TO CLIPS INDEX
Clips for January 20, 2009
Opinion: Stuart Lindsay: Education cuts not
a wise choice
The Arizona Republic
1/20/09
As co-founder of a successful Arizona company
based on Arizona State University technology, I
can tell state legislators that there is one thing a
business needs even more than low taxes, and
that is skilled employees. The current budget
proposals would tear the heart out of ASU,
closing whole departments, throwing students
out midway through their studies, and firing
faculty who cost millions to recruit and who
bring many more millions to the state in
research funding.
Napolitano confirmed for Homeland Security
The Arizona Republic
1/20/09 2:26 PM
Gov. Janet Napolitano has been confirmed as
Secretary of Homeland Security for President
Barack Obama. Her resignation of the
governorship is expected shortly. Napolitano,
51, now hands power to Arizona Secretary of
State Jan Brewer, 64, who is slated to take the
oath of office about 3 p.m. Wednesday. The
succession marks the fifth time an Arizona
secretary of state has risen to the Governor's
Office.
Biotech startup aims to advance Arizona
research
The Arizona Republic
1/20/09
A new biotech organization has started with
$14 million and plans to advance promising
research in Arizona. Catapult Bio, which
comes from the Translational Genomics
Research Institute, wants to fund research at
university labs and non-profit groups such as
Barrow Neurological Institute. It also expects
to offer tips to area scientists on how to
commercialize research. Founders of the non
-profit group want to bridge the funding gap
that often blocks scientific discoveries from
advancing out of the lab. "The venture capital
world has dried up quite a bit," said MaryAnn
Guerra, president of TGen Accelerators and
co-founder of Catapult Bio. "We need more
seed money in Arizona to get more things
teed up."
Senate chief ready to tackle state budget cuts
The Arizona Republic
1/18/09
Bob Burns is a to-the-point, mince-no-words kind
of guy. As he's dealt with the state's billion-dollar
budgets in recent years, there's been no hand-
wringing over what to fund and what to cut. He
looks at this year's budget woes - a $1.6 billion
deficit with a $3 billion deficit on its heels for next
year - and doesn't flinch. He knows the inevitable
cuts will bring howls of protest, but, like a stern
father, he holds his ground. "We're about to go
over a cliff," he said recently of the state's fiscal
condition. Deep cuts are needed to keep
government moving, he said. The alternative is
to run out of money and shutter the whole
operation. "If we have to shut down entire state
agencies, how does that help the people of
Arizona?" he asked recently.
Biotech firm to open office in Chandler
The Arizona Republic
1/18/09
One of the largest drug-development services
companies in the world is moving into south-
east Chandler, potentially adding $1.8 million
annually to the Valley's economy and giving
the region its "first really serious play" in bio-
industry. Covance, based in Princeton, N.J.,
received the go-ahead Thursday from city
officials to open its $100 million, two-story
center near the Chandler airpark. Thousands
of pieces of equipment will be moved into the
facility this month, and Covance plans to ramp
up production by spring. The company is
considered a possible magnet for other biotech
companies, increasing Chandler's high-tech
profile while diversifying the Valley's economy.
House speaker Kirk Adams vows transparency
The Arizona Republic
1/18/09
Kirk Adams is a man with a plan. A written plan,
complete with a forward, mission statement and
an architectural rendering of the state Capitol with
a small caption: "Reconstruction begins Nov. 5,
2008." He was off by a day: The new look of the
state House of Representatives began Nov. 6.
That's when Adams scored a surprising victory in
besting veteran Jim Weiers for the post of speaker
of the House of Representatives. Adams built his
bid for the top spot in the House on his argument
that Republicans, despite being in the majority,
were relegated to minority status. Nowhere was
this more apparent than the last two state bud-
gets, both of which have needed revisions to rein
in spending. Adams has pledged to change that.
He sought the speaker's post on a platform of
transparency and openness.
Budget plan details program cuts
The Arizona Republic
1/17/09
The state could eliminate all-day kindergarten
and save $218.3 million next year, according to
a plan presented to lawmakers this week. And
there could be an additional $218 million in
savings in the bud-get year that starts July 1 if
lawmakers opt to suspend money sent to the
schools for such things as furniture, textbooks
and school buses. No cuts to these programs
are proposed for the current year. These are
among the details contained in a phonebook-
size document released Friday. It outlines more
than 500 budget-cutting options from the state's
two budget chairmen to help the state close a
$1.6 billion deficit this year, as well as an
anticipated $3 billion deficit in 2009-10.
