UCI Faculty Seek Campus Closures on Furlough Days

The governing body of the UCI Academic Senate has endorsed a UCSC faculty plan to make the pain from UC paycuts and furloughs visible. The faculty senate cabinet is recommending closing the UCI campus on these dates, according to a 28 July 2009 letter from UCI Prof. Jukka Heckhausen, who chairs the UCI Academic Senate, to Prof. Mary Croughan, who chairs the UC system-wide Academic Senate:

Fall quarter

• September 21
• November 23,24,25 (Thanksgiving Week)

Winter quarter

• January 4, 5 (delay start of winter quarter)
• February 12

Spring quarter

• March 29, 30 (delay start of spring quarter)
• May 28

The letter asserts: "A majority of the Cabinet felt that the plan makes the consequences of the budget cuts and furloughs visible to the public, the Legislature, and the Regents while at the same time limiting the negative impact on instruction." At least 74 UCI faculty members signed a petition recommending this route.

No word yet on whether this would go into effect or not.

Of course, unionized UC workers are not (as yet) subject to the pay cut and furlough plan, so how this would work with just faculty not showing is anybody's guess. UC has yet to seriously begin negotiating with campus unions on this matter.