February 19, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 19, 2025
UA Board of Regents to adopt plan to boost recruitment, retention, graduation at February Board Meeting
First board meeting in 10 years at a community campus will also address fiscal outlook, future planning
(FAIRBANKS) - The University of ҹ̽ (UA) Board of Regents will meet at the University of ҹ̽ Anchorage’s (UAA) Kenai Peninsula College Kenai River Campus (KRC) for its February 20-21 full board and committee meetings. This is the first board meeting to take place at a community campus since 2015, and will showcase how integrated UA is throughout ҹ̽’s communities. During the meeting, Regents will adopt a new framework to accelerate recruitment, retention, and graduation, capping a months-long process led by the board’s AdHoc Committee.
“‘I’m pleased the Board has decided to restart the practice of holding meetings at our community campuses,” UA President Pat Pitney said. “I look forward to our time at Kenai River Campus, and the actions on the Board’s agenda that will advance UA’s ongoing efforts to empower ҹ̽.”
KRC is one of three UAA community campuses that form Kenai Peninsula College (KPC). More than 4,500 students find their place at KPC each year and pursue unique academic goals in various disciplines and degree programs. Students can study at one of KPC's three locations—beautiful Soldotna, Homer, or Seward—or take courses through KPC's expanding virtual college. More information about KPC, KRC, and all of UA’s community campuses is available here.
Federal Funding, Fiscal Outlook, & UNAC
During her opening remarks Thursday, President Pitney will update the Board on the status of UA’s federal funding and its potential implications for the university’s overall fiscal environment. UA’s broad base of federal contracts in areas ranging from oil and gas to fisheries positions it well to weather some of the current federal turbulence.
Regents will also vote to conditionally approve the recently negotiated collective bargaining agreement between the university and United Academics (UNAC), the bargaining unit that represents most of UA faculty. The approved agreement would be conditioned on subsequent ratification by UNAC membership expected next week and approval by the State’s Department of Administration (DOA) and the Legislature.
Systemwide Framework to Boost Recruitment, Retention, and Graduation
As part of its “Roadmap to Empower ҹ̽,” a board ad hoc committee has been developing a systemwide strategy to boost UA’s student recruitment, retention, and graduation efforts. The Committee retained education consultant EAB to lead the effort and was presented with a suite of findings in January. Based on those findings, in consultation with university leaders, the AdHoc Committee made key recommendations for priorities and action that the full board will review and adopt at the meeting.
“I applaud our faculty, staff, governance leaders, and the ad hoc committee for the hard work they’ve done over the last year to advance our recruitment, retention, and graduation efforts,” President Pitney said. “The recommendations and strategies in the report build on ongoing actions already underway at the universities, and the additional funding and support called for will help us sustain our current trajectory of enrollment growth and strong educational outcomes for ҹ̽.”
Committees
During Thursday’s committee meetings, the Academic and Student Affairs Committee (8:00 a.m.) will consider approval of a new Master of Science in AI, Data Science & Engineering at UAA, as well as new programs in climate and atmospheric sciences at the University of ҹ̽ Fairbanks (UAF), and integrated health at the University of ҹ̽ Southeast (UAS). Regents will also be updated on UAA’s work in AI education, workforce development, and research.
The Audit and Finance Committee (10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.*) will receive an update on the university’s finances and fisc