U of M President Kaler highlights overall impact of the University to MN Legislature

Today, University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler presented the University’s 2018 capital request to the Minnesota Senate Higher Education Finance and Policy Committee as well as the Minnesota House Higher Education and Career Readiness Policy and Finance Committee. In his presentations today, President Kaler was joined by Tonya Schoenfuss, associate professor in Dairy Products Technology; U of M Twin Cities students Max Hurst, Monica Hysing and Zoe Wentzl; as well as U of M Morris students Autumn Johnson, Andrew Brichacek and Ruby DeBellis.

Below is a statement from President Kaler:

“I was honored to be joined by so many passionate advocates—including U of M students, faculty and staff—in the presentation of the University’s 2018 capital request to the Minnesota Senate and House higher education committees. Their voices and stories demonstrate that the University’s facilities—our labs, classrooms, research and outreach centers—are the foundation of our strong impact across the state.

“Our request this year is focused entirely on renewal. We aim to address the oldest pieces of our 29 million square feet of space and provide our students, our faculty and all Minnesotans with a world-class University that conducts its work and its service in 21st century facilities. I will continue to work with the Legislature in advancing this important initiative for the benefit of the entire state.”

The University of Minnesota’s 2018 capital request includes four priority initiatives totaling $238.5 million in state funding to benefit laboratories, research centers, classrooms and outreach spaces across the state:

• Higher Education Asset Preservation and Replacement (HEAPR) systemwide ($200 million)
• Greater MN Academic Renewal on the Duluth, Crookston and Morris campuses ($10.5 million)
• Pillsbury Hall Capital Renewal on the Twin Cities campus ($24 million)
• Glensheen Renewal in Duluth ($4 million)

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• Find out more about the University’s 2018 capital request at government-relations.umn.edu.
• Download high resolution images of the University’s capital request.
• See a financial breakdown of the University’s capital request.
• Download a PDF map of the University’s impact across the state.