Budget: The Missing Piece

On Friday, Gov. Newsom announced he had signed the state budget for 2025-26.* And on this blog we took note of the official UC response to the budget.** But things are never quite what they seem.

In the budget bill signed by the governor, there was a provision that said that if another bill wasn't also signed by today, the budget bill would be void.

From the Sacramento Bee: On Monday, the state Senate and Assembly are set to discuss the one proposal to rule them all: Senate Bill 131. No one is to be blamed for not knowing anything about this bill — official language for it just came out Friday morning. But it has become a very important bill, because it has a very important ally in Gov. Gavin Newsom. The bill would principally reform the California Environmental Quality Act, a law that investigates whether or not a proposed project would harm the environment. It’s often considered an enemy of development in the state due to its ability to slow projects to a grinding halt. A clause in the budget said if SB 131 isn’t signed by the governor on Monday, the entire budget will be void, rendering it useless...

Full story at https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article309580180.html.

Basically, SB 131 relaxes environmental review standards for housing projects. By making the entire budget depend on passage of SB 131, its proponents have created strong pressure for its enactment, despite opposition from environmentalist groups and others including those opposed to state overriding of local zoning and related rules.

So now you know how the sausage is made in Sacramento, even though you may have preferred not to.

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*https://www.gov.ca.gov/2025/06/27/budget/.

**https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-official-uc-response-so-far.html.

Tomorrow is Money Day

From CBS Sports: The NCAA will no longer maintain sport-specific scholarship limits, as its Division I Board of Directors on Monday formally adopted new roster limit rules to align with the recently approved House settlement. The changes go into effect July 1. All schools that opt into the House settlement will, in turn, be allowed to award scholarships to as many players as they wish as their teams fall in line with the roster size caps outlined in the settlement. Football, for example, will have a roster cap of 105 players. 

The NCAA says this change will dramatically increase the number of available scholarships and will more than double the previous total offered to women... Under the new college sports model, which paves the way for revenue-sharing from the university to athletes, roster sizes across all sports are in flux. College football teams will shrink to a maximum of 105 players, but each player inside that number can receive a scholarship. That contrasts with the previous NCAA model, which capped scholarships at 85 per team but allowed programs to carry a bevy of walk-ons to fill out their rosters...

Full story at https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/ncaa-removes-scholarship-limits-aligns-with-house-settlement-as-roster-sizes-evolve-in-new-college-sports-era/.

Getting from Here to There

From the LA Daily News: A wide coalition of supporters from the westside and the San Fernando Valley rallied outside LA Metro Headquarters [last] Thursday in support of a heavy rail train through the Sepulveda Pass that must include a station on the campus of UCLA. Educational institutions, neighborhood councils, labor, environmental groups and business and transit nonprofits favored options laid out in the just released draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) for an underground subway — not an elevated monorail — connecting the San Fernando Valley with L.A.’s Westside.

The group, STC4ALL, wants to see LA Metro’s board choose from alternatives... that would use mostly underground, heavy rail trains. The north end of the Sepulveda Transit Corridor Project would be at the Metrolink/Amtrak station at Van Nuys Boulevard and Saticoy Street, while the south end connects to the Metro E (Exposition) light-rail line, which runs from Santa Monica to Downtown L.A...

Full story at https://www.dailynews.com/2025/06/26/supporters-rally-for-sf-valley-westside-train-through-sepulveda-pass-with-ucla-on-campus-station/.

Straws in the Wind - Part 25

From Inside Higher Ed: ...After the National Institutes of Health tried earlier this year to cut funding for universities’ costs indirectly related to research and set off alarm bells across higher education, 10 higher education associations decided to come up with their own model for research funding rather than having the government take the lead. Now, after just over six weeks of work, that group known as the Joint Associations Group is homing in on a plan to rework how the government funds research, and they want feedback from the university research community before they present a proposal to Congress and the Trump administration...

Both versions of what JAG is calling the Fiscal Accountability in Research model, or FAIR, are geared toward offering more accountability and transparency about how federal research dollars are spent. JAG hopes that in the end, the new model will be simpler than the current one. They also want to nix terms like “indirect costs rate” and “overhead” for either essential research support or general research operations in an effort to underscore that the money goes toward the real costs of research...

One model, which the group calls FAIR No. 1, would include costs related to managing the grant, general research operations and facilities as a fixed percentage of the total budget. The percentage would be based in part on the type of institution and research. This approach is designed to be simple and reasonable, according to the group’s presentation, but it’s more general, which makes it “difficult to account for the wide array of research frameworks that now exist.”

The other model, FAIR No. 2, would more accurately reflect the actual costs of a project and make the structure for federal grants more like those from private foundations. Under this model, essential research support would be lumped into the project costs while funding for general research operations, such as payroll and procurement, would be a fixed percentage of the total budget. That change would likely increase the direct costs of the project... JAG’s expert panel noted that FAIR No. 2 would be a “significant departure” from the current approach, and universities would likely need more time to overhaul their processes for tracking costs. Still, the group said this model would better show what the money goes toward, addressing a key concern from Congress...

Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/government/science-research-policy/2025/06/18/university-leaders-weigh-changes-research.

From Politico: Small colleges would get a break from a special tax on university endowment earnings under the latest draft of Senate Republicans’ domestic policy megabill. A revised version of the legislation released overnight exempts schools from the levy if they have fewer than 3,000 tuition-paying students. That’s up from the current threshold of 500 tuition-paying students that lawmakers had previously planned to stick by. The change comes as lawmakers attempt to finalize the details of their sprawling tax, energy, defense and immigration bill they hope to get to President Donald Trump’s desk by early next month...

Full story at https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/06/28/congress/senate-republicans-further-dial-back-endowment-tax-plans-00430938.

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge? - Part 26

From the NY Times: ...Unlike many other powerful institutions that have struck bargains with Mr. Trump, Harvard, the nation’s oldest and richest university, spent much of this spring as the vanguard of resistance to the White House, credited by academic leaders, alumni and pro-democracy activists for fighting the administration and serving as a formidable barrier against authoritarianism. Despite a series of legal wins against the administration, though, Harvard officials concluded in recent weeks that those victories alone might be insufficient to protect the university.

...Lawrence H. Summers, a former Harvard president who has been critical of the university’s culture, suggested in an interview on Monday that a deal, in and of itself, should not be seen as a surrender. A carefully crafted settlement, he said, could help repair some of the university’s problems while preserving its independence and rigor. If there were no conceivable changes for the university to make that would satisfy the administration, he said, there might be no value in negotiations. But, Dr. Summers said, “I don’t hear anyone at Harvard saying Harvard doesn’t need to work at diversity of perspective.” ...

