The University of Arizona will spend $1.1 billion next school year in a budget that calls for employee raises, more faculty and more fundraisers to counteract a slump in donations to the school.
The spending plan, fueled in part by a near $16 million increase in state funding, was approved unanimously in Flagstaff on Thursday by the board that oversees Arizonaβs public universities.
The UAβs total net income will increase by $120 million in the 2017 school year that starts July 1, budget documents submitted to the Arizona Board of Regents revealed. Much of the money comes from sources other than the state: About $67 million, for example, is from increases to tuition and fees.
The budget includes:
- $9.5 million for raises for UA employees, Southern Arizonaβs largest workforce.
- Another $6.2 million for βretention and recruitmentβ β to include additional pay hikes for employees deemed underpaid compared to peer schools.
- $14.8 million to hire extra faculty and support staff in areas with increased enrollment.
- $7.1 million for UA facilities including upgrades to its information technology infrastructure.
- $4.7 million to increase the UAβs fundraising capacity by hiring more development officers. The budget assumes that private gifts to the school will decline by $8.7 million in the coming school year, a decrease of 9.6 percent.
Items supported by the extra state funds include $8 million for the UAβs new veterinary medicine program and $2 million for the Center for the Philosophy of Freedom, a think tank created to promote βthe understanding and appreciation of the ideals of freedom.β
The new budget was developed with input from student leaders and representatives of UA employee groups, university officials said.