Colleges face their biggest cuts
The Arizona Republic
1/17/09
TEMPE - Arizona State University officials said
budget-reducing options proposed Thursday by
the state Legislature would be the largest higher-
education budget reduction in the state's history.
The proposal would cut the system's budget by
up to $243 million for the remaining few months
of fiscal year 2009 and $388 million for fiscal
year 2010. ASU administrators said it is
unreasonable to expect the university to suffer
cuts close to the suggested magnitude without
severely curtailing the service ASU provides its
67,000 students and reducing the enormously
important role it plays in the state's economy.
Experts: Arizona recruiting effort lags
The Arizona Republic
1/17/09
As Arizona leaders grapple with how to diversify
the state's economy and become less dependent
on housing construction, business officials said
Friday that many outside companies looking to
expand don't even have Arizona on their radar
screens. Arizona is one of 18 states not
considered competitive when it comes to
recruiting new businesses. That is primarily
because it lacks a cohesive economic-
development program, said John Lenio,
managing director of economic-incentives
practices with CB Richard Ellis in Phoenix.
Lenio has traveled to all 50 states helping
companies relocate. "Arizona needs to start
getting hungry," he said at the Arizona's Road
to Recovery-2009 forum held at Arizona State
University's Walter Cronkite School of
Journalism and Mass Communication.
Napolitano offers budget proposals
The Arizona Republic
1/17/09
She may be on her way out of office, but Gov.
Janet Napolitano is setting down guideposts
that she hopes legislators will follow in closing
a multibillion-dollar state budget shortfall. As
with in recent years, Napolitano - who's leaving
the governorship to join the incoming Obama
administration - again relies heavily on
borrowing, fund sweeps and other fiscal
maneuvers in dealing with deficits that her
office estimates at $1.25 billion for the
remainder of this fiscal year and $2.65 billion
for 2010. The general fund for this fiscal year,
which ends June 30, is just under $10 billion.
Napolitano's package would trim a combined
$975 million from agency spending this year
and next, including $100 million from the
state's three public universities and $40
million from community colleges.
ASU questions budget-cutting plan
The Arizona Republic
1/16/09 2:48 PM
Arizona State University officials said budget-
reducing options proposed Thursday by the
state Legislature would be the largest higher
education budget reduction in the state's
history. The proposal would cut the university
system's budget by up to $243 million for the
remaining few months of fiscal year 2009,
and $388 million for fiscal year 2010. ASU
administrators said it is unreasonable to
expect the university to suffer cuts close to
the suggested magnitude without severely
curtailing the service ASU provides its
67,000 students and reducing the
enormously important role it plays in the
state's economy. State officials have said
the budget is one of the worst in Arizona's
history and will require severe cuts not only
to universities but to public schools and
other entities.
New way urged for gauging schools
The Arizona Republic
1/20/09
Half of Maricopa County's high-school graduates
who enter Arizona universities or colleges must
take a remedial math class. And just under a
quarter must take a remedial English class. The
new findings are helping legislators push for a
change in how Arizona decides if its high schools
are excelling or failing, a move that would topple
AIMS test scores as the main measurement. Two
key House leaders are proposing a pilot program
that could lead to making the percentage of
students who graduate "college-ready" the
prime indicator of how well a high school
performs.
Brewer signals she'll use the red pencil to
balance state budget
Capitol Media Services/Arizona Daily Sun
1/19/09
PHOENIX -- Arizona's next governor said she's
prepared to do what she believes the incumbent
is not: say "no." Jan Brewer said one reason
Arizona is in its current financial mess is that the
state kept expanding the services provided even
as tax collections could not keep pace. "That is
the result of the governor and the Legislature
not being realistic," she said. "Irresponsibility
and mismanagement has got us into this
problem," with policymakers apparently
unwilling or unable to tell constituents that
the state just can't afford what they want.
NAU closes Olympic training facility
Arizona Daily Sun
1/20/09
Northern Arizona University is closing its
Center for High Altitude Training as a
result of the university’s budget reduction,
according to an afternoon press release
from the NAU Public Affairs Office. Two
regular NAU staff members and two
temporary employees will lose their
positions as a result. Since its opening
in 1994, the center has hosted elite
athletes from around the world—about 80
percent being foreign swim teams. Closing
the Center for High Altitude Training will
save the university up to $230,000 a year.
