UAM redo OK’d for student union
FAYETTEVILLE — The University of Arkansas at Monticello got approval Friday to start building a student success center.
The center will be a onestop shop for the university’s 3,925 students. The school is renovating its old Student Union building, currently home to the campus’s bookstore and post office, and offices for the band, choir and other groups.
Academic advisers, financial aid counselors and other employees who help students succeed will be stationed in the renovated building, according to board documents. The renovations are expected to cost $7.5 million, all of which come from bond sales. The university has selected SCM Architects for the project.
“We are working very diligently on all things student success,” said university Chancellor Karla Hughes. “This project is a first step for us.”
The university has been zeroing in on student-success initiatives, especially after it almost lost a portion of its state funding mostly because students were not progressing year to year. The school put together a plan for the problem, allowing it to keep that state funding.
Energy-efficiency projects approved
FAYETTEVILLE — Two University of Arkansas System campuses are starting energy-saving efforts after trustees approved them Friday.
The University of Arkansas at Little Rock and the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff will start energy-conservation projects in hopes of saving money.
UALR’s project includes a lighting retrofit across the campus, the expansion of a chilled water plant distribution loop supporting the new Windgate Center of Art + Design and the upgrading of heat and air-conditioning units in the Center for Performing Arts, according to board documents.
The project will cost an estimated $2.7 million — with $300,000 coming from fees on residence halls, $400,000 from the Windgate project and $2 million from an Arkansas Building Authority loan. The metropolitan university will use savings from the energy-conservation project to pay back the loan over the next 10 years.
UAPB’s project includes lighting and water upgrades, improving its heating and air-conditioning units, adding scheduling software, building automation systems and insulation and heating and air improvements to the Harrold Complex.
That project will cost $19.3 million, which will be paid for using reserves, energy rebates and a capital lease not to exceed $17.3 million with an interest rate no higher than 3.09 percent.
Health care law’s future questioned
FAYETTEVILLE — University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ Chancellor Dan Rahn spoke Thursday to the University of Arkansas System board about the uncertainty of the Affordable Care Act.
The address came after UA System Trustee Cliff Gibson of Monticello asked whether or not the academic medical center had a plan in place if the federal act was thrown out, given the Republican majorities in both the U.S. House and Senate and the election of President-elect Donald Trump.
“The political platform has been to repeal and replace,” Rahn said. “We’re going to have to stay very much in step with the General Assembly, governor’s office, Department of Human Services and hopefully our federal delegation to understand the overall direction for redesign and the project timing for both making decisions and implementing decisions.”
He added that there were a lot of wide-ranging proposals, including expansion of employment-based insurance models and efforts to open up insurance markets.
“There’s no way that we can predict what impact they will have on UAMS,” he said. “What we need to do is what we’ve been doing, which is get overall strategic control over all revenue and expenses, every unit managed to its expense budget and focus intensively on developing the capacity to accept insurance risk and outcome-based payments for patients. We need to do that no matter what.”
Trustee Sheffield Nelson of Little Rock said the federal act is going to be repealed — and on a fast track. He also brought up the governor’s proposed $50 million-a-year tax cut.