UL-certification is a safety standard that confirms a device’s battery and electrical parts have been tested to prevent mechanical failure, shock and fire, the administrators added in the email. They also said in the email that registration will make it easier to identify lost or stolen devices and return them to their rightful owners...
Full story at https://dailybruin.com/2026/01/26/ucla-announces-registration-certification-mandate-for-electric-scooters-bikes.
From Inside Higher Ed: George Washington University is pausing admissions to five Ph.D. programs for fall 2026, citing financial hardships. According to social media posts, applicants to the programs received emails last week alerting them that the programs “will not be reviewing applications for the 2026–2027 academic year.” The emails went on to say that their application fees would be refunded and offered them the opportunity to be considered for master’s programs instead. The Ph.D. programs affected are in clinical psychology, anthropology, human paleobiology, political science and mathematics. A university spokesperson attributed the pauses to financial difficulties.
...The suspensions follow other instances of high-profile institutions slashing admissions to Ph.D. programs due to budget concerns, including Boston University, the University of Chicago and Harvard University. In a recent Faculty Senate meeting, GWU president Ellen Granberg asked the university’s schools and divisions to prepare “budget contingency plans” amid declines in applications from international students, the student newspaper, The GW Hatchet, reported. International students accounted for about 13 percent of the institution’s enrollment this fall, a decrease from the previous year...
Full story at https://www.insidehighered.com/news/students/graduate-students-and-postdocs/2026/01/26/george-washington-u-pauses-admissions-5-phd.
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From the Daily Princetonian: ...The University [has] released its annual Report of the Treasurer. Following a tumultuous year for higher education across the country, the report emphasizes the University’s lab partnerships with federal departments, close ties to active-duty soldiers and veterans, and involvement in AI and public service. The report, entitled “In the Nation’s Service,” comes after approximately $200 million in research-specific funding was suspended last year by the Trump administration, then partially reinstated over the summer...
Princeton spent $283 million in total financial aid contributions in 2024–25 and saw its largest ever number of Pell Grant recipients. Most families that make less than $250,000 per year pay no tuition. The University is potentially facing a new 8 percent endowment tax from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which applies to universities with endowments of over $2 million per student and a tuition-paying population of at least 3,000.
With a projected increase of financial aid spending to $327 million in 2025–26, there is a possibility that the University will avoid the endowment tax by having under 3,000 tuition-paying students. The University has previously declined to comment on the endowment tax and the number of students that pay tuition...
Full story at https://www.dailyprincetonian.com/article/2026/01/princeton-news-adpol-2025-treasurer-report-emphasizes-princeton-nations-service.
From the Harvard Crimson: Harvard faculty awarded significantly fewer A grades in the fall, cutting the share of top marks by nearly seven percentage points after the College urged instructors to combat grade inflation... The share of flat As fell from 60.2 percent in the 2024-2025 academic year to 53.4 percent in the fall. The decline follows a 25-page report [Dean of Undergraduate Education Amanda] Claybaugh released in October 2025 arguing that grade inflation had rendered the College’s grading system unable to “perform the key functions of grading” and encouraging stricter academic measures, including standardized grading across sections and in-person final exams.
Claybaugh explicitly sought to reassure faculty concerned that harsher grading could hurt their teaching evaluations... and course enrollments — offering the clearest signal yet that the College is prepared to back instructors who tighten grading standards... A faculty committee charged with reviewing the College’s existing grading policies would release new proposals early in the spring semester...
Many undergraduates have expressed concern that efforts to rein in grade inflation could disadvantage them in graduate schools admissions and the job market.
Full story at https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2026/1/27/faculty-cut-a-grades/.
If we look ahead, no such closed meetings are currently on the schedule for February and beyond, suggesting that in terms of actual negotiations with the feds, things are pretty quiet.
Perhaps the feds' attention has turned more toward Greenland, or Iran, or Minneapolis, and away from UCLA in terms of negotiations. They haven't entirely forgotten about us, as a posting tomorrow will discuss. But it is reasonable to surmise that whatever discussions were going on have been paused.
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*https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/meetings/past-meetings/2021-2025.html#. Click on 2025.
Caltrans Announces I-405 Reduced to Three Lanes in Each Direction Through the Sepulveda Pass: February 2026 Schedule
Caltrans announces extended weekend lane reductions along Interstate 405 (I-405) through the Sepulveda Pass. The freeway will be reduced to three lanes in each direction and motorists are strongly encouraged to seek alternate routes and explore public transportation options to reach their destinations.
