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Photo of sideview of Chair Lyndel Manson at a board meeting with Regent DuVal in the background and another individual in the foreground

Board approves new policy revisions expanding access for Arizona students: Arizona Promise Program, reflecting passage of Prop. 308; contracts and amendments for ASU and UArizona football coaches

Following are news briefs from the Dec. 13 special Arizona Board of Regents meeting. Board materials are available here.

Expanding access for Arizona students

Board-approves policy revisions reflecting passage of Prop. 308

New policy revisions approved by the board conform with Prop. 308 that gives qualifying Arizona students - including Arizona Dreamers – the opportunity to receive in-state tuition at Arizona’s public universities. Prior to the passage of Prop. 308, these students did not have access to in-state tuition.

“Arizona first endorsed in-state tuition for Dreamers in 2008. This has been a long, difficult road but I believe ensuring in-state tuition is the right and moral thing,” said Regent Fred DuVal. “Now, because of Arizona voters, it is legal and we enthusiastically embrace the opportunity to make it happen immediately.”

Qualifying non-citizen students will be eligible to receive in-state tuition starting in the spring 2023 semester.

More information is available here.

Access to Arizona Promise Program scholarship broadens with board approval of policy revisions

More students will be able to take advantage of the Arizona Promise Program scholarship that provides tuition and fee coverage for low-income resident students through policy revisions approved by the board.

All Arizona students are now eligible for the scholarship if they qualify for a Pell Grant. Previously the scholarship was for only Pell-eligible students with zero expected family contribution.

“Based on current enrollment, that just about doubles the number of students who are potentially eligible for this program,” said ABOR Executive Director John Arnold.

“We went into this Promise scholarship as a way of giving students greater access to higher education and increasing overall state attainment. This is in our interest from a point of view of economic prosperity,” said Regent Larry E. Penley. 

More information on eligibility is available here.

Board approves contract for new ASU football coach; amended agreement for UArizona football coach

The board approved a new multiple-year employment contract for Kenny Dillingham as head football coach at Arizona State University. Coach Dilligham is an Arizona native who graduated from ASU in 2013 and began his collegiate coaching career at the university as an offensive assistant from 2014-15. Most recently, he was the offensive coordinator at the University of Oregon where he is a nominee for the 2022 Broyles Award presented annually to the top assistant coach in college football.

The board also approved amended terms of Jedd Fisch’s multiple-year contract as UArizona head football coach, extending his contract for five years. Hired by the university in December of 2020, the football team posted four additional wins in Fisch’s second season, going from 1- 11 to 5-7. After finishing 12th in the Pac-12 standings in 2020 and 2021, Arizona rose to eighth place this past season. Coach Fisch led Arizona to a win in the 2022 Territorial Cup and the Wildcats beat No. 9 UCLA on the road.

Since taking over as coach, the team made significant improvements in academics including, setting records for highest GPA during the fall and spring of 2021, and summer of 2022.

Cost Study Report reflects costs to educate resident students at the universities

The 2022 Cost Study Report approved by the board today demonstrates efficiency in educating students with an analysis of costs at the universities.

Key findings indicate it costs the universities $18,855 on average to educate a full-time equivalent student in fiscal year 2021 (excludes UArizona College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine). In comparison, tuition at Arizona’s public universities ranges from $11,618 - $12,265, below the cost to educate a student.

The report contains additional cost analysis on instructional fees at each university, including differentiating between mandatory fees, program fees and course fees; differentiated costs between programs of study; a breakdown of where tuition dollars are allocated and more.

Arizona Revised Statutes section §15-1650.03A requires the board to complete a cost study every five years. More information is available here.

Contacts:

Sarah Harper, 602-229-2542, 602-402-1341 | Sarah.K.Harper@azregents.edu