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News briefs

01 October 2003

Preview of 2004 health plan
UC faculty and staff, like workers nationwide, will pay more for health insurance in the coming year — on average 15 percent more, according to UC Human Resources. But the university is not canceling any plans or raising employee costs for co-pays and deductibles. Open enrollment begins Nov. 1, but a preview of plan rates is available now at atyourservice.ucop.edu/ (click on “2004 Health plan information for UC employees”).

CSAC looking for new members
The Chancellor’s Staff Advisory Committee (CSAC) is recruiting new members to begin serving in January 2004. CSAC is a 16-member advisory body that assists the campus administration in making well-informed decisions on issues affecting Berkeley staff. Appointments are for a three-year period. Applications for committee membership are due Friday, Nov. 7. To learn more about the committee, join current members at one of the following brown-bag information sessions in 200 California Hall, the Chancellor’s Conference Room: Wednesday, Oct. 29, noon-1 p.m.; Thursday, Oct. 30, noon-1 p.m.; and Wednesday, Nov. 5, noon-1 p.m. Additional information and applications are available at csac.chance.berkeley.edu.

Take an online survey about policy access
Members of the campus community are invited to complete a brief online questionnaire designed to assist administrators in the Office of Budget and Finance in determining the best way to improve access to administrative policies. The survey was developed for the Cabinet’s Controls Initiative Policy Access Project by a committee of employees participating in the campus’s Leadership Development Program.

It’s estimated that only 10 minutes are needed to complete the survey, which can be found online at Policysurvey.berkeley.edu.

Starting Oct. 16, it’s flu shot time
University Health Services has scheduled the 2003 flu shot clinics for the campus community on the following dates: Thursday, Oct. 16; Thursday, Oct. 23; Wednesday, Oct. 29; Friday, Nov. 7; Tuesday, Nov. 18; and Wednesday, Dec. 3.

All clinics will be held from noon to 6 p.m. in the Class of ’42 Room on the first floor of the Tang Center, 2222 Bancroft Way. These are drop-in clinics — no appointment necessary. The cost is $20.
The vaccine is particularly advisable for people who live or work in institutional settings, according to criteria provided by the National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Flu shots are always recommended for the high-risk groups — the elderly or those with impaired immune systems or chronic health conditions — or those in contact with high-risk groups.

For information, call University Health Services, 642-1814.

New UC statement on academic freedom made final
After extensive consultations with the faculty and endorsement by the Academic Senate, the University of California has finalized a new statement on academic freedom for its faculty. The new statement, supported by a 45-3 vote of the Assembly of the Academic Senate on July 30, was issued to the university community on Sept. 29, following a period of formal campus review subsequent to the Senate vote.

Known as Academic Personnel Policy (APM) 010, the statement establishes that faculty have primary responsibility for articulating the professional standards by which academic freedom may be sustained. The policy is intended to be read in conjunction with APM 015, the Faculty Code of Conduct, which includes a delineation of faculty responsibilities to their students. The statement does not change the authority of the UC Board of Regents to govern the university, nor the responsibility of the administration to perform its appropriate role in governance.

The full statement, along with a background paper by former UC President Richard C. Atkinson, is available at www.ucop.edu/ucophome/coordrev/policy/9-29-03.html.

Haste Street closed until Oct. 7
Haste Street between College Avenue and Bowditch Street will be closed to vehicle traffic from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays through Tuesday, Oct. 7. The closure is due to the student-housing construction project underway at Unit 2.

Pedestrians on Haste should continue to use the walkway/sidewalk on the north side of the street. Access to the Under-hill Lot entrance on Channing Way will not be affected by this work.

The street will be open to vehicle traffic for Homecoming & Parents Weekend, Oct. 4 and 5.

Prize-winning poet reads at Lunch Poems Oct. 2
In its first regular reading of the season, Lunch Poems will present Bay Area native Robert Thomas at 12:10 p.m., Thurs-day, Oct. 2. Thomas, who grew up in Oakland, spent 20 years as a San Francisco legal secretary, all the while writing poetry in virtual obscurity — until last year, when he won the prestigious Poets Out Loud Award, judged by Pulitzer Prize-winner Yusef Komunyakaa.

Thomas’ reading will take place in the Morrison Library, inside the main entrance of Doe Library. Admission is free, and the public is welcome.

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