Other universities are watching closely. Columbia is in talks with the federal government as it seeks to restore hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grants and contracts. And the Trump administration has used an ad hoc process to cut research funds from a handful of other elite schools, including the Ivy League’s Brown, Princeton and University of Pennsylvania. Harvard, though, is the only school that has taken the administration to court to challenge its targeting...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/us/politics/harvard-debate-settlement-trump.html.

Lawsuit Success

As this exciting academic year draws to a close, here is something that seems to have worked out - so far.

From the LA Times: Six individual UC arts, science and medical researchers banded together to fight cancellations to their at times relatively small, but distinct federally funded studies: examining racial equity in education, assessing health risks to racial minorities who face wildfire smoke, evaluating the role of Greek Orthodox Christians in Istanbul in the 19th century.

Lacking the power of big institutional legal backing to pursue their case, they got help from of two of their UC Berkeley colleagues to personally make their case: Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the law school and an expert in constitutional law, and Claudia Polsky, former California deputy attorney general-turned-UC law professor.

The result? A federal judge has not only ordered the Trump administration to restore millions of dollars in UC grants, but also said the case could proceed as a class-action suit, opening it to UC researchers statewide...

UC has joined or filed in support of several other suits protesting Trump cuts, including those addressing National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and Education Department reductions, but it was not part [of this one]...

Full story at https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-06-25/trump-lawsuit-university-of-california-researchers.

Straws in the Wind - Part 24

From Inside Higher Ed: A federal district judge declined to issue an injunction that would block the Trump administration’s recent cuts to staff and contracts at the Institute of Education Sciences—an agency charged with collecting and analyzing data about both K–12 and higher education. In an opinion released last week, Maryland judge Stephanie A. Gallagher acknowledged that the new administration has terminated 90 percent of the agency’s staff and therefore IES “is not doing a number of tasks Congress requires of it.” 

Gallagher, a Trump appointee, also empathized with the two education research associations that filed the lawsuit—the American Educational Research Association and the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness—saying she trusts that not receiving the data they expected from IES “will harm them.” But that does not mean the plaintiffs have a strong enough case to stop the Trump administration from continuing to dismantle the agency...

Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-takes/2025/06/18/federal-judge-wont-block-trumps-cuts-ies.

The Official UC Response So Far

Source: https://x.com/UC_Newsroom/status/1938997877017079894.

Meredith Turner is UC's SVP of External Relations and Communications.

A Statute of Limitations

We previously noted a pending Texas bill that would limit and restrict academic senates in state higher ed institutions.* Here is a follow up from Inside Higher Ed: Texas governor Greg Abbott... signed into law legislation allowing public college and university presidents to take over faculty governance bodies. Senate Bill 37 says that only an institution’s governing board can create a faculty council or senate. If a board decides to keep one, the college or university president gets to pick the “presiding officer, associate presiding officer, and secretary” and prescribe how the body conducts meetings. Unless the institution’s board decides otherwise, faculty governing bodies must shrink to no more than 60 members. The Texas A&M University Faculty Senate currently has 122.  

The 60 members must include at least two representatives from each of the colleges and schools that comprise the institution—including what the law describes vaguely as “one member appointed by the president or chief executive officer of the institution,” with the rest elected by the faculty of the particular school or college. This could mean that half of a faculty senate would be chosen by the president, barring an exemption by the institution’s board...

Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-takes/2025/06/24/texas-passes-law-presidents-control-faculty-senates.

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*https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2025/06/straws-in-wind-part-13.html.

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge? - Part 25

From the NY Times: Frank Bruni: ...I’m excited to get into some of the fine points of the intensely heated, bitterly partisan war over what, whom and how America’s colleges and universities should teach, but for starters, I have a big picture question. When President Trump and his allies started going after Harvard and its kin, it hit me more forcefully than ever before: These institutions have amassed a truly extraordinary degree of cultural sway well beyond what most people probably intended or planned. That’s a big part of why they drew Trump’s gaze, a big part of why his supporters scorn them. Regardless of how this battle turns out, are we past peak Harvard — past peak Ivy — forevermore?

Larry Summers: Maybe, but there are countervailing forces. Harvard’s relative prestige rises with the square of the distance from Cambridge, and so a global talent competition helps it. The greatest universities are drivers of progress. The 21st century will be a center of the life sciences, and because of Harvard, M.I.T. and their affiliates, Boston and Cambridge are ground zero, creating a flywheel effect with Stanford and digital technology. If anything, the trend is toward a higher fraction of government, business, artistic elites coming from elite schools as they get better at drawing talent.

Bruni: That’s definitely the trend to this point. But how much will that be affected by what the Trump administration is doing substantively, in terms of funding cutbacks, and symbolically and culturally, in terms of casting a cloud over these institutions and characterizing them — or maybe I should say caricaturing them — as Maoist or Marxist indoctrination camps? I mean, I know because I’ve heard from them: There are definitely parents rethinking the Ivy League.

Summers: The trend could break if Trump stays super-destructive, courts are super-tolerant and the universities don’t adapt and settle. That is a real worry. My best guess, though, is that the need for universities as economic engines, the enforcement of law and the fact that there is low-hanging fruit for cultural correction in the universities will carry the day. I don’t think there is yet evidence of leading universities losing their appeal. Yes, there is a need to walk back from crazy, as there was after the 1960s. My guess is this will happen. You will see versions of Stanford’s Hoover Institution on many campuses, more emphasis on nonideological science and a big walk back on identity politics...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/22/opinion/trump-higher-education-harvard.html.

Straws in the Wind - Part 23

From The Economist: Pity the ambitious youngster. For decades the path to a nice life was clear: go to university, find a graduate job, then watch the money come in. Today’s hard-working youths, however, seem to have fewer options than before.

Go into tech? The big firms are cutting jobs. How about the public sector? That is less prestigious than it used to be. Become an engineer? Lots of innovation, from electric vehicles to renewable energy, now happens in China. A lawyer? Artificial intelligence will soon take your job. Don’t even think about becoming a journalist.

Across the West, young graduates are losing their privileged position; in some cases, they have already lost it. Jobs data hint at the change. Matthew Martin of Oxford Economics, a consultancy, has looked at Americans aged 22 to 27 with a bachelor’s degree or higher. For the first time in history, their unemployment rate is now consistently higher than the national average. Recent graduates’ rising unemployment is driven by those who are looking for work for the first time.

