UC system continues to battle a fiscal crisis
The state's higher education systems are trying to provide students a future amidst a fiscal crisis.
California faces a very tough fiscal situation that has extended to education from the elementary level all the way up to the college and university level.
Last fall students walked out on University of California and California State University campuses across the state to protest fee increases and course availability cuts. Now the UC regents have formed the Commission on the Future to figure out how best to deal with the budget crisis.
Several ideas have been thrown around including the creation of three-year degrees, online courses and many types of annual fee increases.
Nick Roman spoke to Russell Gould, the chairman of the UC Board of regents, on Patt Morrison’s program. Gould attributed most of the issues facing the UC system to the way the state has handled its own fiscal crisis.
“There’s been an erosion in terms of priority of higher education,” he said. “Unfortunately it’s led to substantial fee increases like the 30 percent fee increase that was placed on students this year.”
Gould also added that other priorities, such as the state’s health care woes, have become more pressing to the state legislature than higher education has.
Gould advocated the exploration of all options during such a tight financial time and advocated the kind of change that would keep the UC system a well respected institution.
“It’s clear to me that we need to be a leaner, more focused institution if we’re to survive and still provide the kind of quality education that will driv