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UA continuing to upgrade buildings despite budget cuts

By Rachael Myer
Arizona Daily Wildcat,
September 10, 1999

Despite about a $14 million budget cut by the Arizona Legislature to renovate state buildings for the 2000 fiscal year, the UA continues upgrading classrooms and will remodel the anthropology department's Emil W. Haury building next summer.

The University of Arizona asked state lawmakers for almost $18 million to renovate buildings but received only $4.2 million for each of the next two fiscal years, said Dick Roberts, the UA's chief budget officer.

"When push comes to shove, this is an area they tend to under-fund," said Greg Fahey, the associate vice president for state relations.

Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University received comparable building renewal funding for the 2000 and 2001 fiscal years.

The Legislature allocates building renewal funds with a formula based on a building's age, Roberts said.

He said the state has given different percentages of the formula each year, but they generally give about 60 to 70 percent of the amount requested.

Fahey said ASU, NAU and the UA will ask the Arizona Board of Regents at their September meeting to support their attempt to request more money from the state.

The UA will ask lawmakers for about $18 million for the 2001 fiscal year and as much as possible for the 2000 fiscal year, and Fahey said he expects the board to be supportive.

A portion of the building renewal fund allocated by the Legislature goes to the classroom renewal project, a $10 million operation that began in 1994.

When the project's term is scheduled to end this year, its managers will seek more funds from the UA.

Terri Riffe, classroom renovation projects chairperson and University Teaching Center director, is requesting $10 million over the next five years from the UA Space Committee and the Interim Provost Michael Gottfredson.

The UA already has cut about $800,000 out of this year's renovation project's budget because the Legislature provided less money to renew buildings, Roberts said.

Because of the cuts, the project's term will have to be extended another year to make up for the lost $800,000, Roberts said.

If the Legislature doesn't approve more funding for building renewal, UA President Peter Likins and the provost will have to examine other options to renovate classrooms, Fahey said.

Roberts said two possible solutions may be to reallocate other university funds or to obtain money from academic revenue bonding.

The state has provided all three Arizona universities money to renovate buildings since the 1987 fiscal year, he said.

The UA has received 100 percent of its requested amount twice since the legislature began funding state building renewal - the 1987 and 1999 fiscal years.

The Haury building, which was built in the early 1960s, will receive about $600,000 in renovations.

"I'm ecstatic," said John Olsen, head of the anthropology department. "It is going to make a huge difference for our faculty and students."

About 115 classrooms throughout campus have been upgraded with technology, such as a video project unit and Internet capability, since the classroom renovation project began. The project also tries to make the rooms comfortable by providing moveable seating.

"Renovation of space is really about bringing our learning environments into the 20th century," Riffe said.

Riffe said she wants to renovate several buildings, such as Psychology, Franklin, CCIT and the College of Education, if funds allow.

"There are lots of things still on our list," she said.

Classrooms and auditoriums in the Center for English as a Second Language, Harvill, Social Sciences, Modern Languages and Economics buildings have already been renovated.

Six classrooms in Biological Sciences West were renovated this summer and should be finished in a few weeks.

"We haven't done any renovation of this scale for many years," Riffe said. "This was a much needed infusion to upgrade our instruction environments."

William Valmont, a language, reading and culture professor, said he would like the Education building to be renovated.

"We're operating with last century technology here," said Valmont, who has taught classes at the College of Education building for 30 years.

He wants to give Power Point presentations, use white boards rather than chalkboards, have Internet connections and be able to adjust lighting.

"The sooner that we can make use of the technology in our classrooms the better it will be for our students," Valmont said.


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