The social and political consequences will be profound. And the trend is not just in America. Across the European Union the unemployment rate of young folk with tertiary education is approaching the overall rate for that age group. Britain, Canada, Japan—all appear to be on a similar path. Even elite youngsters, such as MBA gradates, are suffering. In 2024, 80% of Stanford’s business-school graduates had a job three months after leaving, down from 91% in 2021. At first glance, the Stanford students eating al fresco at the school’s cafeteria look happy. Look again, and you can see the fear in their eyes.

Until recently the “university wage premium”, where graduates earn more than others, was growing (see chart 2). More recently, though, it has shrunk, including in America, Britain and Canada. Using data on young Americans from the New York branch of the Federal Reserve, we estimate that in 2015 the median college graduate earned 69% more than the median high-school graduate. By last year, the premium had shrunk to 50%.

Jobs are also less fulfilling. A large survey suggests America’s “graduate satisfaction gap”—how much more likely graduates are to say they are “very satisfied” with their job than non-graduates—is now around three percentage points, down from a long-run advantage of seven.

Is it a bad thing if graduates lose their privileges? Ethically, not really. No group has a right to outperform the average. But practically, it might be. History shows that when brainy people—or people who think they are brainy—do worse than they think they ought to, bad things happen...

Full story at https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2025/06/16/why-todays-graduates-are-screwed.

Note: There is a tendency in journalism to look for breaks in trends and project them out linearly into the future. But sometimes, the breaks turn out to be blips. Or - if not - the consequences are different than projected.

Following the Money

There are many in the legislature unhappy about aspects of the just-signed 2025-26 budget. UCLA managed to get into the middle of it:

Or direct to https://ia600107.us.archive.org/25/items/becerra-announces-for-governor-4-2-2025/Complaint%20about%20%241%20million%20to%20UCLA%20posted%206-27-2025.mp4.

UC Investigation

From the Sacramento Bee: The University of California will be investigated for possible civil rights violations in its hiring practices, the Trump administration said Thursday, the latest in the federal government’s efforts to unwind diversity programs it says discriminate against people who are white and male. 

The investigation will focus on a 2022 report called “The UC 2030 Capacity Plan,” a blueprint for expanding undergraduate and graduate programs across the system’s 10 campuses which included a section on diversity in hiring, a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice to UC President Michael Drake said...

The UC investigation comes on the heels of efforts by the administration to question admissions practices at 45 universities that had participated in a program aimed at increasing diversity among Ph.D. recipients. UC Berkeley, Cal Poly Humboldt and California State University, San Bernardino, were named in March among the campuses under investigation. The administration has also picked high-profile fights with elite private universities including Harvard and Columbia, accusing them of antisemitism related to protests against Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The 2030 plan, the letter alleged, led to illegal hiring practices. The 2030 report was issued before the U.S. Supreme Court struck down affirmative action in college admissions in 2023, a ruling that also had implications for hiring...

Full story at https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article309501740.html.

Bad PR

You know the old adage about there being no such thing as bad publicity? What you see above and below would seem to be a test of that saying. From SFGATE:

After seven years and a number of controversies and scandals, Jim Knowlton is stepping down as Cal’s athletic director... But the initial plan to replace him is to elevate two people who worked under Knowlton during all of those same scandals — and even before. Knowlton announced on Monday that he’ll be retiring effective July 1, according to a university news release. In his place, Cal has promoted deputy athletic directors Jay Larson and Jenny Simon-O’Neill to be co-athletic directors for the next academic year... 

Simon-O’Neill was in charge of the swimming programs when Orange County Register reporter Scott Reid first reported in 2022 that Cal swimmers alleged that their coach, Teri McKeever, bullied and verbally abused them for years, with Reid reporting that “at least six” Cal swimmers contemplated suicide because of McKeever’s treatment. McKeever was eventually fired after a $2 million independent investigation that took more than half a year. But Cal swimmers also pointed fingers at university leadership and specifically Knowlton and Simon-O’Neill. Cal swimmers said the top two athletics officials consistently ignored their allegations against McKeever, which Reid reported including “more than 30 complaints” between 2010 and 2022. Reid also reported that McKeever is a godmother to one of Simon-O’Neill’s children. Cal opened an investigation into Knowlton and Simon-O’Neill in March 2023 but never formally released the results of that investigation, and the two were still in charge by the end of the summer, when the next academic year was set to begin.

The McKeever scandal was by far the most prominent during Knowlton’s tenure but not the only one. In 2019, a woman who said she worked for the football team’s sports medicine department accused Cal football players and staffers of sexual harassment. UC Berkeley said it was investigating the claims, which included the woman saying she told several school administrators, Cal football coach Justin Wilcox and Knowlton about the alleged harassment but never received a response. The results of that investigation were never publicly released. And in 2020, KTVU-TV reported that Cal players accused school officials of mishandling bullying claims against women’s soccer coach Neil McGuire. McGuire has remained Cal’s coach despite the allegations and further reporting from the San Francisco Chronicle...

Full story at https://www.sfgate.com/collegesports/article/cal-replaces-scandal-ridden-ad-same-people-20382043.php.

Just a gentle reminder that UCLA is providing a subsidy to Berkeley athletics as per Regents' policy but presumably has no say in what is done with the money.

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge? - Part 24

From the NY Times: Harvard University and the Trump administration have restarted talks to potentially settle the acrimonious dispute that led President Trump to wage a far-reaching attack on the school and raised stark questions about the federal government’s place in higher education, according to three people briefed on the negotiations. The discussions began again this week at a meeting in the White House. 

At the meeting, Harvard representatives showed White House officials a PowerPoint presentation that laid out measures the school has taken on antisemitism, viewpoint diversity and admissions. In turn, the White House signaled other steps it would like for Harvard to take on those subjects and later sent a letter laying out conditions that could resolve the conflict, according to one of the people. It is unclear how Harvard plans to respond to the letter. A university spokesman declined to comment on the matter...

It is unclear how close both sides are to a potential deal and the exact terms any final agreement would entail. In a post on Truth Social, Mr. Trump said it was “very possible that a Deal will be announced over the next week or so.” Two people briefed on the discussions said it was highly unlikely a deal would be reached in the next week. Harvard has been widely praised by Democrats, academics, its alumni and democracy advocates for fighting the Trump administration. But top Harvard officials, according to two people briefed on the matter, have become increasingly convinced in recent weeks that the school has little choice but to try to strike a deal with the White House.

