Readers React: At UC, faculty excellence should be the funding priority

To the editor: The excellence of a university comes down to the quality of its faculty, not the university president, the expertise of administrators, the capital fund or even the national standing of its athletic teams. (“Is UC spending too little on teaching, too much on administration?,” Oct. 17)

Without the best faculty, the university cannot attract the best students. Other factors — such as libraries, labs, studios, museums, music ensembles and art galleries — are important, but they mean little without top-notch faculty and students.

We University of California faculty have not taken a vow of poverty to serve the poor. We are committed to a public university that admits the best students in the state, regardless of income level. Our teaching mission is based on meritocracy, not aristocracy, and to date we have done very well.

But a bloated administration with bloated salaries (not to mention athletic coaches with obscenely bloated salaries) is part of the problem, not the solution. They represent a growing tail wagging a starving dog.

Andrew Apter, Santa Monica

The writer is a professor of history and anthropology at UCLA, where he directed the African Studies Center.

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To the editor: Religion is not the only hiding place of scoundrels. Worthwhile causes and large bureaucracies are also great for hiding unnecessary cost.

While education is a noble cause, the ancillary departments at UCLA seem shielded from meaningful fiscal oversight, even during a time of severe budget constraints. The Department of Cultural and Recreational Affairs, for example, might offer a window into unknown waste at the UC campuses if audited.

Past entreaties to state representatives to look into the UC budget have been met with great disdain — and incredulity that I would attack the cause of higher education.

Jeff Solomon, Tarzana

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