J.R. Ancheta, U. of Alaska Fairbanks
When Gov. Michael Dunleavy of Alaska vetoed 182 items in the state’s 2020 budget, one of the biggest targets was the University of Alaska, a multicampus system that stood to lose $130 million, or 41 percent of its state funding.
As university leaders, faculty members, students, and their supporters rallied against the cuts and urged state lawmakers to override the vetoes, the legislators split into opposing camps and met in separate cities.
Meanwhile, hoping for the best but planning for the worst, the university system’s leaders spoke of taking steps to make it easier to close programs and even campuses, lay off tenured and other faculty members, and pare their enrollments.
Now, with the Legislature failing to override the vetoes, the university system is struggling to deal with huge budget cuts.
Here’s how the crisis on the Last Frontier developed, in Chronicle articles.
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Leadership
U. of Alaska President Acknowledges Contributing to a ‘Fractured’ System
James Johnsen says he stayed in crisis mode too long and failed to consider other ideas in response to budget pressures. -
NewsAlaska Board Suspends Consideration of Controversial Merger
Vote follows a meeting with the university’s accreditor, who says the chain of command needs to be clear. -
News
Former Alaska Chancellors Express Alarm Over Accreditation Letter
Limiting the chancellors’ input, they write, “puts the entire UA system at risk.” -
News
Alaska’s Accreditor Issues a Warning to the System
The universities have been ordered to act immediately to clarify leadership roles and responsibilities. -
In the States
Could Alaska’s Diverse Campuses Survive a Forced Marriage?
A cost-saving plan to consolidate the state’s three universities raises questions about what could be lost. -
News
Amid Backlash, Alaska Governor Relents on Draconian Cuts for University System
In a deal announced on Tuesday, the reductions in state funding will amount to $70 million over three years instead of $135 million in one. -
BACKGROUNDER
Warning That Their ‘House Is on Fire,’ Alaska President Urges Regents to Act Quickly on Budget Crisis
After a marathon meeting, the University of Alaska’s Board of Regents authorized the university president to move ahead with consolidation plans. -
News
Here’s Why Alaska’s Governor Thinks His University System Needs Steep Cuts — and Why Experts Say He’s Wrong
Poor graduation rates, overpaid administrators, and an overreliance on state funding are to blame, says Gov. Michael J. Dunleavy. -
News
University of Alaska Regents Vote to Declare Financial Exigency
They call it sad but say they needed to take the step given the state’s budget crisis. -
News
‘Everybody Is Panicking’: Thousands of Alaska Students Scramble With Scholarship Money in Jeopardy
On top of the University of Alaska system’s budget crisis, the money that funds the state’s two biggest financial-aid programs currently isn’t available. -
Crisis in Alaska
University of Alaska Regents Delay Vote on Financial Exigency
Overwhelmed by the challenges of slashing so deeply, regents cling to faint hopes that some money will be restored. -
News
Alaska Lawmakers Fail to Avert Sweeping Cuts to the University System. Here’s What Happens Next.
On Monday the university’s board will start talking through options — like consolidating or closing campuses — for absorbing $135 million in cuts. -
News
Lawmakers Bicker as U. of Alaska Inches Closer to Historic Budget Cuts
Facing a Friday deadline, state legislators are divided over the governor’s vetoes of higher-ed funds. A vote on Wednesday failed to override the vetoes. The university’s leaders and its accreditor warn the cuts could have devastating consequences. -
News
Alaska’s Data Tell a Familiar National Story
The drama this week in Alaska’s statehouse over vast proposed cuts in higher-ed funding echoes themes from across the nation: shifting financial burdens, weak enrollment numbers, increasing struggles for would-be students, and threats of campus closures. -
Backgrounder
Budget Ax Looms for a University Facing Historic Cuts
Alaska’s governor wants to slash higher-education funding by $130 million to increase residents’ cash payout. How will the cuts affect students and the state’s economic viability? -
News
This 5-Word Phrase Has Become a Mantra for Slashing College Budgets
In explaining historic cuts, Gov. Mike Dunleavy said Alaska’s universities can’t be “all things for all people.” He’s only the latest to use that message. -
Crisis Response
U. of Alaska Has 2 Days to Save Itself. What’s the Strategy?
Campus leaders are promoting the system’s economic impact and student access as lawmakers prepare to vote Wednesday on a 41-percent cut in state funding. -
Backgrounder
‘Unprecedented in Our History’: One State Is on the Verge of Slashing Higher-Ed Funding, Leaving Public Colleges in a Panic
A veto by Alaska’s governor, if sustained, would cut support by 41 percent, imperiling academic programs and 1,300 faculty and staff jobs across the multicampus system. -
The Review
How Higher Education Became a Pawn in the Partisan Forever War
State university systems have historically avoided getting dragged into politicized battles. No more.