...Now, the school may find itself having to explain a deal with Mr. Trump...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/20/us/politics/harvard-federal-funding-trump.html.

Straws in the Wind - Part 22

From KJZZ-Phoenix: Tensions were high... [June 12] at the Arizona Board of Regents [ABOR] meeting in Tucson. Students and staff at the state’s public universities spoke out ahead of a vote to scrub board policies of words like diversity and affirmative action. Sixteen people signed up for public comment, many of them students of color or LGBTQ+ students who said they feel unsupported by their universities amid the Trump administration’s anti diversity equity and inclusion (DEI) rhetoric.

...ABOR sent the following statement to KJZZ:

“We appreciate the input from our community as we work to comply with the laws that govern us. The largest portion of Arizona public university budgets — built to serve over 250,000 students and 30,000 employees — comes from the federal government. The policy updates remove outdated references to revoked federal requirements. It also more clearly describes the board’s continued compliance with laws prohibiting discrimination and our ongoing commitment to providing college access to all Arizona students.”

Full story at https://www.kjzz.org/education/2025-06-12/arizona-university-students-staff-express-outrage-over-decision-to-remove-diversity-from-policies.

Immigration Event at UCLA - Part 2

The Bruin has an update on the immigration-related incident at the UCLA Reagan hospital yesterday:*

...U.S Customs and Border Protection agents detained two Iranian nationals without legal status – including the eventual patient – during a “targeted enforcement operation in Los Angeles,” said John Mennell, a CBP public affairs specialist, in a written statement. He added in the statement that the two people were “flagged as subjects of national security interest.”

“Agent presence at the hospital was solely to guard the subject receiving medical care – a standard procedure when an individual in the country illegally requires medical attention,” Mennell said in the statement. Both people are in the custody of Enforcement and Removal Operations – a division of ICE – as of June 25, he added...

A UCLA alumnus, who requested to remain anonymous due to concerns about their safety, said they came to the medical center when the patient was being treated. The alumnus – a former Daily Bruin contributor – added that they were there with members of a local rapid response network, which alerts people about reported immigration raids. Members of the protesting group – which included local activists, residents and UCLA students – attempted to visit the patient and connect them to a lawyer but were told by a medical center security guard to leave the ER waiting room, they said. They added that they were then told by a UCLA employee and people in police uniforms to stop recording videos in the medical center parking lot. [VC Steve] Lurie said he was not aware of any interactions between protesters and UCPD. He added that both federal agents left with the patient after they were discharged from the ER and that the majority of protesters dispersed around 4:30 p.m... 

Full story at https://dailybruin.com/2025/06/25/federal-agents-enter-ronald-reagan-ucla-medical-center-officials-deny-ice-raid.

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*See https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2025/06/immigration-event-at-ucla.html.

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge - Part 23

From the NY Times: A federal judge in Boston sided with Harvard University [last] Friday and blocked a Trump administration effort to rescind the school’s right to host international students. The government’s moves against Harvard have thrown the lives of thousands of visiting scholars into temporary disarray. But Friday’s ruling by Judge Allison D. Burroughs allows Harvard’s longstanding participation in the Student and Visitor Exchange Program to continue, at least for now. The administration had sought to exclude the school from that program, which allows 7,000 Harvard students and recent graduates to study and work legally in the United States.

In a three-page preliminary injunction, Judge Burroughs said the government was forbidden from “implementing, instituting, maintaining, or giving any force or effect” to the Department of Homeland Security’s push last month to force Harvard out of the international student program...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/06/20/us/trump-news#international-students-harvard-preliminary-injunction.

And, also from the NY Times: For the second time in less than a week, a federal judge in Boston rejected efforts by the Trump administration to bar international students at Harvard, blocking a presidential proclamation that would prevent new students from abroad from enrolling at the school. President Trump had sought to bar the students using a law designed to safeguard national security. In a strongly worded ruling [last]Monday, Judge Allison D. Burroughs sided with lawyers for Harvard who had argued that such presidential power was intended to be used against foreign enemies, not international students.

The judge’s order temporarily stops the presidential proclamation from going into effect. Judge Burroughs, who was appointed by President Barack Obama, issued a similar decision on Friday. In that ruling, she temporarily blocked another effort by the Trump administration to keep international students out of Harvard through other means. In her ruling on Monday, Judge Burroughs noted that the issues at stake involved “core constitutional rights that must be safeguarded — freedom of thought, freedom of expression, and freedom of speech” and that free speech, particularly in the academic arena, “must be zealously defended and not taken for granted.” ...

Full story at https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/23/us/harvard-trump-international-students.html.

Straws in the Wind - Part 21

From the Texas Tribune/Yahoo News: Even though Jorge and his younger sister are only two years apart in age, their college experiences are headed in different directions. They were both motivated and highly engaged high school students in Central Texas. But after graduation, he went to Austin Community College and had to work three jobs to pay for tuition. She enrolled at Texas State University on a full scholarship. It wasn’t academics or ambition that separated the siblings, but their immigration status. Their parents, seeking economic opportunity, crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with Jorge in their arms when he was 1 year old. They had his sister in Austin a short time later.

This fall, Jorge hoped to finally be on equal footing with her. The 21-year-old had saved enough money to afford tuition at Texas State and had applied to transfer there to study mechanical engineering. His plans depended on having access to in-state tuition, the lower rate that Texas residents pay to attend public colleges and is often half, or even a third, of what out-of-state students are charged. But the siblings’ path may soon split for good. Last week, state officials agreed to the federal government’s demand to stop offering in-state tuition rates to undocumented students living in Texas.

Jorge is one of thousands of students whose education plans may have been truncated by the ruling. Their aspirations — to become engineers or lawyers, or join other professions — haven’t disappeared. But the road has grown steeper. For some, it may now be out of reach...

Full story at https://www.yahoo.com/news/undocumented-students-rethink-college-dreams-100000010.html.

Coming Soon to a Campus Near You - Part 3

From the LA Times: For 24 years, immigrants lacking documentation who graduated from high school in California have received in-state tuition benefits at public colleges and universities under a law that has given tens of thousands access to higher education that many couldn’t otherwise afford. On June 4, the U.S. Department of Justice sued Texas over its tuition statute for immigrants without authorization, alleging it violated a federal law that prevents people who do not have legal status from receiving public benefits... 