Focus shifts away from
massive Rainbow
Bridge
Arizona Daily Star
1/18/09
Economics, City Council reluctance and a
public uproar about the cost of the University
of Arizona's initial proposal for its Science
Center at Rio Nuevo caused the consolidation
of the center and the Arizona State Museum
building at the site. Architect Rafael Viñoly's
$350 million Rainbow Bridge design, which
would have spanned the Santa Cruz River
and Interstate 10, will now use construction
techniques that are "a lot like a precast-
concrete parking garage," according to
Viñoly's nephew and project director, Rafael
Viñoly-Menendez. Bob Smith, UA vice president
for Facilities Design and Construction, said the
scaled-down design recognizes that "what's
most important is what's inside these buildings."
Editorial Opinion: GOP is
taking wrong approach
to balance budget
Arizona Daily Star
1/17/09
Our view: Gutting K-12, universities, public-health
spending is unnecessarily heavy-handed way to
overcome deficits. The budget-balancing proposal
floated by the state Legislature's Republican
leaders on Thursday is an abomination, pure and
simple. It attacks a delicate, critical problem with
a chainsaw instead of with a scalpel. The result:
Arizona's public health and education system,
from kindergarten through universities, would be
bloodied and dismembered. University of Arizona
President Robert Shelton said the proposed cuts
are "so extreme they would absolutely cripple higher
education," according to a story by the Star's Daniel
Scarpinato. It is difficult to believe that the leaders
— Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman
Sen. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa, House
Appropriations Chairman Rep. John Kavanagh, R-
Fountain Hills — are serious about the carnage
they've proposed.
Governor's plan for lesser cuts
to universities
gets UA support
Arizona Daily Star
1/17/09
UA President Robert Shelton threw his support
behind Gov. Janet Napolitano's budget fix on
Friday, repeating a warning that a lawmaker
proposal to cut more than $300 million from
the state's three universities would cause
irreparable damage to higher education in
Arizona. Shelton said the University of Arizona
understands the grave nature of the state's bud-
get deficit and that the universities are willing to
take their share of cuts, which Napolitano has
pegged at roughly $100 million over the next
18 months. However, it's unclear whether
Napolitano's plan will gain any traction with
lawmakers, considering she's days away from
her expected confirmation as U.S. homeland
security secretary. Shelton said the UA is
prepared to take a 5 to 10 percent cut from
the $400 million in tax dollars the institution
receives annually, which falls in line with
what Napolitano has proposed.
40 UA degree programs could be
cut
Arizona Daily Star
1/17/09
More than 40 degree programs at the University
of Arizona are in danger of being eliminated
after a report released this week labeled them
unproductive. Officials stress that the report is
the first step in a process designed to streamline
the UA's course offerings amid a major campus
reorganization and that any program elimination
would be months away. Also, UA deans and
administrators say the report doesn't necessarily
provide an accurate picture of under-enrolled
programs because some degree offerings
identified as unproductive have either changed
names or merged with others in the past few
years, resulting in skewed data.
Editorial: Our
Opinion: Budget fixes started
too late
Tucson Citizen
1/20/09
Part of the reason Arizona is in such deep
financial trouble today is that nothing was
done sooner to ameliorate this deepening
disaster. Last fall, there were predictions
the state would face an $800 million revenue
shortfall by the end of the fiscal year. Gov.
Janet Napolitano proposed several solutions
- modifying them as projections showed the
shortfall growing. She urged legislators to
come to some agreement on what should be
done so she could call a special session and
get the process started. But lawmakers were
in the midst of election campaigns and didn't
want to spend time at the Capitol. So the
shortfall grew, unchecked.
Editorial: Our
opinion: Legislature's proposed
cuts threaten kids and education
Tucson Citizen
1/20/09
In their push to balance the budget, leaders in
the Arizona Legislature have proposed cuts that
would decimate education and punch crushing
holes in this state's protective net of social
services. It is an unreasonable attack on some
of Arizona's neediest citizens and would make it
far more difficult to put the state on the road to
recovery once the recession ends. Savage cuts
also would devastate the university system. There
is talk of cutting $388 million from the universities
over the next 18 months. As University of Arizona
President Robert Shelton pointed out, "These
figures are so extreme that they would absolutely
cripple higher education in our state." The
universities are the most powerful economic
engine in Arizona - but they would be ill-equipped
to jump-start the economy, making it far more
difficult to recover from the recession.
