We are under attack. How will we respond?

UCLA is under attack.  The Trump administration seeks an exorbitant fine of $1.2 billion and numerous demands affecting hiring, admissions, sports, and health care delivery.  As the LA Times reported, Trump seeks to “remake UCLA in a conservative image” in a 28-page letter from the Administration.   

I’m beyond appalled and frustrated by Trump’s attacks on so many of our values, including freedom of speech, due process, diversity, and sense of fairness.  I am horrified that so many institutions have caved in the face of Trump’s actions, including Congress, big business, law firms, and the media. 

While the withholding of research funding is likely illegal and many of the terms of Trump’s settlement agreement are unconstitutional, we have to accept that this is the world we now face.  Even if we win in court in the short-term, this threat will not go away anytime soon.

I once read that Donald Trump always has the wrong answers to the right questions.   

Certainly, we in higher education have many faults including:

• Being too afraid of some ideas to allow genuine freedom of speech,

• Rationing higher education to too few students,

• Not increasing academic and administrative productivity, and

• Steadily increasing costs a few percentage points per year over many years which has made the cost of an education prohibitive to many students 

I feel like the University of California has done a better job than many institutions but we certainly have fallen into these traps. 

UCLA has responded emphatically that we will not compromise our values.  It has launched a public campaign, Speak up for Science, extolling the value of research that our scientists and academics have done.  We are fighting these actions in court. 

Yet, I think we have to accept that the world has changed and, while it is possible we will win in the short-term in court, we have a federal administration that is fundamentally hostile to who we are. 

So, what’s a modern research university to do? 

1)      We have to accept that the world has changed and we have to make difficult decisions that we would prefer not to make. 

2)      We should stand up for our values: Respect, Accountability, Integrity, Service, and Excellence.  We should advertise our belief in science (especially vaccine research and climate science), diversity and inclusivity, engagement with the world, and the power of learning and research.  We should differentiate ourselves from other universities that capitulate to Trump. 

3)      We have to fight the federal government to respect the law and contracts while decreasing our dependence on our two key vulnerabilities: a) Our international students (and the corresponding tuition they pay), and b) federal research funding.  

4)      We have to generate revenue through new programs, increased fees, and increased enrollment. 

5)      Over the last several years, UCLA made three real estate acquisitions (the Westside Pavilion, UCLA South Bay (formerly Marymount campus), and UCLA Downtown.  We have to monetize these resources.     

At UCLA Anderson, where I work, we launched an initiative last year called Transformative Leadership.  Ironically, our own approach to this crisis has been far more incrementalistic.  The focus has been on cost cutting as if the world will go back to the way it used to be and we can just weather this storm. 

We have a supportive local and state government.  We have an incredible brand and are the most applied to university in the nation.  Now, is the time for us to be Transformative Leaders to use this time of crisis to become an even better university.