Holland announces legislative priorities
We are the future of higher education, according to president of UVU Matthew Holland, at the State of the University address Feb. 8.
As the legislative session is underway, Holland’s first legislative priority is to push for a 3 percent merit-based compensation adjustment for UVU employees. This increased funding will give the university $4.6 million.
“The only way that we have achieved all the successes that I have been talking about today is through you, the staff and faculty who give your all to this institution,” said Holland.
According to Holland, not all institutions are growing as fast as UVU, which makes pushing for $1 million in growth funds the second legislative priority.
“To fail to give UVU growth money, especially in years where we have grown over 1,000 students like we have this year, is like giving us a budget cut,” said Holland.
Holland, who became president of UVU in 2009, stressed the need for the funding of a new building for the largest school of business in the state. Currently, the Woodbury School of Business located on the south end of campus, is hitting its limit for accommodating students.
“This year we will be receiving the second crunch of our funding for [the] Noorda Performing Arts Center, as established last legislative session,” said Holland. “So, our changes this year for support for this building are very slim.”
Holland highlighted the diversity of the campus, saying that students of color have increased 108 percent since 2009 and first-generation students make up 38 percent of the campus community.
Holland emphasized the importance of the Rebecca D. Lockhart Arena.
Other future developments featured in UVU’s 25-year master plan include: a pedestrian bridge over the freeway to connect east and west campuses, plans for new campuses in Vineyard and Payson, and the ribbon cutting of the Thanksgiving Point campus.
This year the five new graduate programs will be running and there will be a realignment of two of the colleges. Health-related programs in the college of science will move over to the college of aviation and public services, and become the new college of health and public services. “This will create a better, fitter program under each roof, leading to new energy and expansions for those affected programs,” said Holland.
Holland stated that there will also be a partnership between UVU and the National Cybersecurity Alliance.
“Those buildings and the future of technology, as exciting as they are, are probably the least exciting thing about our future,” said Holland. “The true excitement will be, as it always has been and always will be, all of the 65,000 students who will be here in 2041.”
Holland paid tribute to previous UVU founders Hyrum Johnson and Wilson Sorenson.
“Under enormous physical, and social and political pressures [they] took on the responsibility of launching this thing with very little money, in kind of a divisive community about whether we should even have the program. It cost him his health and even cost him his job,” said Holland.
Jacob Coulson, a junior biology major, says he is excited about the school’s expansion plans.
“It was really cool to see the future of the university and to see how much they have accomplished so far, it’s pretty incredible,” Coulson said. “I’m most excited about the new campus in Vineyard.”
Kimberly Bojórquez is a Los Angeles native currently pursuing her Bachelor of Arts in Communication with an emphasis in journalism, and a minor in Latin American Studies. From 2017-18 she served as the editor-in-chief of the UVU Review and worked at ABC4’s morning show “Good Things Utah”, Salt Lake City Weekly and the Daily Herald.
She has written stories that relate to national issues, local crime and social justice. In her spare time, she loves to take photos, hike Utah’s national parks and attend live rock concerts.