Regents may allow
more out-of-state students
Tucson Citizen
1/20/09
The Arizona Board of Regents will consider amending
the limit on out-of-state undergraduate students at
Arizona's three public universities Thursday in an
effort to enhance revenue during the economic down-
turn. With some legislators proposing to hack Arizona's
higher education budget by $243 million before June
30, university presidents asked regents in December
to consider the measure, which would increase the
limit on full-time nonresident undergraduate enrollment
to 40 percent. Current board policy limits full-time non-
resident undergraduate enrollment to 30 percent of the
total undergraduate enrollment at individual universities.
Arizona university
students to protest proposed cuts
Tucson Citizen
1/20/09
Students at the state's three public universities plan
to protest the budget options laid out last week by the
Joint Legislative Budget Committee that call for cutting
$243 million immediately from the higher education
budget. The University of Arizona hit would be $103
million, with further cuts coming July 1. The protests
will be at each university campus from noon to 1 p.m.
Tuesday. UA students will gather in front of the
Memorial Student Union. Tommy Bruce, student body
president, and Stephen Bieda III, president of the
graduate and professional student organization,
will speak.
Editorial: Our
opinion: Napolitano's budget: solid
principals but shaky numbers
Tucson Citizen
1/17/09
Just days before surrendering the Governor's Office,
Janet Napolitano left the Legislature her suggestion
on how to balance the state budget. It will be a
meaningless exercise, as the Republican leaders
in the Legislature rush to distance themselves from
anything with Napolitano's mark. Although
Republicans won't pay attention to Napolitano's
numbers, they should take note of the budget
process she adopted. Napolitano laid out a series
of inviolate principles, then worked to find ways to
accomplish those goals. That stands in sharp
contrast to the Republican position of proposing
a series of devastating cuts with no clear overall
goal in mind.
Shelton: UA part
of the budget solution, not
the problem
Tucson Citizen
1/17/09
University of Arizona President Robert N. Shelton
said Friday that if initial budget solutions proposed
by the Joint Legislative Budget Committee are
implemented, UA will face "massive" layoffs, huge
hikes in tuition, closures of departments "or even
colleges," and the possible loss of critical programs.
"Cuts of this magnitude would literally dismantle the
university system," Shelton said at a press
conference held to discuss the committee's
recommendation that $243 million be cut from the
state's three universities before June 30 and an
additional $388 million in fiscal year 2010, which
begins July 1. The hit to UA this year under the JLBC
plan would be $103 million, Shelton said.
Medicare certifies
UMC's liver transplant program
Tucson Citizen
1/17/09
University Medical Center's liver transplant program
has been certified by the U.S. Centers for Medicare
and Medicaid Services. Now that the hospital is
certified, Medicare will cover the cost of liver trans-
plants done at the hospital. "We had to demonstrate
the wealth of experience and expertise we have at
UMC before they would cover the cost," said Nance
Conney, director of UMC Transplant Services. "Now
that we are accredited by CMS, additional insurance
companies also will recognize us as a center of
excellence." To qualify, a hospital must do at least
10 liver transplants in 12 months in addition to
proving sufficient clinical experience, patient care,
superior outcomes and expert staff. "UMC exceeded
the CMS requirement of 10 transplants in 12 months
by performing a record 23 liver transplants in 2008,"
said Dr. Rainer Gruessner, chairman of the
department of surgery at the University of Arizona.
ASU Web Devil
1/20/09
Ask a college student today about their career plans
following graduation and you will likely hear a sober
depiction of a desolate job market. Their genuine
concerns about where they’ll be employed sound
terrifying. But when questioned about the steps
they’ve taken to avoid the catastrophic scenario or
how hard they’ve been searching for a better
opportunity, they rise in indignation from their bong
hit and shout that the job opportunities are simply
not up to their standards. They sincerely feel that
their degree alone has earned them enough prestige
to land them their choice job. Prosperity in America
isn’t a given right; it’s a goal needing fervent cultivation
and a competitive spirit. The pervasive ethos of
entitlement in our country has bled into this
generation’s perception of the job market and has
sown seeds that will be detrimental to its future.
