The Kept-Up Academic Librarian

Privatizing U Of California Is The Wrong Solution

University of California President Mark G. Yudof went to Sacramento this week in another valiant effort to convince legislators that they're playing with fire when they shortchange the state's higher-education system. In the course of his presentation, he gingerly mentioned the P-word. The state university, he told them, is a statewide boon, adding: "We do not want to partially privatize it through raising fees." "Privatization" is a crowd-pleasing nostrum for public officials seeking to shed the budgetary cost of programs and services that they nevertheless know to be a public responsibility. It has a cheap but bright surface allure, like a fresh coat of whitewash. Read more at:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-hiltzik10-2009dec10,0,4424169.column

Next Sputnik On The Horizon For Higher Education

The Obama administration's push to solve the nation's energy problems, a massive federal program that rivals the Manhattan Project, is spurring a once-in-a-generation shift in U.S. science. The government's multibillion-dollar push into energy research is reinvigorating 17 giant U.S.-funded research facilities. University science departments can benefit from the government's unprecedented $18.4 billion in stimulus spending for basic research, as well, provided they sign on to the government's energy mission. Read more at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125910876247663245.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

Experts Debate Haves Vs. Have-Nots At UC

The University of California, which has already received $716 million in federal stimulus funds to offset a $1 billion budget gap, announced on Friday that it is raising student fees by 32 percent. That works out to about $2,500 per student a year. Student protesters said that the higher costs will make it even harder for middle class and poor students to go to college, and will widen the education gap between the haves and the have-nots. As they deal with tighter budgets, what should public universities do to balance fiscal responsibility and equal opportunity?

• Stephen Joel Trachtenberg, former college president
• Alfonso Trujillo, engineer
• Cindy Mosqueda, U.C.L.A. graduate student
• Richard Vedder, economist, Ohio University
• Jane Wellman, executive director, Delta Project
• Ronald Ehrenberg, economist, Cornell University

Read more at: http://roomfordebate.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/haves-vs-have-nots-at-public-universities/?scp=1&sq=richard%20vedder&st=cse

We Like What You Do But Won't Pay More For It

Despite damaging budget cuts at the state's community colleges and public universities, Californians still have high esteem for the schools, according to a new survey. Yet most are not willing to pay higher taxes or student fees to protect the campuses from financial troubles, the poll found. The survey showed the public to be well aware of recent staff furloughs and reductions in class offerings at public campuses, and 59% of respondents said the colleges and universities should be a high or very high priority for state funding during the budget crisis. However, only 41% said they were willing to pay higher taxes to make up for state budget cuts and only 29% were willing to increase student fees. Read more at:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-edsurvey12-2009nov12,0,6744492.story

IHEs Should Expect Less Revenue Through 2010

While parents may be depressed by the news that 58 colleges now charge more than $50,000 a year, the news isn’t much better for the colleges themselves. A survey by Moody’s, the rating agency, finds that nearly 30 percent of private colleges that responded are expecting a decline in net revenue from tuition and fees in the 2010 fiscal year. The big reason, Moody’s said, is a rise in discounts and financial aid as a result of the economic downturn. Despite the fiscal challenges, Moody’s found that undergraduate enrollment at the private colleges and universities surveyed was up by almost 1 percent. Read more at:
http://thechoice.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/bleak-news-for-colleges-too/

Legislature's Indecision On Gambling Hurts State-Related IHEs

Pennsylvania State, Temple, and two other state-related universities said yesterday that the delay in approving table-games legislation in Harrisburg could affect tuition rates, starting in January. The schools are waiting for $688.4 million that was left off the budget signed by Gov. Rendell on Oct. 9. That money is contingent upon the legislature and the governor reaching agreement on a table-games bill. Tuition bills for the second semester are to be mailed next week to more than 158,000 students.  Read more at:
http://www.philly.com/inquirer/education/20091104_Universities_say_table-games_lag_may_impact_tuition.html

Obama's Community College Plan May Need More Funding

President Barack Obama wants to invest some $12 billion in community colleges with the aim of seeing an additional 5 million students graduate by 2020. This goal comes while many schools are already bursting at the seams with droves of displaced workers hit by the recession competing with traditional students seeking an education bargain. Obama's 10-year initiative would provide a welcome infusion of cash, but some fear it would not sustain community college programs. Read more at:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jxxmzQ-sohzH8p-DkXg1fiPRjTTQD9BMS5480

Tough Times Ahead Despite Some Signs Of Stability

Last September, Boston University was the first local college to sound the alarm on an impending financial crisis that would soon penetrate much of academia: President Robert Brown curbed spending, froze staff hiring, and halted construction. As the economic picture brightened in June, Brown loosened the purse strings. BU is now looking to fill 159 jobs. Despite the relative stability, industry analysts and college financial managers predict that more difficult times may be ahead. The federal stimulus money that’s buoyed the budgets of the state’s public colleges will run dry in a year. Read more at:
http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2009/10/30/amid_tumult_a_degree_of_stability/

New York State Poised For Further Cuts In Higher Education

New York is poised for another round of midyear cuts in both public university systems and in financial aid under the Tuition Assistance Program, which affect hundreds of thousands of families. The cuts will shift more costs to students and their families, force higher tuition and fees, hurt on-time graduation because fewer classes will be offered, and result in fewer full-time professors. “It will have a chilling effect on CUNY’s plans,” CUNY Chancellor Matthew Goldstein told an Assembly hearing Friday. He noted CUNY’s senior colleges took a $68.3 million cut last year. “We must prevent the damage that will result from a sustained period of reductions.”  Read more at:
http://www.poughkeepsiejournal.com/article/20091026/NEWS12/91026003/NY-fiscal-crisis-strikes-hard-at-higher-education

Budget Cuts Translate To More Time Needed To Earn A Diploma

It isn't just tuition increases that are driving up the cost of college. Around the country, deep budget cuts are forcing colleges to lay off instructors and eliminate some classes, making it harder for students to get into the courses they need to earn their degree. The likely result: more time in college. And while that may sound agreeable to nostalgic alumni, to students like Michael Redoglia, time is money. Early this semester at San Francisco State University, Redoglia unsuccessfully crashed 26 different classes, hoping to find space that would move him closer to a hospitality management degree. Redoglia, a fourth-year student, is now enrolled in just two courses. He could lose financial aid, and his plan to finish his degree in 4 1/2 years is up in smoke. Read more at:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hkB0WGpKchCLhDRTHDGL0OyF54wwD9B9MNKG1