TO CLIPS INDEX Clips for February 3, 2009

Your Turn: Drastic cuts in education will imperil
Arizona's future
The Arizona Republic 2/3/09
Study after study, regardless of political party or ideology,
confirms the value of a well-educated labor force and
advanced research as engines of economic growth. As
members of the National Academy of Sciences, the body
created by Abraham Lincoln to advise the nation on
matters of science, and as citizens of Arizona, we are
deeply troubled by the options currently being considered
by the Arizona Legislature to deal with the state's budget
crisis. The budgetary shortfalls confronting the Legislature
are large, and Arizona's institutions of higher learning can-
not and should not be immune to sacrifices that we all
must make. In fact, they have not; each institution has
already made significant cuts and other adjustments.

Your Turn: Darcy Olsen : Ariz. can be leader on world
stage
The Arizona Republic 2/3/09
With a gross state product of $247 billion, Arizona's
economy ranks with Hong Kong and Switzerland, two
of the world's leading financial hubs. Our productivity
exceeds the oil-rich United Arab Emirates and 187
other nations. On the world stage, Arizona is a player. 
Regrettably, Arizona hasn't always acted like a leading
lady. We have irresponsibly spent our way into the
nation's second-worst deficit. Other times, we've
simply veered off course into distractions like the "free
compressed air act," to make gas stations give out
free air. One can only imagine how George
Washington might have felt if this act had come to
his desk: "We crossed the Delaware for this?"  Mean-
while, problems with education and the economy
intensify. We need to ask ourselves what policies
will secure Arizona's future not just five years from
now, but 50.

Tax reform should be in the state's playbook, some
lawmakers say
The Arizona Republic 2/3/09
Arizona's tax system could be in for an overhaul, lawmakers
say, as they measure the effect of the nearly $600 million in
budget cuts they just made. "We need significant reform of
our tax structure because it's obsolete," said Rep. Rick
Murphy, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Arizona's economy and tax structure rely heavily on growth
industries, Murphy said. In boom times, that's good news be-
cause the money pours in, but in down cycles, that leads to
painful budget cuts. Murphy, a Peoria Republican, said the
state can't rely as heavily as it does now on construction and
retail jobs, which ebb and flow with growth cycles.

Education-cut options studied
Cronkite News Service/The Arizona Republic
2/3/09 
Ted Ferris said he'll be open to anything when he leads a
panel to recommend alternatives to higher-education cuts
as Arizona faces a $3 billion budget deficit for the coming
fiscal year. That's why the Arizona Board of Regents
assembled the Fiscal Alternative Choices Team, said
Ferris, former head of the Arizona Sports and Tourism
Authority - to offer ideas. "The regents just want to make
sure, for the sake of higher education and education
generally in this state, to include as many creative ideas
as possible," Ferris said in a telephone interview Monday.
Senate President Bob Burns, R-Peoria, requested the
panel in a Jan. 26 letter to the presidents of Arizona's
three universities and the Board of Regents.

ASU settles lawsuit in dorm rape case for $850,000
The Arizona Republic 2/3/09
The settlement of a lawsuit filed by a former student
who said she was raped in her dorm room will cost
Arizona State University $850,000 and revamp the
way the three state universities respond to
complaints of sexual harassment and violence. The
unidentified woman reported that football-scholarship
student Darnel Henderson raped her on March 12,
2004. An investigation by campus police concluded
"nonconsensual sexual intercourse" took place,
according to court documents, but the Maricopa
County Attorney's Office later declined to prosecute
Henderson, saying conviction was unlikely.

A look at impacts of budgetary fixes
Associated Press/Cronkite News Service/
azcentral.com 2/3/09
The Legislature's plan to close this year's $1.6
billion shortfall includes cuts to dozens of
agencies and programs. We highlight the
impact of the cuts: ..• University of Arizona - The
University of Arizona will eliminate about 600
jobs as part of about $57 million in budget cuts
through June. In all, $141.5 million is being cut
from the state's university system. UA President
Robert Shelton said Monday the university also
will have to eliminate many outreach and
community-based activities, including
suspending 75 percent of funding for
UApresents, which brings performers to
campus.

Students denied aid due to Prop. 300
Capitol Media Service/Arizona Daily Star
East Valley Tribune 2/3/09 5:28PM
A 2006 voter-approved law denying certain benefits
to those not here legally is continuing to save at least
some taxpayer dollars. New reports from the three
state universities show that they denied either scholar-
ship aid or the lower-cost Arizona resident tuition rates
to nearly 400 students who had sought one or the other.
The figures do not include those who did not apply for
either. Arizona’s community colleges also reported
turning down students for lower in-state tuition rates.
And some applicants for adult education programs
as well as state-subsidized child care also were
denied benefits after they failed to provide evidence
they were in this country legally.

