You have /5 articles left.
Sign up for a free account or log in.
In a scathing letter to the Arizona Board of Regents, Governor Katie Hobbs chastised the University of Arizona and its board leaders for the budget crisis unveiled in November, in which UA miscalculated university finances and lost track of more than $240 million.
“To say the situation demonstrates that there is significant work ahead to restore the university’s financial health would be an understatement. This is no longer just about finances, this is about a lack of accountability, transparency, and at the end of the day, leadership,” wrote Hobbs, a Democrat.
She added, “There is no coherent vision” in place for fixing the university’s financial woes—which are expected to lead to deep cuts—nor “agreement on the severity of the problems.” Hobbs also questioned the appropriateness of ABOR executive director John Arnold serving as the university’s interim chief financial officer, calling it a situation akin to “the fox guarding the henhouse.” (Former UA CFO Lisa Rulney, who has been partly blamed for the financial crisis, resigned in December.)
Hobbs also expressed concern about UA’s acquisition of for-profit Ashford University in 2022, pointing to a recent report that found the $256 million purchase created budget issues for the institution. (UA officials continue to dispute that the purchase of Ashford played a part in its financial woes.)
The governor requested a detailed plan for how UA intends to resolve financial issues; that Arnold move out of the interim CFO role, improved communication around the budget crisis and “a report that details the rationale and process that were used to assess the purchase of Ashford University and its subsequent rebranding as the University of Arizona Global Campus.”