Legal experts say that it’s not a matter of “if” but when and how the Trump administration will come for California’s law. The White House is already battling the state over liberal policies, including support of transgender students in school sports; sanctuary cities opposing ongoing federal immigration raids; and diversity, equity and inclusion programs in education... Out of the University of California system’s nearly 296,000 students, it estimates that between 2,000 and 4,000 are undocumented. Across California State University campuses, there are about 9,500 immigrants without documentation enrolled out of 461,000 total students. The state’s biggest undocumented group, estimated to be 70,000, comprises community college students...

Full story at https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2025-06-23/trump-sues-to-stop-undocumented-immigrants-in-state-college-tuition-california.

Layoffs at UC-San Francisco

From SFGATE: UCSF Health is slashing approximately 200 positions to mitigate “serious financial challenges,” the hospital network said in a statement to SFGATE on Wednesday. Kristen Bole, a spokesperson for UCSF, told SFGATE that employees are being notified that their last day will be 60 days from Wednesday. She said those employees won’t be expected to show up to work, but they can work on “items related to their transition.” ...

...A spokesperson for the Employment Development Department told SFGATE that it has not received any WARN filings from UCSF as of Wednesday. Such filings are generally required by the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act in the vent of mass layoffs. The staff cuts come as health care workers have been striking for more than a week outside UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital in Oakland to protest UCSF’s proposal to transition the hospital’s workers to become University of California employees...

Additionally, the cuts come amid looming funding threats to the National Institutes of Health and UC System from the Trump administration...

Full story at https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/ucsf-health-layoffs-amid-financial-challenges-20394116.php.

Immigration Event at UCLA

From the Orange County Register: Anger and uncertainty descended Tuesday afternoon on UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center after federal immigration agents showed up with a woman who was having health issues while in their custody, upsetting doctors and nurses as the agents entered the emergency room and drawing protesters outside who feared an ICE raid was underway, according to witnesses. Hospital officials later said that no raids had taken place at the Westwood facility, and that the woman had been discharged. The woman... was brought to the center after experiencing a medical issue while in the custody of federal agents, said a union representative from the California Nurses Association, who requested anonymity. Agents from Customs and Border Protection detained two Iranian nationals earlier in the day during enforcement efforts in Los Angeles. The agency said the Iranian nationals were unlawfully in the United States and were considered “subjects of national security interest.”

Agents escorted a woman who had been detained to the hospital along with emergency medical providers, the border patrol said... The union representative said six federal immigration agents entered the emergency room lobby and at least one went inside the woman’s hospital room. The agent reportedly held onto the patient’s bed and refused to let go, a nurse told the representative...

The California Nurses Association representative said health care workers confronted several federal immigration agents and tried to make them leave the hospital. A group of community members and UCLA students and professors also showed up to protest a potential immigration raid.

Full story at https://www.ocregister.com/2025/06/24/anger-uncertainty-at-westwood-hospital-after-immigration-agents-arrive-with-woman-in-custody-small-protest-ensues/.

Where We Are on the Budget

Although the legislature passed a "budget" within the constitutional timeframe, negotiations with the governor have continued since what was passed differed in various ways from the governor's May Revise. The state assembly and senate have produced summaries of the current state of affairs. Below are the summaries for UC.

What appears to have happened is that instead of no nominal cut for the 2025-26 budget year that begins July 1, UC will be provided with a no interest loan that is equivalent to the cut. This appears to be a purely cosmetic way of pretending no spending is involved. But it also appears that the promise for future years has been cut back.

As we have noted many times, today's legislature really can't make promises. The budgets for years beyond the one that starts on July 1, 2025 will be enacted by future legislatures and will be determined by the situation at those future times.

In any case, here are the two summaries pertaining to UC:

University of California

(from State Assembly Summary of the Status of the Budget in negotiations with the governor to date)

 Rejects the May Revision proposal to reduce operational funding by $129.7 million ongoing General Fund, or a 3 percent cut to ongoing state support. Restores the cut but defers payment until July 1, 2026. Includes budget bill language allowing UC to access a no-interest loan from General Fund resources in 2025-26.

 Modifies the Governor’s Budget proposal to defer $240.8 million ongoing General Fund to support a 5 percent base increase in 2025-26. Instead provides a 2 percent deferred base increase in 2026-27 instead of 5 percent, and the rest of the increase in 2028-29.

Adheres to the other pieces of the Administration’s compact deferral structure for 2026-27 and 2027-28.

 Approves Governor’s Budget and May Revision proposals to defer $31 million ongoing General Fund to continue the 5-year program to replace nonresident students with California students at the Berkeley, Los Angeles and San Diego campuses. Also includes budget bill language allowing UC to count additional reductions of nonresident students beyond the yearly target toward the next year.

 Approves budget bill language setting an enrollment target of 2,947 full-time equivalent students (FTES) in 2025–26 over the estimated 2024–25 baseline level of 206,588 FTES, for a total enrollment of 209,535.

 Provides $5 million one-time General Fund to support the CalBRIDGE program.

 Provides $15 million one-time General Fund to support the Local News Fellowship Program.

 Modifies the May Revision proposal to reduce debt service payments for student housing program by authorizing the Davis and Santa Barbara projects and $5.2 million ongoing General Fund to support debt service costs. Returns $1 million ongoing of bond cost savings to the General Fund.

 Approves the May Revision proposal to provide $1.8 million one-time General Fund to support First Star foster youth cohorts.

 Provides $430,000 ongoing General Fund to support the California Local Newspaper project at UC Riverside.

 Provides $5 million one-time General Fund to UC San Diego to support the development of a bachelor’s degree program in public health in South San Diego.

 Provides $4.5 million one-time General Fund to support the UC Davis Transportation Research Center.

 Provides $3.6 million one-time General Fund to the UC Office of the President for campus climate and antidiscrimination efforts.

 Provides $3 million one-time General Fund to support menopause health centers at University of California hospitals.

 Provides $2.5 million one-time General Fund to UC San Diego to support the ALERTCalifornia.

 Provides $1.8 million one-time General Fund to UC San Francisco to support the pilot Doctor of Dental Surgery Advocacy, Science, Public Interest and Research (DDSASPIRE) program.

 Provides $1.5 million one-time General Fund to support the PRIME Central Coast program at the UC Davis School of Medicine, in collaboration with UC Santa Cruz.

 Provides $1 million one-time General Fund to support the UC Davis Firearms Research Center.

