Robbins to Outline Strategic Plan at ABOR Meeting

University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins will present the University's strategic plan at this week's Arizona Board of Regents meeting at the Student Union Memorial Center.

Created under the guidance of strategic planning co-chairs Elliott Cheu, associate dean of the College of Science, and Lisa Ordóñez, vice dean of the Eller College of Management, the strategic plan details how the UA will develop a distinctive vision and plan to prepare students for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

Over the course of several forums, meetups and other meetings, thousands of UA employees, students, alumni, community leaders, donors and others were involved in sharing ideas that went into shaping the plan. Feedback also was collected at events in Phoenix and through the strategic plan website.

The UA also will submit its operational and financial review for the 2019 fiscal year. As part of its constitutional responsibility to ensure that Arizona's public universities accomplish their purpose and mission, ABOR conducts an annual comprehensive review of the operations and finances of each university.

The UA's OFR emphasizes the University's differentiated mission, purpose and identity, while addressing current and future priorities. The review includes a background report, business plan and presentation. The discussion will focus on those areas of greatest importance and urgency to the UA and cover the strategies and initiatives that will be pursued in the coming years.

In addition, the UA will ask the board to review and approve its 2019 capital development plan, which includes four new projects: an applied research building, the Grand Challenges Research Building (a $150 million interdisciplinary research facility), additional laboratory and administrative space on the third and fourth floors of the Phoenix Biomedical Sciences Partnership Building, and deferred maintenance work.

Two previously approved projects – the Student Success District and additional campus research infrastructure – will be submitted with revisions as part of this capital development plan.

Other items on the agenda (PDF):

• The board will be asked to approve the 2018 fall enrollment reports for the three state universities.
• The board will review the 2017-18 High School Report Card, the annual report on the performance of the previous year's Arizona high school graduates during their first year at an Arizona public university.