[Peace] [geo-stewards] PICKET BOARD OF TRUSTEES CHAIR CHRIS KENNEDY'S SPEECH, Monday, March

[colinetcetera at gmail.com]

Seconded. Well put, Mr. Brussel.

A. Colin Raymond

On Mar 12, 2011 5:34pm, "Brussel Morton K." <mkbrussel at comcast.net> wrote:
> So, what do you propose? That the legislature not listen to Hogan about  
> how good (virtuous) the university is for the state? That Hogan and the  
> whole administrative apparatus be done away with (by the legislature or  
> the governor?)? What would you have liked Hogan to say to the  
> legislators? Would you prefer that he have nothing to do with them?

> You are implying that the whole system is rotten without prescribing what  
> to do effectively about it.


> Just my reaction—and I am not fond of Hogan and company, and the  
> direction that the system is moving towards. But I do believe that the  
> university must be defended as an institution for education and research  
> and its state funding increased, albeit recognizing that there are many  
> needy projects to be considered in addition to the university. Would you  
> favor an increased contribution from the state to the university, or less  
> (as long as the campus contributes to the military-industrial capitalist  
> complex)?


> --mkb

> On Mar 12, 2011, at 2:23 PM, David Green wrote:

> Friends,

> I've pasted a campus-wide e-mail from President Michael Hogan at the end  
> of this message which I'm sure most of you received. The assumption of  
> this e-mail is that "we," the "U of I community," must naturally support  
> his efforts to promote the virtues of our university. To me, it's  
> important to understand that this laundry list is not only provinical  
> boosterism on the one hand, but propaganda on the other. We are asked, as  
> a "community," to accept the basic economic assumptions of corporate  
> higher education and "human capital" in an unjust society. We are asked  
> to view ourselves in solidarity as an "interest group" in relation to the  
> state legislature. We are asked not to question anything fundamental  
> about the corporate-military state and the university's integration into  
> that state. As workers for social justice, we are asked to allow  
> ourselves to be co-opted in the name of a few dollars more or less for  
> the U of I budget from our magnanimous legislature.

> When Hogan sends out such a message, he can't imagine why anyone who  
> receives a paycheck from or pays tuition to the university could possibly  
> not support him wholeheartedly, at least out of "self interest." But we  
> must honestly ask ourselves: If the university contributes so much  
> economically to our state, then why does our state's economy suck? Or our  
> nation's? The answer will be found in long-term policies that have been  
> wholeheartedly supported for decades by university administrators and  
> corporate elites like Michael Hogan, which generally go under the rubric  
> of neoliberalism, corporatism, privatization, and military-industrialism;  
> that is, class warfare. And to keep this academic virtue going, all the  
> way to utopia, we need just a few more dollars from the state legislature?

> Through my place of employment, the Institute for Government and Public  
> Affairs, I also received an e-mail "personally" from Robert Rich urgently  
> requesting my attendance at the talk by Kennedy on Monday. I am perplexed  
> by this--as if they were worried they wouldn't fill the seats for this  
> momentous occasion (to hear boosterism-propaganda about the research  
> university), or as if they are worried that the seats will be filled by  
> the "wrong people." The request for RSVPs is also unusual, as if this  
> were a cocktail party to "meet a Kennedy." Let me add that the IGPA is  
> a "non-partisan" policy research and advisory group that in no way  
> supports any view that might challenge the fundamental assumptions of the  
> political and corporate establishments, and business-as-usual. That is  
> what "non-partisan" means in an academic context.

> I could be making too much of this, but this occasion nevertheless  
> presents an obvious opportunity, in the spirit of Cairo and Madison.  
> Chris Kennedy represents what President Clark Kerr represented to  
> Berkeley students during the Free Speech Movement in 1964: managerialism,  
> corporatism, conformity, business as ususal: "the best of all possible  
> worlds." In 1964, California was experiencing prosperity probably  
> unparalled in any state at any time in the history of this country,  
> before or since, and school was essentially free, but students rebelled  
> against the condescension of university administrators, and much more  
> (racism, the Vietnam War).

> I would encourage demonstrators to look well beyond the issue of tuition  
> hikes and other more immediate economic concerns, as well as demands  
> related to admissions policies, to these fundamental political, social,  
> and economic contexts. I would encourage local social justice  
> organizations to see this as an opportunity to discourage "business as  
> usual" on this occasion. I would suggest that prior to this event, there  
> be collective and open meetings and discussions of agendas, demands, and  
> plans of action. This seems to me like an opportunity that reflects the  
> confluence of the spirit of our times, for worse and better.