 Provides $750,000 one-time General Fund to UCLA to support social media research.

 Approves the May Revision to reappropriate funding for the California Climate Initiatives.

 Approves the May Revision proposal authorizing the use of interest from bond funds to support the UCLA Powell Library Seismic Renovation project.

 Approves May Revision adjustments to the California Breast Cancer Research Fund, the Electronic Cigarette Tax Fund, and the Medical Research Program Account Fund due to updated revenue projections.

 Approves May Revision language-only proposals to eliminate compact reporting and make a technical correction to academic year in UC financial aid provision.

 Approves May Revision adjustments to the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources Division.

Source: https://abgt.assembly.ca.gov/system/files/2025-06/floor-report-of-the-2025-26-budget-june-24-2025.pdf (pp. 55-56).

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From the State Senate summary:

Rejects Governor’s proposal to reduce the UC ($129.7 million) and CSU ($143.8 million) by 3% ongoing. Instead defers the 3% amount in 2025-26 for both the UC and CSU to 2026-27 and the state will provide access to zero-interest short term loans to mitigate the deferral impact. Additionally, splits the deferred 5% Compact increase from 2025-26 to 2% for the UC ($96.3 million) and CSU ($100.9 million) in 2026-27 and defers 3% for the UC ($144.5 million) and CSU ($151.4 million) to 2028-29.

Source: https://sbud.senate.ca.gov/system/files/2025-06/summary-of-the-budget-act-of-2025-final-1.pdf (p. 7).

Getting Rid of the Cap

From Inside Higher Ed: A federal judge tossed out the National Science Foundation’s policy capping reimbursements for costs indirectly related to research, finding “severe” deficiencies in the agency’s reasoning for the plan as well as “errors of law.” The ruling from Judge Indira Talwani of the District of Massachusetts is the first final judgment against the 15 percent cap, which three other federal agencies have also sought to implement. Judges have temporarily blocked those caps, but in this lawsuit, the plaintiffs sought summary judgement, which allows the judge to reach a final decision without a trial.

Thirteen universities along with the Association of American Universities, the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, and the American Council on Education sued the NSF in May to block the cap...

Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-takes/2025/06/24/federal-judge-vacates-nsf-indirect-cost-cap.

Straws in the Wind - Part 20

From the Indiana Capital Chronicle: A newly constituted Indiana University Board of Trustees on [June 12] changed the school’s protest policy related to a federal lawsuit after Gov. Mike Braun’s three new appointees were sworn in... The governor recently removed three alumni-elected board members in favor of his own appointees after lawmakers gave him the new powers earlier this year. Two IU alumni silently held signs at the back of the room, urging President Pamela Whitten to sign a resolution by the American Association of Colleges and Universities condemning political interference in higher education. A third alum joined, standing for the entire session in protest of state overreach into university governance. 

...Vice President for University Relations Michael Huber said IU is among the most competitive institutions for federal research funding. However, he’s concerned that proposed federal budget cuts to the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and federal student aid could jeopardize IU’s research. 

...The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana has filed multiple lawsuits against IU over the last year. One of those challenged IU’s expressive activity policy, claiming the time restrictions on when students can protest violate the First Amendment... The Expressive Activity Policy webpage* has since changed and no longer includes the contested time restrictions on protests...

Full story at https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2025/06/13/iu-board-meets-for-first-time-with-braun-appointees-changes-made-to-protest-policy/.

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*Expressive activity policy is at https://policies.iu.edu/policies/ua-10-expressive-activity/index.html.

Will Harvard Continue to Lead the Charge? - Part 22

From the Harvard Crimson: Rep. Elise M. Stefanik ’06 (R-N.Y.) urged the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday to investigate Harvard’s bond sales, accusing her alma mater of withholding key financial information amid tensions with the federal government. In a letter addressed to SEC Chairman Paul S. Atkins, Stefanik alleged that Harvard failed to disclose its decision to reject federal demands before issuing $750 million in taxable bonds on April 9. The University made that decision public on April 14 and formally disclosed it to investors in a supplemental filing the following day — nearly a week after the offering.

It is not clear that Harvard had already made the decision to reject the demands before it issued the bonds. “There is reason to believe Harvard withheld material information from bondholders,” wrote Stefanik, who chairs the House’s Republican caucus. “If Harvard had indeed made its decision by April 9 and did not disclose it, this would warrant serious scrutiny.”

Stefanik claimed that the omission may have violated federal securities laws, arguing that investors were not made aware of the full financial and reputational risks posed by Harvard’s growing conflict with the Trump administration. In essence, she argued, Harvard should have told bondholders to expect the Trump administration to punish its bottom line for refusing to comply with federal demands.

A University spokesperson forcefully rejected Stefanik’s allegations, writing that Harvard could not have foreseen the administration’s sweeping demands nor its retaliation, and that it communicated with bondholders as soon as possible...

Full story at https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2025/6/18/stefanik-sec-bond-disclosures/.

Straws in the Wind - Part 19

From the Wall St. Journal: ...Through the spring, Northwestern used university money to pay bills previously covered by NIH grants, spending tens of millions of dollars monthly to keep labs and trials running without a break. Researchers and administrators now worry this stopgap can’t last. “The university is totally keeping us on life support,” said Dr. Daniela Matei, a Northwestern oncologist. “The big question is for how long they can do this.”

For decades, Northwestern celebrated—and relied on—its growing pot of government funding. Now it’s a liability. The sudden collapse of the once-symbiotic relationship between the federal government and higher education is torpedoing a half-century-old university business model and upending how science is done.

Since taking office, the Trump administration has cut or frozen billions of dollars in research funding to universities and proposed slashing budgets at government science agencies. Cutting federal funding, which accounts for more than half of university research funds nationwide, has been one of the main tools Trump has used to pressure universities to change their ways. A Trump administration official told the media that $790 million in federal funds to the Illinois university would be frozen... Northwestern is one of 10 schools identified by the Trump administration’s federal Task Force to Combat Antisemitism as initial targets. The Midwestern university drew national attention when school leaders last spring cut a deal with pro-Palestinian students to end an on-campus encampment... University leaders acknowledged that campus policies weren’t strong enough in response to antisemitic incidents in the wake of Oct. 7, a Northwestern spokesman said, but they’ve since seen a significant decrease in antisemitism reports after updating their code of conduct and consistently enforcing violations...

Full story at https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/northwestern-funding-freeze-trump-85d49da2.

