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The UC can boast of many unique and extremely valuable resources that are not commonly found in other universities. One such resource is the Natural Reserve System. Management of the Natural Reserve System is presently housed in the UC Office of the President.

However, there is a suggestion formulated by a management consultant to remove the Natural Reserve System from the Office of the President. A select group of distinguished faculty who are concerned about management of the reserve system have laid out a compelling argument for the continued management of the Natural Reserve System from within the Office of the President (see the DFA Web site at ucdfa.org).

The UC Office of the President does not always garner great sympathy from rank and file UC employees. But we must be careful not to lose in a reorganizational zeal valuable academic programs that should be housed at UCOP.

The Davis Faculty Association urges the university and its administrators to give full consideration to faculty input on this matter; arguments for academic programs should hold sway over issues of reorganization and streamlining. In the spirit of shared governance, the opinions and input of the faculty must be a vital factor in making decisions that affect academic programs.

Ian Kennedy

chair, Davis Faculty Association professor, Department of Mechanical and Aeronautical Engineering