The Regents Need to Just Settle

The Regents are meeting next week and will discuss pending litigation behind closed doors. (We posted the agenda last Saturday.) A whole lot of issues developed after Oct. 7, 2023, with the encampments and related issues, particularly at UCLA. And there was a fallout of litigation - still pending. (I am not referring to the Trump demand for a billion dollars which is a whole other thing and not up for discussion or a "deal.") 

In one instance - the Frankel case (named after a student plaintiff) - the Regents effectively admitted guilt, paid some money, and said the problems had been corrected going forward. An official UCLA task force said much the same. But now, in a related case, rather than settle with the individuals involved, the Regents are trying to get that case dismissed on various technical grounds and on the assertion that while Bad Things might have happened in the past, corrective actions have since been taken. A friend-of-the-court brief has been filed with ten Jewish UCLA employees saying that while Bad Things had happened at UCLA, they nonetheless could go about their business.*

As a non-lawyer, the main thing that impresses me is the thought of what it must have cost to have O'Melveny & Myers and their 6 named lawyers prepare the brief, and how much more cost there will be when a hearing is held on the brief on Feb. 1. 

Hey Regents, why not work out a deal with the individuals named? Just settle it. You don't need to "win." And here's a little ditty to help you to get there:

Or direct to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC2uPxHEvy0.

===

*I asked Claude to wade through the Regents' request for dismissal and summarize. Here is that summary:

UC Regents' Motion to Dismiss: Summary of Key Arguments

Case: United States, et al. v. Regents of the University of California, No. 2:26-cv-01946-CAS-AS (C.D. Cal.), Judge Christina A. Snyder
Document: ECF 79-1, Memorandum of Points and Authorities in Support of Motion to Dismiss (filed Oct. 26, 2026; 55 pages, about 14,500 words)
Counsel for the Regents: O'Melveny & Myers (Adam Karr, K. Lee Blalack II, Meaghan VerGow, Natasha Teleanu, Jennifer Sokoler, Anton Metlitsky)
Hearing: February 1, 2027, 10:00 a.m., Courtroom 8D

What the motion covers and what it asks for

This is a single consolidated brief responding to two complaints. The first is DOJ's Title VII complaint. The second is the First Amended Complaint filed by the Intervenor Plaintiffs (IPs), who are Jewish and Israeli UCLA faculty and staff.

• DOJ complaint: The Regents ask the court to dismiss all six counts in full, with prejudice and without leave to amend.
• IP complaint: The Regents seek dismissal of these specific counts:
  • Claim 1, as to Drs. Shamsa, Holloway, Stein, and Burt
  • Claim 2, as to Holloway
  • Claim 3, as to Shamsa, Holloway, and Burt
  • Claim 4 (FEHA failure to prevent), as to all IPs
  • Claim 5, as to Holloway

The brief opens by acknowledging that some UCLA employees were exposed to antisemitism on campus, which it attributes to third parties. It then argues that the complaints leave out UCLA's remedial steps and that the legal theories fail as a matter of law. The background section also describes the federal government's $584 million funding suspension and its demand for over $1 billion as unlawful and retaliatory, noting that both are subject to existing injunctions.

1. No standing to seek injunctive relief (Rule 12(b)(1))

• The legal standard. A plaintiff seeking an injunction must show a "certainly impending" future injury (Clapper; Spokeo). Past harm is not enough (Wright v. SEIU; Nelsen v. King County). The brief notes that the same rule applies to the United States.
• The allegations are stale. According to the brief, the complaints focus mainly on events from the 2023-24 academic year, especially the spring 2024 Royce Quad encampment.
• The court may look beyond the pleadings. Because standing is jurisdictional, the court can consider declarations and evidence of UCLA's reforms since 2024. The brief lists these:
  • Tightened time, place, and manner rules that ban unauthorized encampments and masking to evade identification
  • A new Office of Campus and Community Safety, led by former LAPD officers
  • Revoked registration for Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Graduate SJP
  • A reorganized Civil Rights Office with new leadership
  • New training programs
  • Compliance with a December 2024 Voluntary Resolution Agreement with the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights
  • Chancellor Frenk's Initiative to Combat Antisemitism and its May 2026 Roadmap
  • An improvement in UCLA's ADL report card grade from F (2024) to B (2026)
• No renewed encampment and no consent-judgment violations. The brief says no encampment has formed since spring 2024 and no one has alleged a violation of the Frankel consent judgment.
• Harvard precedent. The brief relies heavily on United States v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (D. Mass. Aug. 13, 2026), which dismissed the government's injunctive claims as resting on stale, episodic allegations. That ruling is on appeal.
• Causation and redressability. Any future harm would come from independent third parties such as protesters and vandals, not from UCLA, so an injunction against UCLA would not redress it.