Students from China

EdSource carries an article dealing with Chinese national students in higher ed institutions, particularly in California:

...U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a two-sentence statement on May 28 that the U.S. would “aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.” He also pledged to “enhance scrutiny” of future visa applications from China and Hong Kong. But the proposal for stronger visa enforcement appears to have been short-lived. On June 11, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would allow Chinese students into colleges and universities as part of a trade truce with China. 

The flip from crackdown to rapprochement is one of the latest flash points in a volatile period for Chinese students. Even before Trump’s second term, fewer Chinese students were coming to American universities, data show. International students on U.S. college campuses have experienced a tumultuous spring term as the Trump administration first terminated and later said it would restore thousands of international students’ records in a federal database. The State Department in May paused new student visa interviews but said [last] Wednesday it would resume processing and require applicants to make social media accounts public for government review...

The ebb and flow of Chinese students is of particular interest to higher education institutions in California. China accounts for 36% of all international enrollment in the state, according to the Institute of International Education, making it California’s single-largest country of origin for international students. Nearly 18,000 Chinese international students are enrolled at the University of California, almost 6,000 at the University of Southern California, about 2,600 across the state’s community colleges and roughly 850 at California State University. Those students bring with them coveted tuition dollars, a boon to the state’s public universities, where international students pay a premium over the rate charged to California residents...

Full story at https://edsource.org/2025/us-china-student-visa-policy-changes/734859.

UC Official Website on Antisemitism

UC has an official website devoted to steps the university has taken with regard to antisemitism.

Presumably, this website was developed in response to recent federal actions and related lawsuits stemming from events since October 7, 2023, particularly the encampments, protests, and responses by UC and the individual campuses.

See below:

UC has taken significant action to end antisemitism on campus

https://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/press-room/combating-antisemitism

Following October 7, conflict spread at universities across the country. It tested the limits of our traditional approach to de-escalation and public safety. The University of California has reflected on where we fell short last spring and how the University can do better moving forward. UC has worked diligently in partnership with Jewish community members, lawmakers, campus leaders, students and faculty to develop actionable plans to ensure similar events never happen again. We remain committed to fostering an environment where every member of our community is safe and welcome.

UC leaders have instituted comprehensive reforms and programs to promote safety and combat all forms of harassment and discrimination, including antisemitism, on our campuses.

• Reaffirmed systemwide policies against bigotry and intolerance and made clear to the University community that antisemitism will not be tolerated.

• Opposed calls for boycotts against and divestment from Israel.

• Published a single, systemwide Anti-Discrimination Policy managed by the new Systemwide Office of Civil Rights (SOCR) that applies to all staff, faculty, students, and third parties.

• Conducted trainings to inform the whole UC community about policies and procedures related to campus safety and expressive activities.

• Communicated campus prohibitions against encampments, unauthorized structures, restrictions on free movement, identity concealment, and refusals to reveal one’s identity when asked to do so by University personnel.

• Participating in Hillel International’s Campus Climate Initiative to foster a positive, inclusive, and welcoming campus climate for all students throughout the UC system.

• Teams from the Systemwide Office of Civil Rights and two campuses are attending the Brandeis University Summer Institute on Antisemitism in Higher Education.

“Let us be clear: There is no place for hate, bigotry, or intimidation at the University of California. Period. Antisemitism is antithetical to our values and our campus codes of conduct and is unacceptable under our principles of community. It will not be tolerated.”

— University of California President Michael V. Drake, M.D., and the 10 University of California chancellors

Strengthening policies

• UC launched a systemwide civil rights office and implemented the systemwide Anti-Discrimination Policy prohibiting discrimination and harassment based on religion, national or ethnic origin, and ancestry, including actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, or citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity, including antisemitism.

• Made concrete policy and procedural changes including the restructuring of campus safety procedures, clarifying policies impacting free expression activities, and adhering to disciplinary processes aligned with the updated policies.

• Issued clear and consistent policy requirements regarding expressive activities, such as protests at UC locations.

• Provided guidance to UC chancellors about sharing campus climate resources and policies for students, faculty, and staff.

• Reviewing and consolidating safety and policing policies to enhance accessibility and clarity. 

• Reviewing and updating University policies and procedures relevant to student and faculty conduct and discipline, including with respect to allegations of antisemitism.

Providing training

The UC Office of the President held systemwide and campus-specific leadership trainings to support decision making when responding to disruptive events, including incidents of antisemitic harassment.

• The Systemwide Office of Civil Rights has provided Title VI/Anti-Discrimination Policy training to Local Implementation Officers and investigative staff and is developing training for campus police and safety officers.

• UC is complying with AB 2925, which requests any trainings addressing antidiscrimination include the five most targeted groups in the state as determined in the state Attorney General’s annual “Hate Crime in California” report (pdf).

• UC is working to implement SB 1287 and already offers mandatory training for students to recognize what constitutes discrimination and harassment based on protected categories, including shared Jewish ancestry.

Reporting incidents

Antisemitism and all other forms of hate are unacceptable at UC locations and in our programs and activities. UC expects members of our community to fully adhere to policies and laws. Our campuses have robust reporting and investigation processes in place, and impacted individuals may access supportive measures even if they do not file a complaint or request an investigation.

Incident reporting form

Education initiatives

The systemwide Office of the President designated $7 million to support initiatives across the system addressing antisemitism, Islamophobia,* and other forms of bias, bigotry, and discrimination. Efforts include emergency mental health and trauma support for students, faculty, and staff; voluntary extracurricular educational programming; and training and professional development for leaders, faculty, and staff.

The UC National Center for Free Speech and Civic Engagement developed webinars, programs and resources to educate the UC community about the First Amendment, Title VI, academic freedom and campus safety, and protest management, including an updated Toolkit to Prepare for and Manage Major Campus Events or Incidents (pdf).

The UC Office of the President introduced the UC Campus Climate Initiative in August of 2024 with the aim of maintaining safe, respectful, and inclusive campuses, and improving the University’s preparation for and consistency in addressing events and incidents.

Partnership with Hillel International

UC participates in Hillel International's Campus Climate Initiative. With involvement by senior leaders on all 10 UC campuses, the UC Office of the President has hosted full-day convenings and educational seminars led by Hillel International. Campus teams consult with Hillel staff and work directly with Hillel’s research partner (National Opinion Research Center at the University of Chicago) to assess campus climate to foster a positive, inclusive, and welcoming campus climate for all students.

