UC leaders propose state-federal 'hybrid"
"BERKELEY — The federal government should step in to save chronically underfunded public universities, University of California leaders say.
UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau has proposed that top public research schools become state-federal 'hybrids' that receive basic operating funds from the U.S. government. The federal government also should match private funding raised by universities at a 2-1 ratio, Birgeneau and Vice Chancellor Frank Yeary wrote in opinion pieces published in newspapers on both coasts.
The idea has been well received in Washington, they said in an interview this week, but it is unclear when and if the Obama administration would take it on.
'They were enthusiastic,' said Birgeneau, who said he had spoken with Department of Education officials and was told not to expect any movement for at least the next two years. 'But they told me they had no money.'"
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