Commenting on topics ranging from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to UCLA's numerous construction projects, Chancellor Albert Carnesale delivered his annual State of the Campus address Oct. 11 to the Chancellor's Associates, a leadership donor group that has supported the university through unrestricted annual giving since 1966.

UCLA is working diligently to "ensure the safety of every student, every teacher, every employee and every visitor," Carnesale stressed.

The campus should serve as a "prominent forum for rational discourse about these cataclysmic events and their implications," he said, as evidenced by the creation of 50 new courses exploring issues emerging from the attacks.

On the topic of state funding, Carnesale noted that the University of California has fared well in the budget process for the past several years. This year, however, funding is $90 million short of the amount called for in the UC-state partnership agreement. So it will be difficult for the state to meet all its commitments to UC, he said. At the same time, UC is charged with maintaining and expanding access to undergraduate education and assisting the state in efforts to improve K-12 education.

Carnesale also informed the audience that:

• In 2000-01, UCLA's research program received a total of $655 million in external funding, up from $530.5 million in 1999-00. Preliminary indications are that UCLA ranks third nationally after Johns Hopkins and MIT.
• Later this month, the university will publicly launch its "UCLA in L.A." initiative, emphasizing community partnerships supporting youth, economic development and the arts and cultural affairs.
• Among the major construction projects in progress are: the Kinross Building, nearing completion in Lot 32; the Intramural Field Parking Structure, scheduled for completion in August 2003; and the Physics and Astronomy Building, planned for completion in September 2003.