirball Center Drive/Mulholland Drive. Associated closures include the Getty Center Drive on- and off-ramps, as well as the northbound off-ramp to Skirball Center Drive/Mulholland Drive.
• Southbound 405: Up to four lanes will close between U.S. Route 101 and Skirball Center Drive/Mulholland Drive. Closed ramps include the Sepulveda Boulevard off- and on-ramps, the Ventura Boulevard off- and on-ramps, and the Burbank Boulevard on-ramp.
• Connector Closures: Both northbound and southbound U.S. 101 connectors to the southbound 405 freeway will be blocked during work hours.

Caltrans advises drivers to plan for extra travel time or use alternate routes while construction is underway. All work remains subject to change based on weather and operational conditions.