Hundreds sign up for first ASU charter school
East Valley Tribune 1/31/09 6:51PM
The first ASU-affiliated charter school is taking registration
for its second year, and already hundreds have signed up.
Polytechnic Elementary School opened in the fall in an
office complex near Warner and Power roads in east Mesa.
There are 232 students enrolled at the kindergarten through
sixth grade campus, with another 150 on a waiting list, said
principal Donna Bullock. The school will stay at its current
location for another school year, with plans to open a new
building in the 2010-11 school year at ASU Polytechnic.
That campus would accommodate 1,450 students in pre-
kindergarten through eighth grade. The school’s organizers
are preparing to sell bonds to raise the funds needed for the
180,000-square-foot building.

Arizona excels as bioscience center
Cronkite News Service/East Valley Tribune
1/31/09 8:27PM
Benchmarks such as federal funding and job creation
show that Arizona continues to develop as a center of
bioscience, but the state lags in the venture-capital
funding needed to nurture young companies, according
to a report released Tuesday by The Flinn Foundation.
“Clearly, Arizona, in terms of an emerging bioscience
center, is well recognized nationally in the biosciences
community,” said Walter H. Plosila, a senior adviser to
the Battelle Technology Partnership Practice, a
research firm that works with the foundation.

Ariz. court overturns budget payment requirement
Associated Press/East Valley Tribune
2/3/09 1:26 PM EST
PHOENIX  -- The Arizona Supreme Court put red ink back
into the state budget on Tuesday by overturning a provision
requiring local governments to pay nearly $30 million to
help balance the current state budget. The ruling on the
provision, enacted last year, came on a special-action law-
suit filed directly with the state high court by the League of
Arizona Cities and Towns. The ruling has the effect of
 worsening the state's budget trouble for the current fiscal
year. Legislators last weekend approved spending cuts
and other changes to close a projected $1.6 shortfall in
the $9.9 billion budget, but officials have warned that the
state probably will face another shortfall before the June
30 end of the fiscal year. The $29.7 million payment
provision was included in the budget that was approved
by the Legislature last June at the behest of former Gov.
Janet Napolitano.

Settlement in ASU dorm rape claim
East Valley Tribune 1/31/09 10:29PM
ESPN.com said Friday that in an unprecedented legal
settlement, a former Arizona State University student
who was reportedly raped in her dorm room in 2004
by one of the school's football players will collect
$850,000, and the Arizona university system will
establish a women's safety czar for all three major
campuses, ASU, the University of Arizona and
Northern Arizona University

Editorial Opinion: Fair fosters future scientists,
research
Arizona Daily Star 2/3/09
Do you know the answers to these questions? • How
does the temperature affect how fast butterflies grow?
• How much hotter is it in the sun than in the shade?
• Are roaches smarter than humans? • Are children
more active on physical education days? These were
the titles of some of the 2008 prize-winning projects
entered in science fairs by Southern Arizona
elementary school students. You can expect to see
similarly imaginative entries in this year's Southern
Arizona Regional Science and Engineering Fair
March 16-20 at the Tucson Convention Center. And
some of the students who participate may discover
an interest in science and research that they may
otherwise never have tapped. But fewer students
will get prizes this year than in years past and the
fair's organizer, the SciEnTeK-12 Foundation, is
asking for donations. Longtime corporate sponsors
have cut their contributions, Betsy Bolding, a board
member of the foundation, told us. A key sponsor,
the University of Arizona, is facing such large cuts
in state support that the foundation board fears the
university won't be able to contribute at all, Bolding
said.

Guest Opinion: J. Scott Tyo: Universities should halt
401(k) pay temporarily
Arizona Daily Star 2/3/09
The Arizona Daily Star reported last week that the
University of Arizona is considering mandatory
furloughs of employees in order to cope with an
anticipated budget shortfall. On one hand, I am
happy that somebody is finally admitting that cuts
to the university will result in people getting paid
less and losing their jobs. There is no way to
avoid that. On the other hand, this represents a
severe threat to the university and its employees.
The university must meet this challenge in a way
that is responsible to the university, its employees
and the taxpayers of the state.