Proposal would cut $600 mil from
state universities
ASU Web Devil
1/19/09
University officials responded in strong opposition last
week to budget proposals they say would strip more
than $600 million from Arizona universities over the
next two years. If the Arizona Legislature approves
the proposals, several colleges and thousands of jobs
would be eliminated and tuition would become
unaffordable for many residents, officials warned.
The plans proposed by Sen. Russell Pearce, R-Mesa,
and Rep. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, call for the
university system to cut its budget by $243 million by
July, and $388 million, about 40 percent, the following
year, according to a statement released by the ASU
Office of Public Affairs. Sarah Atwill, student affairs
director of ASU Undergraduate Student Government,
said the quality of education in Arizona would plummet
if the proposals succeed.
Editorial: Future at stake; UA must fight
UA Daily Wildcat
1/20/09
Times are tough and getting tougher, perhaps
even more so in Arizona than in the rest of the
country. The growth, specifically real estate
development, that has fueled our region for so
long has practically ground to a standstill. We
must all make tough decisions. Education in
our state, and the University of Arizona in
particular, has seen the writing on the wall for
some time - witness the UA Transformation
plan that continues to unfold on our campus.
Although we have often analyzed specific
changes suggested through the plan, criticized
the process itself and argued for more
transparency and a greater role for students at
the table, we cannot argue that the idea itself is
a prudent, perhaps even unavoidable step for
our university to take.
abc15.com
1/20/09 5:55 am
The Sun Devils are getting down and dirty. Students
from Arizona State University are competing in
RecycleMania, a 10-week competition that will
determine which school can recycle the most in ten
weeks. As of Sunday, when the challenge started,
more than 430 schools signed up for the event,
including the University of Arizona. Recycling bins
have been placed around each campus. Students
are being urged to drop off aluminum, plastic,
cardboard, paper and tin. Representatives with
RecycleMania will weigh the material each week.
Last year, nearly 60 million pounds of material was
recycled during the competition.
Shelton: Budget cuts "ill-conceived," sends
stern message
abc15.com
1/20/09 4:51 am
University of Arizona President Robert Shelton
unleashed a strong attack against the state’s
mid-year proposed budget cuts to the three
public universities. Legislators hope to slash
$243 million dollars from Arizona State
University, U of A and Northern Arizona
University. The Wildcats’ share would be
$103 million, which is already on top of a $20
million dollar reduction the college took at the
beginning of the year. “The severity of the cuts
being proposed would only serve to prolong the
recession, damage the economy further and
threaten the state’s future workforce,” Shelton
said.
Study shows loggers may save the forest
Payson Roundup
1/20/09
way suddenly seems clear to protect forest
communities by restoring forest health.
Today’s front-page story about the consensus
agreement on the need for a small-log timber
industry offers one sign of a vital shift in a long
debate. A recent study by researchers from
Northern Arizona University that involved both
loggers and environmentalists laid out the
possibilities. The 2.6 million acres of
ponderosa pine forests stretching from
Flagstaff to Alpine harbor perhaps a billion
cubic feet of wood in the form of small trees
Many Students Don't Even Attempt Remedial
Courses, Study Finds
The Chronicle of Higher Education
1/19/09
Community colleges are increasingly concerned
about the large number of students who require
remedial education and never make it into college-
level classes. And a new study confirms what some
have long suspected: Many students don’t even
attempt to take remedial classes. Among the
250,000 participants in the study, 36 percent of
those referred to remedial mathematics did not
complete their precollege work — not because
they didn’t pass, but because they did not enroll in
a required course. Likewise, 27 percent of those
who required remedial English failed to enroll in
a required course.
America Elects a Professor in Chief
The Chronicle of Higher Education
1/20/09
The 2008 presidential election has broken so
many political barriers that historians may over-
look one unusual fact: When Barack Obama
takes the oath of office in January alongside
his running mate, Joe Biden, it will be the first
time that the president, the vice president, and
both of their spouses have worked in higher
education. Taken together, the Obamas and
the Bidens have amassed decades of
experience at colleges and universities. Mr.
Obama taught constitutional law at the
University of Chicago Law School from 1992
until 2004. His wife, Michelle, has worked in
the administration at the same university. For
the past 17 years, Mr. Biden has taught
constitutional law at Widener University
School of Law. His wife, Jill, teaches English
at Delaware Technical and Community
College's Stanton-Wilmington campus