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Trustees also approved spending to renovate future home of Food Systems Research Center
Vermont Business Magazine The University of Vermont Board of Trustees today approved a general fund budget of $403,863,000 for fiscal year 2023, which facilitates the institution’s commitment to keeping a high-quality UVM education affordable for students and families.
Built into next year’s budget, which starts July 1, is the fact that tuition is being kept at the same level for a fourth consecutive year based on action taken by the board last October. The board’s action resulted in no tuition increase for the 2022-2023 academic year for all students regardless of their degree level or residency status. The decision will allow the Class of 2023 to complete four years of study at UVM paying the same for tuition as they did when they started. Undergraduate in-state tuition is $16,280; out-of-state is $41,280.
Under UVM President Suresh Garimella’s initiative, the undergraduate student comprehensive fee will also remain frozen, the graduate student comprehensive fee will be reduced by $250, and room and board charges will remain flat for the third consecutive year. Room and board costs had been rising an average of 3.2% before Garimella and the board implemented the change.
Trustees also approved spending to undertake a major renovation of the Joseph L. Hills Agricultural Science Building on the UVM campus, the future home of the Food Systems Research Center.
The research center—a collaboration between UVM and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS)—focuses its work on understanding all facets of the regional food system, from production agriculture to food security, with a special focus on small- and medium-sized farms. As part of the collaboration, USDA scientists will work on campus alongside university researchers from related disciplines. The Food Systems Research Center will be physically located in the fully renovated building.
The board approved up to $32 million of spending for the renovation, most of which will come from federal sources, along with $4.4 million of university reserves designated for deferred maintenance and facilities upgrades.
U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) helped establish the UVM/ARS Food Systems Research Center with funding of $3 million in 2019. Last June, Leahy joined UVM leaders to announce $11 million of federal funding that he secured to support the center’s work.
The board also received updates and acted on a variety of topics, including:
- An update on the university’s action plan to address sexual violence and misconduct on campus. A comprehensive view of steps taken is available at https://www.uvm.edu/wehearyou. The board also heard a report on bias response and antisemitism awareness.
- Approval of a PhD in Transdisciplinary Leadership and Creativity for Sustainability in the Graduate College in conjunction with the Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources; a minor in Medical Diagnostics in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences; a minor in Integrative Health in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences; a minor in Integrative Health & Wellness Coaching in the College of Nursing and Health Sciences; and a PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision in the Graduation College in conjunction with the College of Education and Social Services.
- Approval of a resolution establishing a Department of Emergency Medicine in the Larner College of Medicine, and a resolution endorsing the transition of the Physics Department from the College of Arts & Sciences to the College of Engineering & Mathematical Sciences.
- Approval of a resolution extending the voluntary payment for services letter agreement with the City of Burlington for an additional three-year period, with a total payment not to exceed $4.5 million.
About the University of Vermont
Since 1791, the University of Vermont has worked to move humankind forward. UVM’s strengths align with the most pressing needs of our time: the health of our societies and the health of our environment. Our size—large enough to offer a breadth of ideas, resources, and opportunities, yet intimate enough to enable close faculty-student mentorship across all levels of study—allows us to pursue these interconnected issues through cross-disciplinary research and collaboration. Providing an unparalleled educational experience for our students, and ensuring their success, are at the core of what we do. As one of the nation’s first land grant universities, UVM advances Vermont and the broader society through the discovery and application of new knowledge.
UVM is derived from the Latin Universitas Viridis Montis (in English, University of the Green Mountains).