UA to close Flandrau; trim arts, 2 museums
Arizona Daily Star 2/3/09
The UA will close its public science center, scale back
visiting hours at two museums and slash funding for
performing-arts programs as part of an effort to cut
$57 million from its budget this year. And bracing for
even more cuts next year, University of Arizona
administrators on Monday ordered that all employees
paid with state or local money must take five unpaid
days off during the new fiscal year, set to begin in
July. The closure of the Flandrau Science Center
and Planetarium, along with scaled-back hours at
the Arizona State Museum and the UA Museum of
Art, come on top of the elimination of 600 positions
this year through hiring freezes and layoffs.

Our Opinion: Brewer signs shameful, unimaginative
fix
Tucson Citizen 2/3/09
Arizona legislators, who already oversee a state that
spends less on education than almost every other,
have found a way to spend even less. And they did
it with humor and jokes about sending Arizona back
to the Middle Ages. Is this really the state we want for
ourselves and our children? The answer is a
resounding "no." Neophyte Gov. Jan Brewer over
the weekend affixed her signature to shameful and
unimaginative legislation that will cut education,
welfare, social service programs and state parks
while moving Arizona one step closer to becoming
a moribund, Third World backwater. There are
crippling cuts to universities while an innovative
program that provided grants to boost biosciences
and technology was wiped out.

Budget fallout: UA to lay off 200, close 3 museums
Tucson Citizen 2/3/09
University of Arizona President Robert N. Shelton has
placed public outreach on the chopping block and up
to 200 people will be laid off to deal with the multi-
million-dollar budget blow UA received Saturday from
the state Legislature. Gov. Jan Brewer signed off on
$580 million in spending cuts, nearly $142 million of
which will be shared by Arizona's three public
universities. UA's portion is estimated to be about
$57 million. In a memo to students and employees,
Shelton said up to 600 jobs will be cut. But 400 of
those 600 have already been eliminated, primarily
through attrition, said Stephen MacCarthy, vice
president for external relations.

ASU settlement ends in $850,000 payoff
ASU Web Devil 2/3/09
A lawsuit filed by a former student claiming the
University put her in a dangerous situation that
led to her rape in 2004, has ended in a
settlement that included the second-highest
monetary sum ever awarded in a sexual-assault
case, the plaintiff’s lawyer said Monday. The
agreement included $850,000 for the victim
and a new program instituted by the Arizona
Board of Regents for women’s safety.  The
program will include a system-wide review
of current policies regarding women’s safety,
gender equity and compliance with the sexual-
discrimination prevention law Title IX for all
three Arizona universities.

Public outreach programs get cut
UA Daily Wildcat 2/3/09
In order to balance the books by the end of 2009,
Administrators announced that budget cuts will
come to many of the University of Arizona's out-
reach and community-based activities, leaving
program leaders to look to the community for
help. President Robert Shelton and Provost
Meredith Hay announced via e-mail Monday
that funding will be significantly reduced for
UApresents, the Flandrau Science Center, the
UA Mineral Museum and the Arizona State
Museum. These cuts will result in a decrease
of public access to campus programs and
outreach operations.

Forced furloughs upset some faculty
UA Daily Wildcat 2/3/09
Clashing opinions between some faculty members
and UA administration emerged after the
announcement that mandatory five days furloughs
are likely for each University employee. Former
Arizona state legislator and Arizona Research Labs
professor Theodore Downing spoke out against the
current furlough plan and said there are more
effective and sensible alternatives to bring in funds
to the UA. He said the university should consider a
plan called "differed compensation." According to
Downing, differed compensation or forced savings,
is a better option than implementing mandatory
furloughs. The plan would require state employees
at the UA to agree on a set amount to take from their
salaries and donate to the state. The legislature
would then vote on an appropriate time to pay the
University employees back.

Parking prices set to increase
UA Daily Wildcat 2/3/09
The desire for more alternative modes of transportation
to the UA campus is the driving force behind a three-
year process of gradually increasing parking prices,
which commences in fall of 2009. Parking and
Transportation Services marketing manager Bill
Davidson said parking prices would go up $50 in
2009 and $116 in both 2010 and 2011. Originally,
prices were supposed to be raised $116 in 2009
and $50 in 2012, but PTS decided to implement
the less dramatic price hike in 2009 because of
the current economic conditions both at the UA
and across the country, Davidson said.

