Utah Legislature passed the Higher Education Strategic Reinvestment Bill, HB 265, Feb. 4, which required higher education institutions to reinvest their funding. Utah Tech University is required to reinvest $2.5 million within the next three years.
Utah Tech vice president of Administrative Affairs, Paul Morris, and provost and vice president of Academic Affairs, Michael Lacourse, are co-chairs of the Strategic Reinvestment Committee. This committee will decide how UT’s funds will be reallocated.
The goal of the committee is to examine all areas across campus and create a reinvestment plan that follows HB 265’s guidelines.
“The committee has reviewed the programmatic and other reinvestment options previously identified by Academic Affairs, data on enrollment and enrollment trends, programmatic costs, open positions, voluntary severance options, and your input through the strategic reinvestment plan form,” Morris said.
The committee includes:
- Michael Lacourse—co-chair, provost and vice president of Academic Affairs
- Paul Morris—co-chair and vice president of Administrative Affairs
- Del Beatty—vice president of Student Affairs
- Ken Beazer—executive director of athletics
- Andy Hunter—2025-26 student body president
- Jennifer Ciaccio—Faculty Senate, professor of biology
- Jamy Dahle—director of counseling services and wellness promotion
- Eli Bermudez—dean for College of Health Sciences
- Linda Yu—dean for College of Business
- Greg Esplin—assistant director of Human Resources
- Henrie Walton—interim chief of staff and assistant to president for government and community relations
- Matt Nickodemus—executive director of institutional effectiveness
- Natalie Nelson—General Counsel, assistant attorney general
- Shantelle Owens—assistant director of planning and budget
- Lucia Taylor—associate professor of Spanish and co-associate dean for College of Humanities and Social Sciences
In an email sent campuswide April 4, Morris said the committee has been meeting regularly to meet requirements set by the bill.
“The Strategic Investment Committee is dedicated to identifying options that will best meet Utah Tech’s mission and vision and position the institution for future success,” the email said.
The email also included a timeline for when the committee will meet and discuss reinvestment.
- April 7-25: Continued review of data, identify cost reductions, create reinvestment strategy
- Week of April 14: Campus town hall meeting and survey
- Week of April 28: Distribution of proposed reinvestment plan and feedback
- May 9: Reinvestment strategy submission to Utah System of Higher Education
Del Beatty, a member of the committee and vice president of Student Affairs, said there were uncertainties about where reinvestment will take place, but they are taking a look across all constituencies from around campus and coming up with a plan to be compliant with the guidelines of HB 265.
“Right now there is a form online, employees can go on and voice their concerns, their ideas, their interests,” Beatty said.
The campus is required to have a three-year plan to cut the budget by $2.5 million and then reinvest the money into a budget that will better serve the taxpayer. The campus won’t be losing the money, but funds will have to be reallocated within the three years.
Beatty said the committee wants to look at academics and reallocate funds that produce more graduates and therefore contribute more to the Utah workforce.
Concerns voiced in the online form will be discussed in the committee’s meetings.
Students like Kaedon Uehling, a sophomore exercise science major from Burley, Idaho, have concerns about what reallocation could mean for clubs and student organizations on campus.
“They recently had that bill [HB 261] that changed where inclusivity entities are now clubs instead of ran through the school,” Uehling said. “So, if funding gets cut, it could be cut from clubs that are supporting students here on campus.”
However, Beatty said any students who are concerned that a program they are enrolled in may be cut, will not be cut off and left in the middle of a degree. The degree program will still be offered until those students have graduated.
The committee plans to host a campus town hall meeting April 14 where the campus community can attend. By attending this meeting, students can hear what concerns have been submitted so far as well as voice their own concerns.
