Students were vacationing on the beach or relaxing at home for spring break, but the news didn’t stop for the UA. Here’s what you may have missed:
Natural gas leak affects campus buildings
A natural gas leak occurred in the area of Cherry Avenue and First Street on Thursday. Traffic was closed to Cherry between First and Second Streets as Southwest Gas worked to fix the problem. Gas was turned off for the St. Thomas More Catholic Newman Center, Delta Delta Delta, Sigma Kappa, Delta Tau Delta and Gamma Phi Beta. The leak was fixed at approximately 3:30 p.m, at which time the streets were reopened and the buildings had gas restored.
Arizona Senate votes on state budget
The Arizona Senate released its version of the state budget last week, which included $2.5 million for the UA Cooperative Extension program. The UA funding is less than what was requested by the Arizona Board of Regents, which has expressed concern over the lack of funding. The state budget now moves to the Arizona House of Representatives, where legislators will vote whether or not to approve the Senate version.
State universities submit tuition proposals
The three state universities officially submitted their tuition proposals to the Arizona Board of Regents on March 14. The proposal for UA includes a 2 percent tuition increase for current in-state students and a 5 percent increase for current out-of-state students. The proposal also lists a four-year plan for incoming students with a set tuition rate for all four years. The set tuition rate would be 6 percent above the current rate, and current students would be given the option to choose this plan if they felt it would be more cost effective. The tuition rate would be reset for each incoming freshman class.
Senator nixes marijuana study
UA doctor Suzanne Sisley had thought that House Bill 2333 might provide funding for her to conduct studies on whether marijuana could be used to treat patients with post-traumatic stress disorder. This study would be the first of its kind, and is something Sisley has been working on for years. However, Sen. Kimberly Yee (R-Phoenix) decided not to give a hearing to the House-passed bill, which would provide funding for research into the uses of medical marijuana, with the money coming from state fees on medical marijuana use and sale. Without support from the bill, Sisley will need to find another source of funding.
UA holds Match Day for medical students
The UA College of Medicine — Tucson and the UA College of Medicine — Phoenix held their Match Day on Friday. At Match Day, more than 100 medical students set to graduate in May learned where they will complete their residency training program.