Editorial: Arts may be first item on chopping block
UA Daily Wildcat 2/3/09
The full scope of the state's approaching budget cuts
have yet to be mapped out at the UA, but we have
already seen an inkling of the worst. Yesterday's news
bodes ill for anyone who cares about the liberal arts.
As the Daily Wildcat reported yesterday, the Fine Arts
Library and the Center for Creative Photography
library could close this summer, barring an increase
in the pertinent student fee. Today, President Robert
Shelton announced that three-quarters of the UA's
funding for UApresents would be discontinued.
While the UA Museum of Art and the Arizona State
Museum would be open fewer days per week, with
their outreach and educational activities downsized
or outright eliminated.

Shelton, Hay Respond to Massive Higher Education
Budget Cuts
UA News 2/2/09
University of Arizona President Robert N. Shelton and
Provost Meredith Hay sent a message to the UA
campus community today outlining steps the University
will take to respond to the $57 million budget cut man-
dated for the current budget year. The $57 million cut
is the UA's share of the $141.5 million cut to the Arizona
university system voted on by the Legislature and
signed into law Saturday by Gov. Jan Brewer. It comes
in addition to a $20 million the cut the UA already had
absorbed at the beginning of the fiscal year, which
began July 1, 2008.

UA Bringing Diversity to the U.S. Library System
UA News 2/2/09
More than 100 American Indian and Hispanic librarians
have earned their master's degrees in library and
information science through the Knowledge River pro-
gram at The University of Arizona. The program works
 to fill the library and information needs of multicultural
communities throughout the country. The program is
currently recruiting new students and will accept
applications through mid-March. Jana Bradley, director
of the UA's School of Information Resources and Library
Science, is the current director of the Knowledge River
program, which was begun by Patricia Tarin, the
director of the program from its inception in 2001 until
2007.

AZ Supreme Court sides with League in lawsuit against
state
azcapitoltimes.com  2/3/09
A decision last year by the state to require local
governments to repay $30 million to the state's general
fund has been ruled unconstitutional by the Arizona
Supreme Court. In a unanimous opinion written by Vice
Chief Justice Rebecca White Berch, the court sided with
the League of Arizona Cities and Towns, which filed a
special action lawsuit in November against then-
Governor Janet Napolitano and State Treasurer Dean
Martin. The court ruled Feb. 3 that the provision requiring
the forced transfer was unconstitutional because it was
included in the fiscal 2009 budget bills passed by the
Legislature last year. The state's budgetary authority
is limited to overseeing appropriations that affect state
agencies, institutions and public schools, an argument
that was the second major prong in the League's law-
suit.

Yumans talk budget with state lawmakers
Yuma Sun 2/2/09 10:12 PM
Just three days after the state Legislature passed
the 2009 budget, state Democrats hosted a hearing
for public input on the 2009 and 2010 budgets. On
everyone's mind: the newly passed budget, with
$585 million of cuts in areas such as education,
healthcare and human services, and state agency
reductions. About 100 people came to Arizona
Western College Tuesday night to share their
thoughts and listen to what lawmakers had to say.
The meeting in Yuma Tuesday was the third of five
meetings state Democrats planned.

Former ASU student gets $850,000 settlement
azfamily.com 2/2/09 9:51 PM MST
TEMPE -- An unprecedented settlement today for
a former ASU student who says a football player
sexually assaulted her. The woman says it
happened back in 2004 inside her dorm room.
Now she will collect $850,000 dollars from the
State of Arizona self-insurance fund.

State to pay $850,000 to settle ASU rape lawsuit
Associated Press/ABC15.com
2/3/09 8:11 am
PHOENIX -- The state's agreed to pay $850,000 to
settle a 2004 rape case at Arizona State University,
according to a Tuesday report. Under the settlement
of a federal lawsuit, the state also will revamp the
way the three state universities respond to sexual
assault and harassment claims. The victim in the
2004 case and her family will help set up and
advise the new statewide Office of Student Safety
Coordinator.

AZ's newest budget cuts trim millions from K-12
education
abc15.com 2/2/09 8:01 pm 
Democrat lawmakers are blasting nearly $600
million in budget cuts passed last week by the
Arizona legislature to alleviate the state's deficit.
In a news conference Monday morning, several
party leaders outlined their disappointment with
the reductions, emphasizing the impact the cuts
will have on education and special needs. As the
minority party, Democrats were on the outside of
the process to formulate a mid-year budget fix to
erase a $1.6 billion deficit.  Gov. Jan Brewer gave
final approval to budget plan Saturday. It includes
roughly $580 million in spending cuts, removes
another $580 million from several special fund,
and factors in $500 million in anticipated federal
stimulus money coming to Arizona. Of the most
notable reductions, more $142 million was pulled
from state universities and $133 million from K-
12 education.