Commuters can expect extended weekend lane reductions on the following:
10 p.m. Friday, Feb. 6, through 5 a.m. Monday, Feb. 9
Motorists traveling along I-405 will experience the following lane reductions and ramp closures:
Northbound I-405
Southbound I-405
Alternate Routes for I-405
Extended Weekend Lane Reductions will occur about every two weeks along various sections of I-405, unless noted otherwise. There will be about 25 extended weekend lane reductions for this project. Due to weather or operational reasons, the schedule is subject to change including the times and dates of closures, the number of lanes closed and other details.
Residents and businesses located near construction may experience noise, vibrations and dust associated with construction activities...
This work is part of the I-405 Pavement Rehabilitation Project between the Los Angeles communities of Van Nuys and Westwood along the Sepulveda Pass. This project will apply about $143.7 million toward improving the safety and mobility along I-405 between Van Nuys and Westwood as well as extend the pavement life...
Full release at https://dot.ca.gov/caltrans-near-me/district-7/district-7-news/d7-i405-extended-weekend-sepulveda-pass-feb-2026.
From the Yale Daily News: ...Administrators recently revealed a three-year plan to reduce enrollment in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences by about 13 percent in the humanities and social sciences and by about 5 percent in STEM programs. The measure came as the University tightens its budget in anticipation of an upcoming increase in its federal endowment tax under President Donald Trump’s signature legislative achievement...
Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Dean Lynn Cooley wrote in a statement provided to the News by a Yale spokesperson that the “modest” enrollment reductions are a response to a smaller graduate school budget, 93 percent of which goes to student support. She added that administrators consulted with leaders of each department, as well as a faculty working group, about the reductions...
Cooley wrote that the difference between enrollment cuts in STEM programs and those in the humanities and social sciences reflects the fields’ different sources of funding. While students in the humanities and social sciences receive funding drawn from the endowment investment returns, Cooley wrote, STEM students receive funds from both the endowment and external grants and fellowships...
Full story at https://yaledailynews.com/articles/graduate-students-say-enrollment-cuts-risk-hurting-culture-teaching.
We are catching up with the Regents meeting of last week. Note that we already covered the termination of a tenured UCLA faculty member.* And we covered the previous day earlier this week.** The Board meeting began with public comments. Topics included UC-Davis women's sports, Teamster bargaining, AFSCME bargaining, grad student support especially international students/use of emergency funds, AI-generated sexual abuse, rent increases by a firm owned by Brookfield Investments, non-cooperation with Trump administration, essential needs of undocumented students, demand to divest from Blackrock and Blackstone, student mental health, Native American remains repatriation, antisemitism, termination of a tenured faculty member, Turning Point and other protests, support for a science center, and NIL for athletes who are injured. There was a brief AFSCME demonstration at one point.
Following public comments, the student president of UCSA discussed various topics including transfer students being below the targeted percentage and concerns about the proposed new faculty disciplinary process. The grad student president raised the issue of sharing of student data with the feds and rent burdens. Thereafter, a new UC-Santa Cruz fundraising campaign was endorsed. Then the above-mentioned faculty termination hearing was held.
At Finance and Capital Strategies, there was a report on the governor's January budget proposal which we have discussed previously. It was noted that the proposal was based on optimistic revenue projections which might not work out. It was also noted that there was potential in the legislature for bonds to finance research and capital projects. Regent Cohen raised the issues of the longer-term fiscal outlook, i.e., beyond the upcoming year. Regent Park asked whether there was a mechanism for developing a new compact with whoever was elected governor in November 2026. (The current compact expires after 2026-27.)
At Academic and Students Affairs, professional tuition requests were approved for selected programs. Then the proposed faculty discipline process was approved. Coming up with a new process was mandated by the legislature. The new version was approved by the Academic Council. The consultation process with faculty and the Regents was noted. Under the new process, there are specified time limits for the various steps, a systemwide faculty pool so that there will always be faculty available to staff the process, and more precise language and definitions. The new process was approved. Regent Leib requested a report on the process after two years. Then the full board endorsed the various committee endorsements.
As always, we preserve Regents meetings since the Regents have no policy on duration of retention. You can find links to the meeting below:
General site for January 21: https://archive.org/details/1-regents-board-1-21-2026
Full board (initial meeting): https://ia600306.us.archive.org/22/items/1-regents-board-1-21-2026/1-Regents%20Board%201-21-2026.mp4
Finance & Capital Strategies, Academic & Student Affairs, final board session: https://ia800306.us.archive.org/22/items/1-regents-board-1-21-2026/2-Regents%20Finance%20and%20Capital%20Strategies%2C%20Academic%20and%20Student%20Affairs%2C%20Board%201-21-2026.mp4
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*https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2026/01/its-hard-to-keep-lid-on-part-10.html; https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2026/01/its-hard-to-keep-lid-on-part-9-and-now.html.
**https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2026/01/watch-regents-meetings-of-january-20.html.
