Hobbs to U of A: Prioritize keeping long-term, working-class employees

Gov. Katie Hobbs asked Wednesday that the University of Arizona prioritize keeping long-time employees, working class staff and Arizona-based workers when assessing potential layoffs.

Layoffs will occur this spring and “in phases,” UA’s interim Chief Financial Officer John Arnold has said. UA leaders have not stated how many employees will be laid off but say they will start with senior administrators.

In her meeting with UA and regents’ leaders Wednesday, the governor also asked the Arizona Board of Regents to provide her with monthly financial updates on progress to resolve UA’s $177 million deficit, her office said in a written statement after the private meeting.

The new University Advisory Council, which UA President Robert C. Robbins announced last week that he will create and appoint, should be “inclusive of elected leadership of staff, faculty and student groups” and should not “silence the existing groups,” according to Hobbs’ statement.

Her request comes after some faculty senators questioned the validity of the new shared governance committee because its members will be solely appointed rather than elected.

Additionally, the governor requested that officials “engage external experts in supporting the improvement of financial processes and procedures,” and “resolve the issues with the University of Arizona Global Campus and the U.S. Department of Education.”

The federal agency is seeking repayment from UA for $72 million to pay back students who enrolled in Ashford University, which was purchased by the UA in 2020 to turn into UAGC. The Ashford students were duped by faulty marketing practices, the Department of Education concluded. UA officials say the University of Arizona is not liable for actions by Ashford before the purchase.

Wednesday’s meeting, demanded by Hobbs, came on the heels of two statements she released in January and February stating her concerns about the regents’ oversight of UA.

She sat down with Robbins, Arnold, ABOR Chair-Elect Cecilia Mata and ABOR interim Executive Director Chad Sampson one week after her Feb. 28 statement.

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In that statement, Hobbs called behavior shown by the board “appalling and unacceptable,” after then-Chair Fred DuVal and Regent Lyndel Manson publicly lambasted the UA’s Faculty Senate.

“It’s time for them to come down from their ivory tower and realize that this is hurting Arizonans and the university,” the Democratic governor wrote at the time.

Hobbs’ response to Wednesday’s meeting, which the press and public were not allowed to attend, had a slightly less fiery tone.

“There is a long road ahead of us to fix the gross financial mismanagement and ensure the university emerges from this situation stronger than it was before,” Hobbs said. “Now is the time for ABOR and university leadership to step up to ensure that this situation is not just resolved, but resolved in a way that propels this university forward.”

In her own statement released after the meeting, Mata shared her enthusiasm about working with Hobbs.

“I appreciated the opportunity to meet with Governor Hobbs today and value our conversation,” Mata said. “Our shared goals are what unite us: a bright and strong future for Arizona students and our state’s public universities and improving the financial health of the University of Arizona.

Mata added: “I look forward to building increased communication and our continued work together.”