The University of Colorado Board of Regents has recently stamped its approval on the UCCS Ten-Year Facility Plan. This strategy stretches a roadmap out before the campus for potential growth and transformation, encompassing new construction, revamps, and parking improvements. In an exhaustive process, over 40 stakeholder groups and some 400 participants from both academia and the surrounding community had their say, ensuring the blueprint aligns with the strategic vision set by the institution, as detailed by the UCCS Communique.

While embracing change in brick and mortar, the financial forecast for the university presents a more complex picture. Three scenarios, portraying varying levels of state funding and anticipated cost upticks, were laid out before the Regents. From the optimistic Scenario B with its modest 1.2% funding hike, to the austere Scenario A, projecting a diminishment of 0.1%, the models all grapple with the reality of unavoidable expenses outpacing revenues, as per regulations by the Colorado Department of Higher Education.

Should Scenario A come to pass, UCCS would witness a curtailment of $3.3 million in state aid, delivering a potential budget shortfall between $6.2 and $9.5 million. This, in turn, would necessitate a tuition hike of 2.3% for in-state undergraduates and a 2.4% increase for those out-of-state, as well as a 2.5% raise for staff compensation, dependent on meeting revenue thresholds, according to the UCCS Communique.

For those seeking to delve deeper, the UBAC will hold a meeting on February 19 to dissect the budget's finer points. UCCS community members can tune into the proceedings, either through a live stream or a later recording, by reaching out to [email protected] for the relevant Microsoft Teams channel links, the UCCS Communique reports.