UC Regents Meeting shut down at UCSF, UC Davis, UCLA, UC Merced

SF Chronicle: “Students shut down UC regents meeting“

Hundreds of students and faculty members temporarily shut down a University of California Board of Regents meeting being held simultaneously today at campuses in San Francisco, Davis, Merced and Los Angeles by standing in the conference rooms and chanting slogans so loudly the regents could no longer conduct business. . .

Why We Fight: “How the UC Regents Spin Public Funds into Private Profit”

UC Regent Richard Blum and the University of California itself are heavily invested in private for-profit colleges which benefit from cutbacks in public education.

In case you are wondering why, amidst all the fee hikes, cutbacks, layoffs and furloughs, construction never seems to stop at University of California campuses, you’ll appreciate the following investigation.

From Spot.Us, community-funded reporting:

“The Investors’ Club: How the University of California Regents Spin Public Money into Private Profit,” an 8-part investigation by Peter Byrne

Experts identify multiple conflicts of interest among an elite group that oversees investments for the University of California.

Last fall, amid an unprecedented state budget crisis, the University of California Board of Regents took extraordinary measures to cut costs and generate revenue. Lecturers were laid off, classes eliminated. The board reduced admissions for in-state students, while increasing the admission of out-of-state students, who pay higher fees than state residents. And to the consternation of tens of thousands of students, undergraduate tuition was raised by 32 percent, with more hikes to come.

It now costs about $30,000 per year to attend the University of California (UC) as an undergraduate, including tuition and expenses. Even with student aid, it’s a sum beyond the means of many students and their families.

While education took a beating, the regents authorized $3 million in bonuses to a handful of top administrators, and reduced the salaries of janitorial staff. The regents approved new construction projects, including a sports stadium. They assured Wall Street bond underwriters that periodic tuition increases would help pay off hundreds of millions of dollars in new construction loans.