Steven Chung, chair of the systemwide Academic Senate, used his remarks at the University of California Board of Regents’ July meeting to outline ongoing concerns about federal funding disruptions, online instruction and how the university should respond to interruptions in research funding.
Chung said a successor joint task force of the senate and administration will develop recommendations to monitor the quality of undergraduate degree programs, with particular attention to fully online programs. He summarized five guiding principles the prior task force proposed, including conferring a single UC baccalaureate degree without a separate online designation and ensuring equitable access to campus facilities and support resources for students in hybrid or fully online programs.
On research funding, Chung described suspensions and “dramatic reductions” in budgets at federal agencies such as the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts. He said those actions disrupt current research projects and trainees and could have long‑term effects on the university’s research mission.
To address disruptions, the Academic Senate’s special task force on UC adaptation to disruptions (UCAD) will issue an interim report that recommends three funding interventions: bridge funding for grants temporarily paused by federal stop‑work orders, transition funding to ramp down projects unlikely to be reinstated, and research recovery funding to help faculty pursue new directions.
Chung also relayed colleagues’ reflections on public trust, neutrality debates and the need to marshal the university’s faculty expertise across domains to craft innovative solutions. The senate will work with administration leaders to propose policies that limit long‑term harm to faculty careers and student progress. The board received those remarks; no immediate votes were recorded in open session.