2. The hostile work environment claims fail (DOJ Counts II, IV, VI; IP Counts I, III)

• (a) No employer liability for harassment by third parties.
  • Title VII reaches the employer and its agents under agency principles (Burlington Industries v. Ellerth).
  • The Ninth Circuit allowed negligence-based liability for third-party harassment in Folkerson (1997), but that case involved a tightly controlled casino. Universities have far less control over adult students and members of the public, and a public university is further constrained by the First Amendment.
  • More broadly, the brief argues that the negligence theory came from EEOC guidance and should be abandoned after Loper Bright. It points to Bivens v. Zep (6th Cir. 2025), which requires that the employer intended the third-party harassment.
  • Both complaints plead only negligence ("knew or should have known"). They do not allege intent, a discriminatory policy, or that Jewish complaints were treated worse than others.
  • The IPs' assertion that encampment participants were UCLA's agents is called conclusory.
• (b) UCLA's response was reasonable even under a negligence standard. Under Campbell v. Hawaii Dep't of Education (9th Cir. 2018), the question is whether the employer's steps were reasonably calculated to end the harassment. An employer may respond incrementally and need not act in the most draconian way. UCLA cleared the encampment within about a week, and more than 200 people were arrested and referred for prosecution. UCLA also blocked later attempts at encampments and building occupations. The brief cites Stand With Us v. MIT (1st Cir. 2025), which approved a gradual de-escalation approach.
• (c) Dr. Shamsa's claim is barred by the Frankel release. Shamsa settled the Frankel case for compensation and released Title VII and FEHA claims arising from materially identical allegations. The brief argues the release also bars DOJ from recovering on his behalf, citing EEOC v. Goodyear Aerospace and the rule against double recovery in EEOC v. Waffle House.
• (d) No actionable harassment of Drs. Shamsa or Holloway.
  • Standard: Conduct must be severe or pervasive (Manatt v. Bank of America). Speech on matters of public concern that is aimed at the campus community generally, rather than at a particular person, cannot be harassment (Rodriguez v. Maricopa; Reges v. Cauce). Several post-October 7 campus cases have excluded such speech from the analysis.
  • Shamsa: Most incidents occurred at protests on the main campus that he chose to attend during work breaks, away from his medical-school workplace. The incidents connected to the medical school were either not directed at him or were protected speech. An anonymous postcard sent to him was intercepted by UCLA, and his department chief brought it to him and suggested he call campus police.
  • Holloway: The incidents arose from his signing the "UCLA Faculty Against Terror" letter. They include a chalkboard note, criticism from colleagues, student evaluations that mentioned the letter, and an accusation that he gave a biased personnel review. The brief argues these are protected speech and are not severe or pervasive.
• (e) The "other aggrieved employees" claim (DOJ Count VI) fails.
  • DOJ does not state the size of the class or the principles that define its members (EEOC v. Il Fornaio; EEOC v. BNSF).
  • The incidents are scattered across a very large campus and do not support an inference of a common experience.
  • The Task Force survey cannot fill the gap. Only 231 respondents were employees, out of roughly 50,000. The survey also has selection bias, allowed anonymous participation, does not separate victims from witnesses, and does not measure how often incidents occurred.

