Dear Colleagues:

We write to share updates and actions we are taking to help safeguard the future of UC Davis. Thank you for reading these messages and staying informed. We know this is an uncertain time as we continue to navigate the shifts in federal policy and funding. Please know we are monitoring developments and sharing information as it becomes available.

Federal immigration enforcement actions

We want to reiterate our support for faculty, staff and students in the wake of the federal government’s termination of visas here and across the U.S. We encourage you to review the resources listed in the chancellor’s statement and FAQs on the University of California website. The FAQs provide guidance on what to do if a federal officer requests personally identifiable information about a student, employee, or patient.

Updates on research

We will join Vice Chancellor Simon Atkinson and other campus leaders for Office Hours, hosted by the Office of Research, from 11 a.m. to noon on Friday, April 25. This is the third installment of Office Hours, which has drawn hundreds of faculty and staff. We will discuss federal actions related to research and how the campus is responding. Please register online and submit your questions prior to or during the event. Space may be limited so register soon. 

The university has received dozens of notices from federal agencies related to specific grants or contracts since the change in the federal administration. These notices vary significantly in their intent and need for action. In every case, the Office of Research is working directly with the principal investigator and campus leadership to determine the appropriate course of action. For terminations, this may include filing an appeal directly with the agency, as well as litigating and/or negotiating the settlement prior to closeout. These processes can take months and prevent us from sharing information publicly until complete. Weekly updates are being provided to assistant deans to keep each college and school informed.

We also are making strides in enhancing general research administration.  Grants and Contracts Accounting and the Sponsored Programs Office are improving service and processing times. Several key positions have been filled and staff are cross-training to increase capacity and reduce processing time for awards and agreements. In addition, the following enhancements have been made to Aggie Enterprise and process flows:

• Improved integration between Cayuse and Aggie Enterprise to reduce errors and the time it takes to set up awards
• Eliminated the requirement to submit a separate internal budget if the proposal or agreement includes a detailed budget
• Incorporated Aggie Enterprise access into the PI eligibility request to eliminate award setup delays

Many thanks to everyone involved in making these improvements, and we look forward to receiving additional recommendations from the Academic Senate. We also would like to recognize the tremendous effort by members of our campus community who are supporting our research mission during very challenging times.

Faculty merit and promotion review process

With the changes to availability of grants and contracts, faculty have expressed concerns about the merit and promotion review process. As we have been doing since the COVID-19 pandemic, we are offering faculty the use of a Statement of Achievements Relative to Opportunities. In these statements, faculty may write about adverse impacts to their research and other university work as a result of changes taking place at the federal level. Information on writing the statements is available on the Academic Affairs website.

Campus Budget

As stated in the provost’s message sent to faculty on March 5, units have engaged in an exercise to model cuts on Common Operating Funds and Student Service Fee Funds. Budget meetings have begun and will continue through June as we review potential cost reductions. The annual budget presentations by the deans of the colleges and schools will continue to include the chair of the Faculty Executive Committee for every school or college. The Academic Senate Chair or Vice Chair also is invited to attend presentations from administrative and academic support units.

Our final decisions on the 2025-26 budget will be affected by the California state budget, which currently includes a $37 million reduction for UC Davis. We must also keep in mind that there will be additional changes in federal funding. You can read about the budget process, including the campus budget timeline, on the Budget Framework website. We want to thank units on campus that have already started reducing expenditures.

Faculty have inquired about funding for the 2025-26 academic year for Academic Student Employees, or ASEs, including teaching assistants, associate instructors, readers, tutors, and other instructional assistants. The provost shared in a message on Dec. 12 that central campus will continue funding ASE salary and benefit cost increases at the level provided this  academic year. Leadership in the colleges and schools will determine the number of ASE positions based on need and the university’s teaching mission.

Aggie Square Opening

Next week, we will officially open Aggie Square, made possible by a public-private partnership between UC Davis and Wexford Science & Technology. Aggie Square features beautiful, state-of-the-art facilities for teaching and research and will bring faculty and students side-by-side with industry and community organizations.

This incredible endeavor would not have been possible without Wexford, which carried the risk and invested $525 million to construct the core and shell of Phase 1A of Aggie Square. UC Davis invested $347 million toward space it will occupy, including interior customizations, furniture, lab equipment and other necessary fixtures, with $297 million financed through external debt. Wexford will pay UC Davis $1.3 million per year for a ground lease and will be responsible for the cost and oversight of long-term maintenance for the buildings.

Phase 1A of Aggie Square provides UC Davis with 398,727 square feet of new, modern spaces for research, teaching and innovation that simply could not be built without a partnership of this kind. For example, Aggie Square features leading-edge research laboratories for the School of Medicine, the first new labs built on the Sacramento campus in 45 years. As the anchor tenant, UC Davis will occupy 60 percent of the leasable space, which, in addition to the School of Medicine, will be leased by the School of Veterinary Medicine, the College of Engineering, Continuing and Professional Education and the Innovation and Economic Development Office.

Through a Community Benefits Partnership Agreement signed by UC Davis, Wexford and the City of Sacramento, Aggie Square supports affordable housing initiatives, contributes to economic and workforce development, and offers space for community programming. Per the most recent economic impact report prepared for the university, once all phases are fully developed, Aggie Square is expected to generate approximately $500 million in annual economic output, support 3,200 jobs and help generate new revenue streams for UC Davis.

Hiring freeze, diversity statements 

UC President Michael Drake announced a systemwide hiring freeze on March 19. Human Resources has shared a Workforce Management Plan for staff hiring on its website. We are providing an exception to the hiring freeze so that it does not apply to graduate students and postdoctoral scholars, and these positions will not go through the Workforce Management Plan process. We will follow our standard faculty hiring process, though we anticipate fewer hires than in recent years.

Systemwide Provost Katherine Newman issued a letter on March 20 about the UC Board of Regents’ decision to prohibit campuses from requiring stand-alone DEI statements for faculty and academic appointee recruitments. We have posted FAQs related to diversity, equity and inclusion statements for academic appointee recruitments on the Academic Affairs website. If you have questions, please contact Vice Provost Phil Kass at phkass@ucdavis.edu.

Actions you can take

We appreciate your contributions to UC Davis and understand how much you care about the university and the meaningful impact of our work. At times like these, many people want to help but may not know how. Here are a few ideas to consider:

• The Office of Strategic Communications is sharing stories about UC Davis researchers and the important impacts of their work through the video series From Labs to Lives. Contact your unit’s communication team or Strategic Communications if you would like to be considered for the series.
• Join the UC Advocacy Network and contact your representative to help preserve research at and funding for UC Davis. UCAN also offers an advocacy toolkit with tips for sharing your research story on social media.
• Stay informed about federal updates by visiting the University of California website and the UC Davis Office of Research website.

Thank you

We chose career paths in higher education because we believe in public service and the important ways education improves lives. While our campus has weathered challenges in the past, we have never felt prouder to be part of UC Davis than we do now. To be among this dedicated community of scholars, teachers, staff, students, emeriti and alumni is incredibly special. When we see all that you are doing every day for our students and for one another, we are confident that UC Davis can emerge from this crisis even stronger by working as a community, and focusing on our core mission of teaching, research and service. Please know that we will do everything we can to support you, and we are grateful for your partnership. 

Sincerely,

Gary S. May
Chancellor

Mary Croughan
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor