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Jerry Brown wants changes at state university systems

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Gov. Jerry Brown said he will attend meetings of the University of California Board of Regents and California State University Board of Trustees later this month to pressure the systems to change their ways and hold the line on student tuition.

Brown made his comments at a news conference Thursday where he unveiled a new spending plan that includes a combined $534 million increase to the two systems over last year’s budget.

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Those increases fall short of the amount the UC Regents have said would be necessary to prevent tuition increases for the fall semester. But the governor made clear Thursday that he would do everything he could to get the board, on which he serves, to hold the line on fee hikes.

Brown said that talks with CSU and UC are ‘embryonic’ and that he will proceed “diplomatically but carefully” to get them to change. He wants more courses to be available online, wants faculty to teach more and says the schools should trim administrative costs.

The budget proposal also includes a plan to link future school funding to their ability to graduate students in a timely manner.

He proposed higher fees for so-called “super seniors” -- students who earn more than 150% of the units necessary to graduate. A similar proposal under consideration by CSU was tabled last November at Brown’s request.

The regents meet in San Francisco next week. Brown will also attend a meeting of the CSU Trustees in Long Beach the following week.

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