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A group of Arizona business and academic leaders gathered on the UA campus to highlight the benefits of the Stimulus Plan for Economic and Education Development.

By Ellen Moss, University Communications
April 24, 2008

Arizona business leaders voiced their support on Thursday of the new $1.4 billion economic stimulus package recently proposed by The University of Arizona, Arizona State University and Northern Arizona University. The plan will improve and expand facilities at the universities and help boost the state's economy.

Members of the Arizona Board of Regents and representatives from the three universities and the Arizona business community discussed the Stimulus Plan for Economic and Educational Development at the UA on Thursday, highlighting the plan's potential benefits.

"We see this as a very unique opportunity to create jobs, to jumpstart our economy, to invest in our public universities and, therefore, in Arizona's future," said ABOR President Fred Boice.

The plan is expected to create 30,000 jobs through construction projects and other endeavors. Other goals of the plan include creating more facilities to educate more students – the Arizona system will have an estimated 185,000 students by 2020 – and produce educated graduates who can contribute to Arizona's economy through their jobs.

Ron Shoopman, president of the Southern Arizona Leadership Council, said that members of the business community "enthusiastically endorse this plan." He said the plan gives elected officials the chance to act decisively.

"If they act decisively, we do two things," Shoopman said. "We improve the current state of the economy, but more importantly, we make investments in the future of this region that will pay dividends for years to come."

Under the terms of the stimulus package proposal, the universities would cover 20 percent of cost and the state would not begin making payments until fiscal year 2010.

The plan is similar to the Research Infrastructure bill passed by the legislature in 2003, which supported the construction of the Thomas W. Keating Bioresearch Building, home to the BIO5 Institute.

UA President Robert N. Shelton said that because of the Research Infrastructure bill, the UA was able to attract talented faculty and researchers from across the country based on the promise of working at the state-of-the-art BIO5 facility.

When those faculty members arrived on campus, they brought millions of dollars in funding with them. Now that the state has begun covering the bonds, the 2003 bill "has already been paid back many times over by the federal dollars that these scholars have won to bring into that facility," Shelton said.

The universities hope this new proposal will work in the same way – attracting students and faculty with modern, high-tech buildings, which, in turn, will help to stimulate the economy by preparing students for Arizona's workforce.

"In the long term, this state simply needs to have more educated folks qualifying and participating in the kinds of jobs – high paying jobs – that will drive the economy of the state of Arizona forward for many years to come," Shelton said.

Arizona lags behind the national average in college graduates, said Frances McLane Merryman, a member of the Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities board of directors. The stimulus plan can help the state overcome this challenge by providing more opportunities for students.

"Today, more than ever, we know that employers are looking for a talent pool of highly trained and skilled workers," she said. "And what better place for them to look than our own University of Arizona."

Merryman also addressed concerns from those who believe that the universities' proposal comes at a bad time, given Arizona's current economic situation, stating that interest rates are low and the construction projects at the UA, ASU and NAU are "well defined and ready to go."

"This is a win-win for the state of Arizona and its residents," she said.

Currently in need of $525 million for previously deferred repairs, the three universities believe that action needs to be taken quickly to keep the schools competitive and productive.

"It's time to get on our horses and get in the game here," said ASU President Michael Crow, adding that old, antiquated facilities can't be used as mechanisms to attract students.

NAU has buildings that are three to four years away from being taken down due to serious fire, life and safety issues, according to NAU President John Haeger, making the need for the stimulus plan's success immediate.

"There's almost no alternative," Haeger said. "If we don't move now, we're going to move backwards, not forwards. The state has made a lot of progress in the last four or five years and I think it would be a shame to take us in the other direction."

So far, legislators are showing some interest in the stimulus plan, said ABOR treasurer Fred DuVal, and the plan will be rolled out publicly "in short order."