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Recent attention by the media and elected officials has focused on the affordability of a college education.  Berkeley, including our campus leadership and Financial Aid and Scholarships Office, is determined to keep our university an affordable choice for students and their families.  Forty percent of undergraduates pay no tuition and 65% receive some form of financial aid.  For the 40% that take loans, the average level of student indebtedness is around $17,000, an amount that is lower than many car loans.  In addition,  Berkeley made history by becoming the first public university to cre

Dear members of the VCAF community,

There is no question that we have had a terrific year in terms of accomplishments. We were able to undertake several campus-wide system implementations and start a whole new area of work around revenue generation. We plan to continue to challenge the status quo and take risks for the benefit of Berkeley in the new year – plus have some fun. We cannot do any of this without the care, commitment, and hard work of everyone in our organization.

Last week, we had another great win on the Procurement side that will benefit many of our academic units directly. UCSF and UC Berkeley identified 44% savings ($200,000) by competitively bidding a portfolio of chemicals in a reverse auction. Over the course of the 90-minute bidding event, the team collected approximately 50 bids from 4 different suppliers. The new pricing is expected to be implemented at UCSF and UC Berkeley in the January Quarter and could benefit other campuses across the UC system as well.

Dear Campus Community,

The campus has spoken!  Over the course of the last two years, more than 10,000 voices have contributed to articulating a working culture that can help us succeed.  Great ideas were generated in CultureCal, the online brainstorming event in October in which thousands of Berkeley’s staff, faculty, and student employees rated principles, created new ones, and shared passionate comments. 

As the Thanksgiving Holiday approaches, I feel very fortunate that we have so much to be thankful for in VCAF. Everyone in our organization continues to show an incredible amount of talent and motivation, despite the many challenges we face. The elections are behind us and the outcomes look promising for California and higher education. The passage of Prop 30 sends an important message: clearly, voters think that spending on education is the right decision.

EPA Food Recovery Challenge ceremony will be held at UC Berkeley on November 15 starting at 10am, and will include remarks and a tour to follow of our university’s student-led composting network and innovative LeanPath computerized food waste tracking system at Cal Dining. The LeanPath system provides real time data to avoid food waste and save money. The tour will provide a behind-the-scenes look at UC Berkeley’s innovative approach to food management. 

Read about it in the NewsCenter article: The Path To Financial Sustainability: There's a Link to That!

Yesterday, we held the first Revenue Generation Symposium on campus. It was an excellent start and I hope you will take the time to look at the presentations made by intrepid deans and leaders in the administration who are thinking of creative ways to pursue revenue generating ideas.

NewsCenter article: How do we make hard data easier to manage?

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I am pleased to announce the appointment of Thera Kalmijn as the first Chief Operating Officer of Campus Shared Services. 

First, welcome to the new VCAF website! I hope it is useful and informative.

Second, why a blog? I think it would be a useful way for me to communicate what I am focused on to a broader audience than I can normally reach in a more informal way. It may not work, but seems worth a try.

March 2012: This has been a year of significant campus wide reforms designed to increase efficiency and raise revenue. The ultimate goal is simple: free up more of our limited resources to spend on teaching and research, and place Berkeley on a sustainable long term financial footing.