3. The pattern-or-practice claim fails (DOJ Count I)

• Intent is required. Section 707(a) applies only to a pattern or practice "intended to deny" rights. The brief supports this with the statute's text, Senator Humphrey's 1964 floor statement, and several circuit decisions. It also relies on the Teamsters requirement that discrimination be the employer's "standard operating procedure."
• DOJ pleaded negligence instead. DOJ's complaint expressly pleads negligence in responding to harassment, so the brief says DOJ "pleaded itself out of court." It adds that no court appears to have recognized a pattern-or-practice claim based on a negligent response to third-party harassment.
• The facts are too thin in any event. Even if such a claim were possible, accounts from about nine employees cannot show a systemic pattern in a workforce of roughly 48,700. By comparison, Teamsters involved about one account for every eight class members plus statistical evidence. The brief also cites Cooper, Craik, and EEOC v. Carrols. Again, it argues the survey cannot fill the gap.

4. The retaliation claims fail (DOJ Counts III, V; IP Counts II, V as to Holloway)

• Shamsa: The complaint does not identify which promotions were lost, when, or by whom, and does not allege that the decision-maker knew of his EEOC charge. Shamsa himself brings no retaliation claim.
• Holloway: The litigation-hold notice sent to his department is a legally required step, not an adverse employment action. The request that he stop voting on personnel matters while on medical leave, and unspecified colleague "concerns" about his transfer, are not tied causally to any protected activity.

5. Two intervenors are not employees (IP Counts I, III, IV)

• Dr. Burt: She is a professor emerita who retired in 2004 and was not recalled to a paid appointment. Her pension and insurance are not compensation. The Regents seek dismissal of her Title VII and FEHA claims.
• Dr. Stein: She is an unpaid volunteer clinical faculty member. Perks such as library and gym access and malpractice coverage are incidental and do not count as remuneration. The Regents seek dismissal of her Title VII claim.
• Other intervenors: The Regents chose not to challenge the remaining IPs' claims individually at this stage. They say they expect to address them later through motions for judgment on the pleadings or summary judgment.

6. The FEHA failure-to-prevent claim fails (IP Count IV)

This claim depends on an underlying claim of actual discrimination (Martin v. Board of Trustees of CSU). The IPs assert only harassment and retaliation under FEHA, so the brief argues the claim should be dismissed to the extent it rests on discrimination.

This summary is based solely on the Regents' brief. It reflects their characterization of the complaints and the law, not the positions of DOJ or the intervenors.

==

If you really want to see the underlying documents, here they are:

Frankel Case settlement:

https://dn721605.ca.archive.org/0/items/2-final-hjaa-report.-the-soil-beneath-the-encampments/UCLA%20Frankel-settlement-fact-sheet%207-29-2025.pdf

https://dn721605.ca.archive.org/0/items/2-final-hjaa-report.-the-soil-beneath-the-encampments/UCLA%20Frankel%20settlement%207-28-2025.pdf

UCLA task force report:

https://dn721605.ca.archive.org/0/items/2-final-hjaa-report.-the-soil-beneath-the-encampments/UCLA%20report%20to%20Hunt%20on%20antisemitism.pdf

Case to dismiss and related friend-of-the-court brief:

https://dn721605.ca.archive.org/0/items/2-final-hjaa-report.-the-soil-beneath-the-encampments/UC%20Regents%20brief%20asking%20for%20antisemitism%20case%20to%20be%20dismissed%2010-26-2026.pdf

https://dn721605.ca.archive.org/0/items/2-final-hjaa-report.-the-soil-beneath-the-encampments/UCLA%20Some%20Jewish%20faculty%20support%20dismissal%20of%20antisemitism%20case%2011-3-2026.pdf 

Revival of Bruin Theater

The Bruin theater in Westwood is reopening. Short video below:

 

Or direct to https://ia600406.us.archive.org/14/items/newsom-briefings-oct.-1-2026/Bruin%20theater%20reopens%20downloaded%2011-5-2026.mp4.

Straws in the Wind - Part 521 (Faraday bag)

From the Daily Pennsylvanian: Some Penn professors are radically reorienting their classrooms to meet the challenges of teaching in an era of artificial intelligence. The advent of large language models has forced instructors to adapt to a transformed learning environment and reevaluate how they assign classwork and homework. In response, some faculty members have reduced the role of technology in their classrooms, while others have voiced optimism about AI’s potential to enhance learning. Most faculty members said they have limited the opportunities for AI use in the classroom by decreasing access to technology during lectures. For some, the solution has been to ban laptop and phone use entirely.

