More precisely, the Oregon Treasurer’s efforts to take advantage of the pandemic-induced fall in interest rates by refinancing university debt will save UO $16M over the next 3 years. Press release here. The state will save a bunch because they pay for bonds for academic buildings. I think that the…
UO Matters
The UO Senate is not amused:
There’s more at https://ir.uoregon.edu/salary_comparison, for those interested in arguing from data.
7/22/2020: Liveblog, usual disclaimer: my thoughts on what people are saying, trying to say, trying to be thinking, etc. Nothing is a quote unless in ” ” ‘s.
Matella: We’re OK with the all in employees idea, and a 15-35 window. (That’s a very low threshold. UO has already cut costs more than this.)
Brad Shelton: I realize my initial model was too complicated for some people to understand, so I’ve made it more like the tax code. Also, I updated a lot of information which I haven’t shared with you before now.
(Typo in second to last bullet – $185K should be $285K)
Caucus break.
3:58 They’re back.
Caucus break.
4:53: Admins want another 10 min to caucus.
5:00: Admins want another 15 min to caucus.
5:15: Admins want another 5 min to caucus.
5:20: They’re back.
Took Brad awhile to turn his crank, but he’s got a new plan to protect the highest paid administrators:
Cecil: It would be helpful if you shared your data, as we shared the data we painfully scrapped from IR’s pdfs because UO won’t post machine readable files and Schill stopped reporting quarterly numbers.
Matella: OK, I think.
Cecil: What to do about TRP? High salary suggests high tax, low FTE suggests low tax. Keaton goes low, Brad goes high. Caucus til 5:45.
They’re back.
Cecil: We’re going to want to trim a little more off the top. We need Brad’s data.
Matella: We’ll get you his model. [Here’s hoping she means data, not model.]
Cecil: We’ve got the outlines of a deal, just need to hammer out parameters of the cuts. Can’t do that until you share Brad’s data.
Cecil: Hope we can get this done this week.
Mario Cristobal’s latest helper hire Bryan McClendon got a special exemption from the hiring freeze because, you know, sports. Coach Cristobal paid his previous employer $50K for the right to hire him. And of course he gets free tickets and travel for spouse/partner, car allowance, bonuses for this and that,…
That would be the University of Akron’s board, InsideHigherEd here: “For years, the university has disinvested in academics while simultaneously losing millions on its athletics programs,” Akron’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors wrote in a position paper about proposed cuts earlier this month. “In the spirit of shared sacrifice,…
The administration knows that the pandemic has put the faculty in a tough spot. So they’re taking advantage of the situation to buy our intellectual property rights on the cheap, before the layoffs start. This is the agreement that faculty must sign before participating in this summer’s online teaching improvement…
The gist is a list of “criteria” that includes no actual criteria, standards, numbers, trends, required first or second derivative signs, or any other metrics.
So it’s gonna be a judgement call, and Provost Phillips is not going to disclose what criteria actually need to be met to reopen in-person teaching at UO:
On or before August 26, the university will make a decision about whether to alter our plans and either more significantly reduce the number of in-person courses or transition to a fully remote model for the fall. This decision will be based on public health guidance and the following criteria:
- Indications of increasing community spread
- County reopening phase level
- Rate of county rapid testing turnaround times, and capacity for UO to provide testing to help sustain county needs
- Capacity of contact tracing and case management at health authority, for example Lane County Public Health (LCPH) in Eugene, including UO contact tracing resources assigned to support LCPH
- Implementation of protocols for enforcement of behavioral interventions, especially face coverings
- Capacity of on-campus self-isolation space for students living in University Housing
- Access to and availability of personal protective equipment needed to remain operational
- Ability to maintain proper levels of cleaning and sanitation
- Status of local K-12 schools and impacts on university personnel
Meanwhile UO’s Public Records Office is still delaying the release of basic testing data:
Full text online here and below the break:
7/14/2020 update: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/07/14/trump-administration-drops-directive-international-students-and-online-courses
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security rescinded a July 6 policy directive that would have required international students to take at least some in-person college coursework in order to remain in the U.S.
The government agreed to rescind the guidance to resolve a lawsuit filed by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The rescinding of the directive, and an associated FAQ released on July 7, means the government reverts back to a March guidance that allowed international students to remain in the U.S. while taking a fully online course load. …
7/13/2020: GC Kevin Reed hires outside lawyers to sue Homeland Security
The docket and complaint are here, courtesy of the Free Law Project. I’m no law professor but much of this seems to be cribbed from the Harvard and MIT complaint filed last week, here. Presumably Ted Olson – a founding member of the Federalist Society – and his firm are giving us a discount:
Ryan Thorburn has the PAC-12 report in the RG here: Oregon Ducks to receive $32.2 million payout from Pac-12 for 2018-19 fiscal year The Duck’s federally required EADA report shows some details on revenue and spending: