Dear Colleagues,
The state's fiscal year 2019-20 budget will remain the same as FY18/19 for UC Office of the President (UCOP), of which UC ANR is a key component. Because we are required to compensate for $5 million in unfunded obligations (staff and academic salary and benefit increases), a flat budget is essentially a $5 million cut for UC ANR. That is on top of similar cuts for the past several years.
At this point, we no longer have money in reserve to minimize the impact. That is why we were recently forced to reduce funding for 4-H by $900,000. It's also why we had to announce last December that we could not recruit additional UC Cooperative Extension advisors.
The good news is you are...
- Author: Pamela Kan-Rice
Dear Colleagues,
Over the course of the past 11 months, UC ANR has undertaken a position call process to identify the priority UCCE Advisor and UCCE Specialist position needs to support the work of the division. After a great deal of work, 46 positions were identified by the UC ANR Program Council and divided into three categories (highest, high, and can wait). Although we will utilize this categorization to the degree possible, the reality is that we need each and every one of those positions to serve our mission – all 46 positions are high priority to me. Furthermore, there are additional positions needed that were not on...
UC Board of Regents Chair George Kieffer and UC President Janet Napolitano today (Jan. 10) issued the following statement on Gov. Brown's budget plan:
The University of California is pleased that the governor's budget announced today provides for a funding increase to our core educational budget. This 3 percent increase, however, is less than we anticipated under the framework we established with the governor. That agreement acknowledged the need for ongoing, predictable state funding to maintain UC quality and access while requiring the university to lower its cost structure.
The university will continue to work toward fulfilling its commitments under the framework by spring 2018 and has an ambitious strategy...
Dear Colleagues,
As part of my job, I have the pleasure of talking to many audiences about the marvelous work you do. People are always blown away by the breadth of issues ANR addresses and the impact it has for Californians. From the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture in Washington D.C. to Silicon Valley venture capitalists at the Forbes AgTech Summit, I have met people who were surprised and amazed to learn UC ANR is working with individuals in every county to find solutions specifically suited for their community.
Past budget cuts and rising costs, coupled with serious concerns that our traditional state and federal funding may shrink or – at best – remain flat for the foreseeable...
Dear Colleagues,
As we move forward with the implementation of our new Strategic Plan, I want to take this opportunity to share some exciting plans for recapitalizing and modernizing our research infrastructure and facilities. This investment is a key strategy within our larger efforts to “rebuild the UCCE footprint” and increase the number of academics throughout the system.
The Strategic Plan proposes a total investment of more than $40 million on UC ANR research facilities, with well over half of that designated for the Research and Extension Center System (RECs). This historic investment will be funded by a combination of debt issuance,...