LA Times tuition article tells the story of state underfunding of the UC system

On January 26, 2017, the Los Angeles Times published an article, “UC regents approve first tuition increase after six-year freeze; some students ‘infuriated'”  Here’s an excerpt:

UC President Janet Napolitano had told regents a day earlier that an increase was needed to ensure that the renowned public research university system could continue to deliver the same top-notch education today as in the past, even as it grapples with escalating enrollment demands and reduced state support.

The 10-campus system, she said, had responded to deep state funding cuts during the Great Recession by saving more than $320 million through reforms. Despite such efforts, campuses are struggling with higher student-faculty ratios, fewer courses, fewer teaching assistants and overtaxed student services.

“We have done more with less, but at a cost,” she said. …

Napolitano’s office, in a memo to regents, presented data showing that state support for instructional costs per student has dropped by more than half, from $16,980 in 2000-01 to an estimated $7,160 this year. Over the same time, the share UC has to cover — from tuition and fees and general funds — rose from $5,860 to $9,450.

Read the complete article on the LA Times website.