Former ASU student gets $850,000 settlement
Channel 3 Azfamily.com 2/2/09
Video Clip

University of Arizona imposes job cuts, reductions
Associated Press/KPHO 5 News/KTAR 2/2/09 7:30pm
The University of Arizona will eliminate some 600 jobs
as part of about $57 million in budget cuts through
June. In all, $141.5 million is being cut from the state's
university system under legislation Gov. Jan Brewer
has signed because of the statewide budget short-
fall. UA President Robert Shelton said Monday the
university also will have to eliminate many outreach
and community-based activities, including
suspending 75 percent of funding for UApresents,
which brings theater, dance and musical performers
to campus. Several museums on campus will face
curtailed activity or closure.

Budget cuts hit the University of Arizona
KVOA News 4 2/3/09
The budget cuts are a big topic of discussion at the
University of Arizona. Recently, Governor Jan Brewer
approved $141.5 million dollars in cuts to the Arizona
University System. That translates into $57 million
dollars in reductions for the U of A. Funding will be
severely reduced for several outreach programs,
including the Arizona State Museum. Beth Grindell
is Director of the Arizona State Museum. Grindell
says, "We will be laying off over the course of the
next year somewhere between 4 and 8 staff."

The University of Arizona expects cuts to be painful
for many
KOLD News 13 2/3/09 12:03 AM MST
As the state legislature cuts university funding, life on
the University of Arizona campus could face quite a
change. "If we should come pay for this school, we
should at least get our money's worth," said Corey
Feltre, a U of A freshman. From Feltre who is a Pre-
Business major, to freshman Vera Rapscak who is
undecided, plenty are bracing for a $57 million cut
in state funding to the U of A.

ASU settles rape lawsuit
KOLD News 13/AP 2/3/09
PHOENIX (AP) - The state's agreed to pay $850,000
to settle a 2004 rape case at Arizona State University.
Under the settlement of a federal lawsuit, the state
also will revamp the way the three state universities
respond to sexual assault and harassment claims.

Arizona Universities Cope With Swift and Drastic
Cuts
U.S. News & World Report 2/3/09 2:30 PM ET
Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer approved $142 million in cuts
to higher education Sunday in order to alleviate a $1.6
billion midyear budget deficit, the Arizona Daily Wildcat
reports. University presidents in Arizona estimate that
the education cuts are $40 million more than their
institutions can handle, and they are now scrambling
to absorb such swift and drastic reductions. Layoffs,
overloaded classes, and tuition increases are possible,
if not likely. Already, Arizona State has forced its 12,000
employees to take furloughs to cut costs.

Arizona State Settles Lawsuit With Alleged Rape Victim
The Chronicle of Higher Education 2/3/09
Arizona State University will pay $850,000 to settle a lawsuit
with a former student who said she was raped by a football
player in 2004, The Arizona Republic reported today. The
campus police determined that “nonconsensual sexual
intercourse” took place in the unidentified woman’s dormitory
room in March 2004, but the local district attorney declined to
prosecute the football player, Darnel Henderson. He finished
the semester at Arizona State but was expelled in May 2004,
after the university decided that he “had more likely than not”
sexually assaulted the woman, the Republic reported, citing
court records.

News Blog: Arne Duncan Says Spending Money on
Education Is Best Cure for Economy
The Chronicle of Higher Education 2/3/09
Washington — Education Secretary Arne Duncan told
private-college officials here this morning that he was
“extraordinarily focused” on increasing student aid and
argued that putting money into education through the
stimulus bill now moving through Congress was “the
best thing we can do long-term” to shore up the nation’s
economy. In a speech at the annual meeting of the
National Association of Independent Colleges and
Universities, Mr. Duncan lauded the resources devoted
to students, schools, and colleges in the economic-
stimulus legislation and cited the adage that one should
“never waste a great crisis.” “The best thing we can do is
educate our way to a better economy,” he said

Ariz. court overturns budget payment requirement
Forbes.com 2/3/09 2:06 PM EST
The Arizona Supreme Court put red ink back into the state
budget on Tuesday by overturning a provision requiring
local governments to pay nearly $30 million to help
balance the current state budget. The ruling on the
provision, enacted last year, came on a special-action
lawsuit filed directly with the state high court by the League
of Arizona Cities and Towns. The ruling has the effect of
worsening the state's budget trouble for the current fiscal
year. Legislators last weekend approved spending cuts
and other changes to close a projected $1.6 billion short-
fall in the $9.9 billion budget, but officials have warned
that the state probably will face another shortfall before
the June 30 end of the fiscal year.