...Russian and East European Studies professor Kristen Ghodsee said she has also gone “100% analog.” She asks her students to put their phones “into Faraday bags at the beginning of class,” which are then “locked away in a 1940s suitcase.” A Faraday bag prevents electromagnetic transmissions from passing through — blocking Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and other signals. Ghodsee provides students with pieces of paracord to practice tying knots “to give them something to fidget with.” ...

Full story at https://www.thedp.com/article/2026/10/penn-professors-artificial-intelligence-classroom-no-tech.

UCLA PD Zoom

Back on Nov. 4, the UCLA PD held a state-mandated Zoom with regard to its budget request for certain weapons and supplies considered "military." I asked Claude to provide summary notes. Below is the result, somewhat modified by yours truly:

UCLA PD AB 481 community meeting: summary

Format. This was a one-hour Zoom meeting required by AB 481. Its purpose was public comment and questions on UCLA PD’s annual military equipment report for calendar year 2025. Captain Scott Scheffler ran the meeting. He said the next step is a UC Regents meeting, where the Regents will review AB 481 reports from all ten UC campuses. Other department officials also answered questions. Nearly every speaker from the public was a UCLA faculty member, lecturer or staff member.

Main concerns raised by participants

• 40mm launchers. A faculty member presented a petition calling for an immediate ban on buying and deploying 40mm projectile weapons. He said it has more than 400 signatures, including over 200 UCLA faculty and staff. He cited:
  • a UCLA undergraduate hit in the chest by UCLA PD on June 10, 2024, who was hospitalized for two days
  • a student hit by LAPD in June 2025 with a skull fracture
  • a federal injunction restricting LAPD’s use of these weapons for crowd control and banning aiming at the chest or face
  He argued that UCLA PD now holds itself to a lower safety standard than LAPD and that the weapons are a liability.
• Why a campus needs these weapons at all. Several faculty asked why a campus devoted to learning needs “military-grade” weapons that LAPD has been restricted from using. One asked for real examples where the weapons were needed.
• Use at protests. Participants who said they witnessed events disputed the department’s account:
  • On June 10, 2024, they said pepper balls were used to disperse a crowd. Two faculty members reportedly had pepper balls fired at their feet.
  • An officer carried a 40mm launcher at a peaceful movie screening in Bruin Plaza on April 30, 2025.
  • Launchers were carried at the Chancellor’s inauguration on June 5, 2025.
  • A police motorcycle drove onto a crowded pedestrian path at night, which they called dangerous intimidation.
  One participant said the gap between what they saw and what the department described explains the lack of trust.
• Effect on free speech. A professor said her department exists because of a student hunger strike. She said she had never seen a violent protest at UCLA in 25 years. She argued that visible military-style weapons intimidate protesters, escalate situations and chill free speech, contrary to the university’s mission.
• Budget. A union representative asked how the department can justify more weapons spending while lecturer positions and services like childcare are being cut. A faculty member asked about $216,000 for two more drones, linked in the report to the LA28 Olympics, when the three drones already bought haven’t been installed yet.
• Numbers requested. One participant said the request (described as roughly 100 40mm rounds and nearly 1,000 pepper balls) suggests planned use against crowds, not individuals.
• Which force responds. A faculty member asked how it’s decided whether UCLA PD, LAPD or private security responds. She said she’d almost prefer LAPD, given its stricter limits.
• Off-topic requests. Questions about cooperation with ICE were ruled outside the meeting’s scope. Several participants asked for a separate public meeting on that topic.