> David Green


> From: Ben Rothschild rothsch2 at gmail.com>
> To: undergraduate-graduate-alliance  
> undergraduate-graduate-alliance at googlegroups.com>; SC  
> geo-stewards at lists.uigeo.org>;  
> announce at lists.communitycourtwatch.org;discuss at lists.communitycourtwatch.org;  
> peace at lists.chambana.net;  
> students-for-a-united-illinois at googlegroups.com;  
> illinois-education-rights at googlegroups.com; Campus Labor Coalition  
> campuslabor at lists.uigeo.org>; defend-education at googlegroups.com
> Sent: Sat, March 12, 2011 10:33:41 AM
> Subject: [Peace] PICKET BOARD OF TRUSTEES CHAIR CHRIS KENNEDY'S SPEECH,  
> Monday, March 14th, 11:30 AM


> PICKET BOARD OF TRUSTEES CHAIR CHRIS KENNEDY'S SPEECH

> Monday, March 14th, 11:30 AM
> Beckman Institute, 405 North Mathews Avenue, URBANA, ILLINOIS


> The University is raising tuition by over $500. Last year, they hiked by  
> it $1000 and MAP Grant funding is being cut. Yet they gave the president  
> a $170,000 pay raise. The tuition hike vote is taking place on March  
> 23rd, during our spring break, in Springfield!
> STOP THE TUITION HIKE! Increase Underrepresented Minority Student  
> Enrollment! Create a Financial Aid Program for Undocumented Students!  
> Fair Contract for ALL UI Workers! Education is Not a Business - No More  
> Privatization!REMEMBER TO RESERVE A SEAT AT THE  
> SPEECH:http://igpa.uillinois.edu/chris-kennedy

> See attached flyer.Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration,  
> and Immigration Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary  
> (BAMN)

> ______________________

> Dear Colleagues,

> On Wednesday I had an opportunity to testify before the state Senate
> Appropriations II Committee. It was a great forum for me to articulate
> the "value proposition," as one senator put it, of the state's investment
> in the University of Illinois. I was able to share our many outstanding
> accomplishments, including:

> - The University of Illinois produces about $13.1 billion per year in
> direct and indirect economic impact on the Illinois economy -- a return
> of more than $17 for every $1 the state invests through its annual
> appropriation to the University.
> - University of Illinois operations directly and indirectly generate more
> than 150,000 jobs in the state annually.
> - The annual activity of our University creates more than $1.3 billion in
> future tax revenue to the state, resulting in a net annual gain to the
> state of about $535 million.
> - The vast health sciences complex on our Chicago campus educates a
> significant number of health care professionals practicing in Illinois
> and provides state-of-the-art care through more than 400,000 patient
> visits each year.
> - Our Springfield campus, among the best public liberal arts universities
> in the Midwest, has garnered national recognition for its advances in
> online education and blended learning.
> - Graduates of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have the
> highest median mid-career salary among graduates of all Big Ten
> universities, and the ninth-highest median mid-career salary among all
> US public research universities.
> - Our Urbana campus students have the second-highest graduation rate in
> the Big Ten and second-lowest debt upon graduation.
> - The combined federal research funding across our campuses puts us in
> the top five among US public research universities.
> - The wages and salaries of our alumni contribute about $21.2 billion
> annually to the state economy and about 265,000 jobs.

> The senators were very impressed by all our contributions to the state.
> The exchange also gave me an opportunity to highlight the distinctive
> missions and exceptional performance of each of our campuses. This
> resonated positively with the senators. At the same time, they
> articulated, as they must, the State's profound long-term budget crisis.
> Their questions covered a wide range of subjects, from faculty and staff
> salaries to tuition waivers to academic programs and administrative
> operations. I aggressively defended our policies, particularly on
> salaries and graduate tuition waivers. I explained that, among other
> things, appropriate compensation adjustments are one of my highest
> priorities. Of course, they wanted to know what we're doing to help
> ourselves, and how we might replace lost positions and increase salaries,
> when there is no additional support for either in the governor's fiscal
> 2012 budget proposal. That gave me an opportunity to explain we are
> making progress on the Administrative Review & Restructuring (ARR)
> reforms.

