A new University of Arizona center will soon find its home in Washington, D.C.

At the May 30 Arizona Board of Regents meeting, the University of Arizona proposed their plans to rent premium office space in Washington, D.C. The plan was proposed to the Finance, Capital and Resources Committee.

According to documents from the May 30 meeting, the UA is interested in leasing approximately half of the fifth floor of the new LEED Gold building on 1301 Pennsylvania Avenue. As of right now, the lease for this property is set at approximately $1.2 million a year but may be subject to negotiation. 

This new property will be home to the new Center for Outreach & Collaboration. 

Other features of the new center would include UA’s federal relations office and a new fellowship program which would allow students to spend a semester in Washington, D.C.

          RELATED: Board of Regents discuss UA’s proposed tuition increase 

Brew McKenna, senior advisor to the UA president, says that this office would be the University’s front door to Washington, D.C.

“It would be like a full-service university office in D.C.,” McKenna said. 

McKenna says that the university is hopeful that acquiring this office will allow Federal Relations Office to grow.

“We see this as an opportunity to grow our research funding by working closely with policymakers and agencies in D.C.,” McKenna said.

Not only will the office space be beneficial to the university, but it would also be beneficial for students.

“[The new office] will give students an opportunity to live and work in D.C. for a semester,” McKenna said. “Students will be able to intern at different government agencies, media firms, really anything they’re interested in.”

In an email correspondence, Lisa Rulney, the Vice President of Business Affairs at the UA, confirmed that the Arizona Board of Regents approved UA’s proposal at the June 13 board meeting.

Follow Sadie on Twitter