The department’s responses

• What the weapons are for. Officials described 40mm launchers and pepper balls as “less lethal,” not non-lethal. They are meant for people who are assaultive or life-threatening, where deadly force might otherwise be the only option. Use requires special training, approved target areas and distances, a medical assessment when possible, and a supervisory review afterward.
• Crowd control. The department repeatedly said it does not use and has no plans to use these tools for crowd control or against peaceful protesters. It said doing so would violate AB 48, a separate state law. Officers carry the tools at demonstrations in case one individual becomes violent. Carrying them doesn’t lower the legal threshold for using them. Use must be justified by a specific person’s conduct.
• June 10, 2024. Officials said they couldn’t discuss specific incidents. Asked directly, Captain Scheffler said the pepper balls fired that day were not used for crowd control. Participants disputed this. Separately, a participant noted the Regents report describes about 240 pepper balls fired during an incident with an “aggressive crowd,” none aimed at people.
• Examples of need. Officials gave several:
  • a non-compliant man with a metal pole throwing rocks near campus apartments, who dropped the pole after one 40mm round
  • an armed man who assaulted students on Bruin Walk and forced his way into a dorm
  • the 2016 Engineering 4 shooting
  • people throwing metal trash can lids off parking structures
  They also noted UCLA PD patrols university property across greater Los Angeles, not just the campus.
• LAPD comparison. Officials said the LAPD ruling limits when LAPD may use these weapons, not whether it may own them. They disputed the claim that UCLA PD’s standards are less safe. LAPD responds on campus under an MOU for certain serious crimes, such as homicides and some bomb threats. UCLA PD handles everything else.
• Who decides. On routine calls, individual officers decide within law and policy. At planned events, an incident commander sets force guidelines. Any officer may still respond to an immediate threat. Use-of-force incidents generally become criminal investigations that aren’t open to public review unless a case goes to court.
• More munitions. Munitions expire and are replaced. The department is also authorized for more launchers than it owns and wants matching ammunition for each. Rounds come in fixed package sizes.
• Drones. The drones are for a “drone as first responder” program: a drone reaches a call before officers to give real-time information. That could sometimes mean a smaller police response or none. Officials said it is not general surveillance or routine patrol. Five drones would cover about 95% of priority calls, and multiple drones are needed because batteries run down. They expect the drones to help with Olympic athletes’ village security.
• Budget. Captain Scheffler said he isn’t a budget expert. He said most costs come from existing department funds, and he couldn’t speak to university-wide budget decisions.
• Free speech. He said protecting First Amendment rights is a core function. He said most of the hundreds of campus gatherings each year involve no police. Officers attend some protests partly to protect demonstrators from counter-protesters.

Process and follow-up

• Policies. Use of force, control devices and techniques, and military equipment are each covered by a policy posted online. A link was shared in the chat.
• Complaints. Complaints about specific officers go through the misconduct complaint process. AB 481 concerns can be sent year-round to info@ucpd.ucla.edu (as given in the meeting). They will be recorded in next year’s AB 481 report.
• Petition and comments. Department leadership said it would discuss the comments and read the petition. Asked whether the request will simply be approved anyway, officials gave no direct answer.
• Contact. The second official offered his email for one-on-one conversations, including about ICE.
• Unresolved. Some participants left saying their accounts of past incidents and the department’s descriptions remained far apart.

Straws in the Wind - Part 520

From the Daily Pennsylvanian: Provost John Jackson Jr. and Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Laura Perna announced the next steps toward establishing a new teaching track for full-time lecturers... A 12-member working group will provide recommendations on how to implement the new track in the associated faculty category, moving full-time lecturers away from their current designation as academic support staff. The advisory body was formed in response to the Faculty Senate’s push for a teaching faculty track, including a May resolution endorsed by the Senate Executive Committee.

According to the announcement, the working group aims to “draft language for the Faculty Handbook that identifies the central and distinctive elements of a new track” and “propose a process by which current full-time lecturers, senior lecturers, and advanced senior lecturers could be considered for the new track.” ...The original report, published in June, stated that “persistent concerns have been documented regarding the professional status, advancement opportunities, and evaluation processes” of full-time lecturers, who “frequently hold long-term or effectively career-length appointments” despite their formal classification as academic support staff... According to the Faculty Handbook, full-time lecturers are limited to three consecutive years of appointments with exceptions approved by the provost. Some full-time lecturers can be promoted to senior lecturers, for which “successive appointments are allowed.” ...

Full story at https://www.thedp.com/article/2026/10/penn-provost-teaching-faculty-track-lecturers-working-group.

The Endless Tale at Harvard

Blog readers will recall many past postings on l'affair Gino at Harvard. If you don't recall the story of the Harvard faculty member who was stripped of tenure for allegedly falsifying data, including data from studies on honesty, use the search option on the older version of the blog and type in "Gino."

