There was a bit of a flare up over the revelation that Graham Fleming continued to receive compensation for administrative work, despite being taken out of his administrative role following a complaint he sexually harassed an assistant. Elsewhere, Katehi and UCOP continue to exchange accusations in the press, with the current focus being on whether the UC Davis chancellor’s UC-owned electronic devices contain privileged communications.
Graham Fleming
6/20 – UC Berkeley exec booted for sex harassment got to keep high pay (SFChronicle): Graham Fleming, who was vice chancellor of research until April 2015 when he was stripped of his executive role for sexually harassing an assistant, was compensated at his executive level until March 2016. While Fleming has tenure, he received about $100,000 more than he would have had he reverted to his faculty pay in April 2015. UC Berkeley says they allow administrators a one-year transition period when shifting back to faculty jobs. “The terms of Professor Fleming’s transition leave were consistent with standard practice and university policy in place at the time,” said Dan Mogulof, a UC Berkeley spokesperson. Napolitano says she didn’t know and wouldn’t have approved. Fleming’s higher pay was cut short by one month, a move Mogulof said the university felt was “appropriate.”
More: Graham Fleming receives executive pay for nearly 1 year after resigning amid sexual harassment allegations (DailyCal)
Katehi
6/18 – Katehi’s Team Charges Bias with the Sacramento Bee’s Reporting of the Chancellor (DavisVanguard): UC Davis defends sending employees to learn from social media gurus on the shores of Lake Geneva, saying social media is the future, which, the university suggests, is something the Bee has failed to grasp. The Bee broke a number of stories about Katehi, including her service on corporate boards for an academic publisher and DeVry, as well as the university’s efforts to scrub the internet of it’s pepperspray incident. It should be noted, the Davis Vanguard has come out in support of Katehi in this dispute, which throws their reporting into question. They also published part of a press release by Katehi’s attorney, which is odd.
6/20 – Katehi refuses to turn over cellphone, iPad to UC investigators (SacBee): Katehi is refusing to turn over a UC-owned cellphone, computer and tablet to UCOP, which is investigating allegations the UC Davis chancellor misused student funds, favored relatives in her employ and misstated her role in the hiring of consultants to scrub her and the school’s online image. Katehi claims the devices contain privileged communications. The two sides are fighting over what outside group could create a privileged log which a judge could potentially arbitrate over.
6/21 – Attorney Alleges Katehi Conflict in Disciplinary Action Against Employee (DavisVanguard): In a new development, a professor from the UC Davis medical center accuses Katehi of hiding a conflict of interest as she investigated claims the professor plagiarized from a co-author of a publication published by Wiley & Sons. At the time, Katehi was on the Wiley & Sons board. The professor was cleared of academic wrong doing, but says he was forced into a settlement regarding retaliation aimed at his co-author. He since claims UC Davis has maligned his reputation to a potential employer.
Higher Ups on the Move
6/16 – UC Berkeley associate vice chancellor moves to Harvard (DailyCal):Associate Vice Chancellor for Admissions and Enrollment Anne De Luca will be moving to a similar role at Harvard.
6/20 – Andrew Szeri resigns from position as vice provost of strategic academic and facilities planning (DailyCal): The mechanical engineering professor will return to teaching and research, citing personal reasons as the motivation for his move. Had he stayed on, he would have been key in cost-cutting measures. Szeri’s chief of staff said the resignation of Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Claude Steele, who was to help Szeri lead cost-cutting played a role in Szeri’s decision. Steele faced criticism from faculty.
This & That
6/22 – How Public Universities Are Addressing Declines in State Funding (NYT): An interview with Napolitano and other higher ed leaders about handling declining state funding. Not much meat here, but Napolitano does point to consolidating payroll across the campuses as one thing that will help.
6/20 – 1 in 10 Cal State students is homeless, study finds (LATimes): About one in five are also food insecure.
6/22 – Stacking the deck (IHE): UCSD is pushing a court to hold a new hearing on a five-year-old cheating case. Earlier, a court ruled the university violated the student’s right to due process when it wouldn’t reveal the identity of a witness.
6/21 – UCLA co-founded nonprofit to form national manufacturing institute (UC): Feds award $70 million to a nonprofit UCLA helped launch in order to study smart manufacturing.
Elsewhere
6/20 – Cleaning House at Louisville (IHE): Recently elected Republican governor removes the entire University of Louisville board of trustees to help overcome what he characterized as a governance logjam.
6/22 – Tuition at public colleges has soared in the past decade, but student fees have risen faster (WaPo): While public university tuition has risen over the years, fees have risen more quickly.
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