ABOR June Meeting Highlights

Regents held their June board meeting at Northern Arizona University earlier this month where they formally approved the acquisition of UA Global Campus by the University of Arizona. Pending final authorization from accreditors at the end of June, UAGC will be operated by the UA as a separate business unit within the UA that will maintain its current admissions standards and tuition and fee rates. The board also voted to allocate $30 million in state TRIF dollars between the three public universities to address state healthcare workforce shortages and improve Arizona’s healthcare outcomes. The board will determine at a later date how the $30 million will be divided between the UA, ASU and NAU.

The UA proposal to establish a new College of Health Sciences was also approved by the board with five initial academic program offerings. The College will offer cost-effective direct pathways to graduate health professional programs as alternatives to medicine and nursing. The initial offerings will include degrees in Midwifery, Physician Assistant, Physical Therapy, Genetic Counseling and Clinical Translational Sciences. Lasty, the June board meeting marked the end of Regent Lyndel Manson’s two-year term as Chair of the Board. Regent Fred Duval will take over as new Chairman on July 1.