From Inside Higher Ed: A federal judge this week ruled in favor of Harvard University in a civil case brought by Francesca Gino, a former tenured professor of business there who studied ethics and was herself accused of fabricating data. Granting summary judgment to Harvard on counts including breach of contract and sex-based discrimination, U.S. District Judge Myong J. Joun wrote in his decision that “no reasonable jury could conclude on the identified evidence that Harvard revoked tenure dishonestly or without a reasonable basis, prematurely removed Gino from her appointment, or materially violated a contractual procedure.” ...

Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-takes/2026/11/04/federal-judge-sides-harvard-francesca-gino-case.

Weekly Record

Below is Claude's summary for yours truly of blog postings for the past week, modified where necessary by clarification:

Dan Mitchell's Blog – Weekly Summary, November 1–7, 2026

November 1, 2026

Did you fall back? – Marking the end of daylight saving time, the blogger notes it's time for the annual grumbling about clock changes and pastes an AI-generated summary of the Sunshine Protection Act (H.R. 139), which passed the House in July 2026 but has stalled in the Senate. He also links his 2022 video on time zones.

If our scary Halloween offering yesterday was too much for you, here's a shorter one – A video-only post: the blogger embeds a short Halloween clip [stored by yours truly on a Internet Archive page that mainly has Newsom briefings and clips], offered tongue-in-cheek as a lighter follow-up to the previous day's post.

Straws in the Wind - Part 512 – From the Daily Pennsylvanian: as anti-government protests in France turned into riots, Penn issued a safety alert to students in its three Paris study-abroad programs, telling them to expect disruption and leave at the first sign of unrest.

Actives Percent – The blogger's own chart of percentage increases in UC health premiums for active employees for the coming plan year, following his Oct. 26 dollar comparisons. He observes the increases are large and well above the 3–4% inflation rate.

Weekly Record – A Claude-prepared recap of the blog's posts from the prior week; the blogger says these weekly summaries will continue.

November 2, 2026

No More – From the Daily Bruin: amid budget consolidation, UCLA Library closed its data consultation center and folded the Data Science Center into research services; a former director questions what will happen to its data repositories.

Straws in the Wind - Part 513 – From Inside Higher Ed: Education Secretary McMahon, speaking at Arizona State, urged colleges to follow ASU's example while criticizing "corporate-style" universities.

Non-Medicare Percent – The blogger's own chart of premium changes for non-Medicare UC retirees. He finds a mixed picture, from big drops to big increases, with most plans rising sharply unless the retiree is in the most expensive UC Care plan.

We're still looking for numbers and definitions - Part 2 – The blogger's own analysis of UCLA budget tables shown at an Oct. 29 Academic Senate Zoom session, noting the public budget page stops at FY 2024-25. He calculates a deficit of roughly $95 million for 2025-26 and about $303 million projected for 2026-27, questions the stock-versus-flow wording, and asks the Senate to post a recording.

November 3, 2026

Davis discovers volunteers aren't free – From the Sacramento Bee: UC Davis is phasing out a subsidy that capped out-of-pocket maximums on its Blue and Gold health plan, roughly doubling the ceilings; the UPTE union and a worker featured in UC Davis Health ads object. The sardonic headline is the blogger's.

Straws in the Wind - Part 514 – From Inside Higher Ed: the Pentagon says 30 universities audited their foreign partnerships and "fully mitigated" them, singling out seven.

All in Medicare - Percent – The blogger's own chart of premium changes for UC retirees all in Medicare. He notes Medicare largely insulated these retirees from increases, except those in UC's Medicare Advantage plan (Medicare Choice).

We're still looking for numbers and definitions - Part 3 – The blogger continues his line-by-line questions about the UCLA budget table from the Oct. 29 Zoom meeting, covering items such as indirect cost recovery, athletics, UCLA Health business units and a $250 million athletics bond. He again asks for the Zoom recording and the 2025-26 UCLA budget to be posted.

November 4, 2026

DOJ Berkeley Law Journal Probe – From the Daily Californian: the Justice Department is investigating the California Law Review over an outside allegation that it planned to delete internal application records; the journal's editors and Dean Chemerinsky deny wrongdoing.

