From the medical needs of deep space travel to statewide impact of the land-grant mission, University of Arizona excellence was on display in Phoenix this week.

On Wednesday, the university's interdisciplinary expertise in health and wellness was featured at Fuel Wonder Phoenix, an annual interactive reception designed to inspire learning and connection. Hosted by the University of Arizona Foundation, the Fuel Wonder event creates a vibrant space where Phoenix-area alumni, supporters, regents and others can engage with groundbreaking work alongside university leaders.

The event has a different theme each year, with this year's being health and wellness as addressed from multiple disciplines including the arts, social sciences and business, as well as medicine, psychology and other STEM fields.

More than 300 people attended the event at the Arizona Biltmore, where they had the opportunity to visit 17 Wonder Station booths demonstrating the breadth of U of A impact from 13 different colleges and units. Students, faculty and staff were on hand to highlight their fascinating projects, which explore STEM-focused health topics such as precision aging, novel cancer treatments and technologies to improve food safety. Booths focused on the arts, student experience and humanities included applying art and culture to reduce stress and combat social isolation among students, envisioning a healthy future with honors students, and applying digital humanities techniques to support whole-person wellness.

President Garimella and other U of A leaders were also in Tempe Thursday for the Arizona Board of Regents meeting at Arizona State University. The meeting opened with ABOR Chair Cecilia Mata making remarks to the board, which included praise for the ongoing scientific discoveries resulting from the OSIRIS-REx mission, as well as recently announced recognition of university community members: five faculty and staff members who have received prestigious presidential awards from the outgoing Biden administration; U of A senior honors student Bryce Wilson, who was named a 2025 Churchill Scholar; and President Garimella's election as a member of the National Academy of Engineering.

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During the meeting, the board approved the sale of two acres of university-owned land to Yuma County for the construction of a new building that will house Yuma County Cooperative Extension offices and help the university continue to carry out its land-grant mission to serve Arizona communities.

Other highlights at the ABOR meeting included approval of four new degree programs that will open enrollment as early as the fall semester:

• The Bachelor of Arts in Public Relations, offered through the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
• The Bachelor of Science in Medical Pharmacology and Toxicology, offered through the R. Ken Coit College of Pharmacy
• The Master of Education in School Counseling, offered through the College of Education 
• The Master of Science in AI for Business, offered through the Eller College of Management

The ABOR meeting continues Friday with regular board business.