Making progress on campus

UC campuses have taken significant steps to combat antisemitism.

• Developed new initiatives to combat antisemitism, including increased funding to the Antisemitism Education Initiative and mandatory antisemitism training for first-year students, student organization leaders, and Residential Assistants.

• Affirmed that there will be no divestment from entities that do business with or in Israel. This is consistent with systemwide policy.

• Created an Israel Studies minor.

• The Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Jewish Life and Campus Climate (established in 2015) works to maintain a positive campus climate for Jewish students, staff, and faculty. 

• The Antisemitism Education Initiative (est. 2019) supports faculty and community leaders in their work with campus administrators and student leaders to promote and provide antisemitism awareness and education. The Initiative is based in the Center for Jewish Studies, led by a full-time director, and co-coordinated by the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee, the Center for Jewish Studies, the Berkeley Institute for Jewish Law and Israel Studies, Berkeley Hillel, and the Magnes Collection.

• Launched the Addressing Antisemitism website in collaboration with campus and community organizations, including the Jewish Studies Program, the Department of History, the School of Law, and the School of Medicine.

• Developed the Dynamic Discussions Hub, a digital resource featuring courses and events developed by members of the faculty and campus community to support meaningful dialogue about antisemitism.

• Chancellor Gary S. May and members of the Chancellor’s Leadership Council participate in the Advisory Council on Jewish Student Life and join in activities — on campus and in the community — that support and celebrate Jewish heritage.

• Became the first UC campus to join the Hillel Campus Climate Initiative, which includes developing a campus climate survey and action plan to address hate and bias on campus.

• Introduced the Courageous Conversations Series to foster discourse on challenging topics, including Palestinian and Israeli perspectives on the Middle East conflict.

• Launched the Initiative to Combat Antisemitism, which is tasked with bringing together members of the Bruin community and civic leaders from diverse backgrounds, faiths and perspectives to implement policies to combat antisemitism at every level.

• Rolled out the university’s Four-Point Plan for a Safer, Stronger UCLA outlining enhancements to campus safety, initiatives aimed at fostering dialogue across difference, and mechanisms for self-evaluation, among other policies.

• The UCLA Nazarian Center for Israel Studies, established in 2010, provides a space for nuanced and informative discourse related to the history and culture of Israel and its people.

• Launched a new mini-grant initiative supporting up to 10 proposals per year focused on efforts aimed at addressing bias and bigotry, inclusive of antisemitism and Islamophobia.*

• Promoted webinars and workshops centered on countering bias and bigotry that included Roots: Changing the Conversation Around Conflict and a series from the Academic Engagement Network (AEN), an organization focused on increasing knowledge of the diversity of Jewish experience and contemporary manifestations of antisemitism.

• Partnered with Hillel, supported the establishment of the Jewish Faculty and Staff Association, and actively collaborated with organizations that serve the Jewish community and educate on antisemitism.

• Provided significant funding (with support of the UC Office of the President) to address antisemitism and other bias-related concerns through educational programming, speaker events, and campuswide initiatives aimed at fostering respect and countering bigotry.

• Developed an annual campus climate management training for leadership and participates in systemwide Campus Climate Initiatives.

• Launched “Tritons Belong” initiative. This includes a partnership with ADL San Diego to provide educational seminars and publicly available resources for students, faculty and staff.

• Launched in Spring 2025, “Dialogue for Peace: Building Compassion and Understanding Across Difference” encompasses several events and programs, including a professional development training fellowship to empower UC San Diego community members to become compassionate listeners and conflict resolution facilitators through a Peacemaking and Restorative Justice-based curriculum.

• Chancellor Pradeep K. Khosla established an Antisemitism Workgroup charged with reviewing antisemitism concerns at UC San Diego with the aim of fostering a safer, more inclusive and equitable environment for the campus’s Jewish community.

• Partnered with the Academic Engagement Network to develop a series of required antisemitism trainings for UCSF leadership, departmental diversity leaders, and key campus personnel.

• Created the Director of Jewish Life position within the Office of Diversity and Outreach to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to address antisemitism at UCSF. The director also supports Jewish faculty, staff, student, and patient communities and will serve as a liaison to Jewish organizations, registered campus organizations, local synagogues, and interfaith groups.

• Encouraged the formation of UCSF’s Jewish Coalition. This self-organized group of faculty, staff, and students meets regularly with senior leadership to discuss ideas for combating antisemitism and fostering a welcoming environment for Jewish and Israeli members of the UCSF community.

• Supported the formation of Shalom, a registered campus organization for staff and students focused on confronting antisemitism and supporting Jewish and Israeli members of the UCSF community.

• Established relationships with San Francisco Hillel and the Jewish Community Relations Council to explore how UCSF can oppose antisemitism and foster a greater sense of belonging for Jewish and Israeli members of the UCSF community.

• Created the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Antisemitism to better understand experiences of anti-Jewish and anti-Israeli hostility and to guide efforts to ensure that there is a safe and inclusive environment on campus for the Jewish and Israeli community.

• Created a Jewish Commission as a part of Associated Students to support and advocate for Jewish students and to bring greater education on Jewish culture to campus.

• Faculty and staff are in the process of launching a Jewish employee affinity group to offer support, community, and a space for employees to share their experiences and to facilitate inclusion in the workplace.

• Participating in the Hillel International Campus Climate Initiative to ensure a positive campus climate in which Jewish students feel comfortable expressing their identities.

• Participated in Hillel International’s Campus Climate Initiative to improve and strengthen a campus climate in which Jewish students feel comfortable expressing their identity free of antisemitism, harassment or marginalization.

• Developing educational programs on “Histories in Progress,” which explore the diverse stories and cultures of the many communities that make up our state. The inaugural offerings, launching in spring 2025, include Histories and Ideologies of Antisemitism, featuring Dr. Lauren Bairnsfather.

• Published a new Preventing Antisemitism at UC Santa Cruz webpage with information and resources for the community.

The work continues

Through new systemwide and campus offices, updates to policies, and by providing resources, education, and trainings to community members, UC has taken concrete steps to address antisemitism. These efforts have been recognized by UC’s Jewish community who have expressed appreciation for UC’s significant actions to cultivate a safe and welcoming campus environment.

Our work is not done. As an educational institution, we are committed to a culture of constant learning and improvement as we continue to build a learning environment free of hate, discrimination and harassment.

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*Note that this pairing is out of keeping with former Regent John Pérez's caution about "both sidesism." See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNzqWQC0rX8.