SUBJECT:

Should UC Compete to Manage the National DOE Labs?

Dear Colleagues:

Do you think that UC should submit bids to continue managing the DOE national labs? During the first week in May, you will be asked to express your views on this important question in a systemwide electronic survey of faculty opinion. The survey will ask each member a series of questions intended to elicit the nuances of opinion regarding the labs.

In an effort to inform you of the issues and to provide opportunities for discussion prior to the systemwide poll, the Division has opened an electronic forum via the Senate portal. Additionally, we will hold a discussion of the topic at the April 27 Representative Assembly meeting. The systemwide Academic Council Special Committee on the National Labs has issued a series of white papers to provide you with information and background material. They cover such topics as history and current operations, rationales for and against UC managing the labs, benefits to UC students and faculty, requirements for bid preparation, whether UC should partner with private sector firms, and academic freedom in the context of classified research. The white papers are posted at http://www-senate.ucsd.edu/acsconl.htm and on the forum discussion page in the portal.

I hope you will participate in our electronic forum and the Assembly meeting on the 27th, as well as in the systemwide survey in May.

Sincerely, Jan B. Talbot, Chair Academic Senate, San Diego Division