Updates on the Budget and Preliminary Review Process
June 22, 2020
The board of Regents has recently passed a motion to create a “conceptual plan that outlines the pros and cons of UAS with UAF” stated Chancellor Dan White in an email released on Saturday, June 6th. The conceptual plan will be worked on by a group of regents as well as other individuals selected by the BOR chair Sheri Buretta. The plan will be released no later than October 15th.
The board also voted to “reduce, discontinue, rename, or merge 44 academic programs across the UA system” A total of 26 of these programs reside at UAF. Chancellor White requested that they postpone action on the Master of Science and the Doctorate of Philosophy in atmospheric science until January 1st. The board approved these actions. All programs that have been approved for discontinuation will be “taught out”. This means that students will receive individualized plans to help them finish their degree before the program is completely removed from the university system. The board also voted to change and not eliminate the Geological Engineering program, meaning that this will not be eliminated but taught under a different structure
Chancellor Dan White ended the email stating that he is “confident in the future of UAF and higher education in Alaska more broadly. Working together, I know we will come out on the other side of the pandemic and budget crisis and will continue to serve generations to come. UAF is resilient.”