Straws in the Wind - Part 515 – From the Yale Daily News: Yale Divinity School has cut enrollment over two admissions cycles to preserve full-tuition aid after the federal endowment tax increased.

Medicare-Eligible - One or More Family Members Not Eligible - Percent – The final chart in the blogger's series on UC retiree premiums, covering Medicare-eligible retirees with non-Medicare family members. His takeaway: "Not being in Medicare is bad news."

2 Bonds – Drawing on the Daily Bruin, NYT and KQED: Prop 1 ($11.25 billion for housing, including $350 million for public student housing) passed with about 59%, while Prop 38 ($8.4 billion for immunology research) was leading with about 55%. The blogger notes Prop 38 funds a research institute on UCLA's Westside Pavilion property.

November 5, 2026

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge? - Part 209 – From the Harvard Crimson: the share of Institute of Politics executive team members going into public service fell from about 58% (2016-20) to about 19% (2021-25).

Stanford Band of Bothers (not a typo) – From the Stanford Daily: Stanford removed an AI-generated image of its marching band, depicted as all-white and all-male, from a construction project webpage. The blogger adds a joke image of a band leader.

Straws in the Wind - Part 516 – From the Daily Pennsylvanian: Penn's Graduate School of Education launched a "Living Laboratory for Human Agency and AI" to develop guidance on AI in education.

2 Bonds: Arms Length for 38 – UC President Milliken welcomed Prop 1's $175 million for UC housing, but the blogger notes that neither Milliken nor UCLA Chancellor Frenk had mentioned Prop 38, which funds a UCLA-connected institute; he suggests they are keeping it at arm's length.

Lieu Wins – From the Daily Bruin: Rep. Ted Lieu was reelected in CA-36, which includes Westwood and UCLA. The blogger recalls a 2022 episode in which Lieu briefly opposed NIH animal-research funding, which he believes UCLA representatives discouraged, and closes with a wry line.

November 6, 2026

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge - Part 210 – From Inside Higher Ed: a federal judge in Massachusetts dismissed without prejudice the DOJ suit seeking Harvard's admissions data, saying the ruling doesn't decide the discrimination question; DOJ plans to refile.

405 Lane Alternatives – Reproduces an LA Metro notice: Metro and Caltrans are studying four options for the I-405 Sepulveda Pass, with no option chosen yet and a draft environmental document expected in late 2026.

Straws in the Wind - Part 517 – From the Columbia Daily Spectator: Columbia spent about $200,000 on federal lobbying in Q3 2026, below last year's pace, on issues including H-1B fees, graduate loan caps and an OMB grant-rules proposal.

Claude's Legal Research – The blogger had Claude summarize the UC Regents' brief seeking dismissal of DOJ's antisemitism suit against UCLA, which lays out six arguments and notes a Feb. 1, 2027 hearing. He redacted individuals' names and asked Claude to alert him to any responses.

Zbur – From the Daily Bruin: Rick Chavez Zbur was reelected in AD-51, which includes UCLA, with about 61.5% to Colin Hernandez's 38.5%. The blogger adds an "as of this morning" results screenshot.

November 7, 2026

Goldsmith – From the Santa Monica Mirror: Brian Goldsmith declared victory in SD-24 (which includes Westwood) after John M. Erickson conceded; he succeeds Ben Allen. The blogger adds a results screenshot.

The Other Thing That Happened on Election Day – Citing a Claude support article, the blogger notes Claude began embedding a text watermark on Nov. 3, linked to EU rules. In his own essay he discusses false positives in AI detection and whether using AI for grammar is legitimate, noting that universities are now providing AI tools to students and staff.

Straws in the Wind - Part 518 – From the Cornell Daily Sun: Cornell will offer free access to ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, starting with Ithaca faculty, staff and PhD students in November and master's and undergraduate students in early 2027.

ICE Jail – From the Daily Californian: a UC Berkeley student was detained by immigration agents at SFO on Oct. 30 and is being held at a California City facility; her attorney is quoted.

Letter of Love – Reposts UC President Milliken's Nov. 6 statement on the election, congratulating Becerra, Fiona Ma and Richard Barrera, who will join the UC Regents. The blogger adds a video link with a tongue-in-cheek note.

Total posts for the week: 32