> I reported our efforts to streamline business functions across the
> University, with the expectation of building, over three years, annual
> savings of $60 million or more -- funds we must reallocate to manage any
> future cuts in state support, avoid furlough days, make compensation
> adjustments, and replenish some of the faculty and staff positions we
> have lost. I also had an opportunity to explain how the reforms
> implemented thus far have already saved over $5 million in the first half
> of the current fiscal year, and we expect another $5 million by July 1.

> These savings come at a minimum net cost to the University, as we've
> reconfigured four of five positions, rather than creating entirely new
> ones, to implement the reforms. We just announced the appointment of Dr.
> Larry Schook, as interim Vice President for Research. The VP-Research
> role takes on the portfolio of the former Vice President for Technology
> and Economic Development position, along with the added responsibility of
> advancing our research enterprise across the three campuses and in state
> and federal arenas. Also, we've expanded the portfolios of three existing
> and highly experienced administrators: Steve Veazie, who'll add
> oversight of collective bargaining across our campuses to his
> responsibilities as Deputy University Counsel, is taking on the added
> title of Executive Director of Labor and Employee Relations; Maureen
> Parks, as Executive Director for Human Resources, will add to her
> responsibilities oversight across our campuses of HR services and
> processes involving civil service and academic professionals whose work
> doesn't entail a direct academic role; and Michael Hites, who'll work
> with campus chief information officers (CIOs) as the University's
> Executive CIO to enhance enterprise IT services and infrastructure
> delivered on all our campuses. Finally, we added just one new position,
> an Interim Vice President for Health Affairs, which will be supported by
> clinical revenues. We've appointed Dr. Joe "Skip" Garcia to this position
> and charged him with enhancing our clinical healthcare mission, which has
> the potential to realize substantial new revenues and savings, while
> improving education and research opportunities and enhancing service to
> the hundreds of thousands of patients we serve.

> I've heard that some might not be aware of these changes or are confused
> about how they're being made. The new cost is nominal, because, as noted
> above, we've reconfigured existing positions, rather than adding new ones
> (except for the VP-Health Affairs). We expect these changes to drive the
> reforms that will produce the $60-plus million in savings that our
> estimates indicate we can achieve. Most important, these changes will
> improve the financial circumstances for each campus, enabling each to
> remain competitive and enhance its performance and its distinctive
> mission. Additionally, our effectiveness in these cost-savings efforts
> will inform the Board's tuition decision, under the policy it adopted at
> the January Board Meeting.

> In the midst of the state's profound budget problems and our efforts to
> deal with the implications for our great University, I'm proud that so
> many of you are working collaboratively on these reforms, are focusing on
> the big picture, and are recognizing the opportunity for positive
> transformation, which improves services and saves precious resources.

> As I've been doing, I'll continue to keep you informed of our legislative
> work and our progress on ARR reforms. Since joining our great University
> last July, I've spent hundreds of hours on more than 60 meetings with
> campus senates and their leaders, student groups, deans, department
> chairs, collective bargaining unit leaders, academic professionals, and
> other constituencies comprising our shared governance system. Some may
> wish I could spend more time with them and I'll continue to do my best to
> visit with you. These consultations have been very beneficial and at the
> urging of faculty, staff, and students we've made many changes to
> proposals under consideration before I arrived and shortly thereafter.
> These include: taking the proposal to combine the campus chancellor and
> provost positions off the table; reversing the decision to combine the VP-
> Academic Affairs with the VP-TED; keeping the provost title for vice
> chancellors of academic affairs; changing the VP-Research, TED title
> to "VP-Research;" and ensuring that the VP-Health Affairs description
> includes alignment of the clinical enterprise with our academic and
> research missions. All these adjustments arose from my consultations with
> so many of you. I'm grateful for your good advice and welcome it as we
> continue to move forward.

> None of this would have been possible without your support and the help
> of chancellors, vice presidents, and others on the ARR Steering
> Committee. Also, I'm grateful for the participation of President Emeritus
> Stan Ikenberry, who launched the ARR efforts before I arrived and remains
> a close friend and advisor.

> As my session Wednesday with the committee of the state Senate
> demonstrated, we have a great story to tell -- one that impresses our
> senators and the people of our state. I urge you all to keep telling it,
> as I will. Our story is one of sustained success and accomplishment, even
> in very challenging times. Leaders throughout the state and nation are
> looking to the University of Illinois to bring the exceptional talents of
> our faculty, staff, and students to bear on the pressing issues of our
> time. I couldn't be more proud of how we are rising to these challenges
> and of the tremendous progress we are making together.

> Sincerely,

> Mike
> President, University of Illinois

> This mailing approved by:
> The Office of the President





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