President Rebecca Cunningham told the Board of Regents on June 13, 2025, that the University of Minnesota’s FY2026 budget proposal will require “difficult choices” that include about 7% scope reductions across the university and could affect workforce levels. Cunningham said the administration is proposing a balanced budget that will include personnel and program adjustments and that local deans, chancellors and department chairs are responsible for determining where reductions occur within their units.

Cunningham said the 7% scope reduction translates to an anticipated loss of about 300 full-time equivalent positions across the system, a figure provided to the board by central budget offices. She added that federal actions have already stopped funding for some grants, which has affected between “about 150 and 200” positions tied directly to those grants; the administration is using the RAISE program and other measures to try to reassign or otherwise support affected staff and faculty where possible.

The president framed the budget context in three pressures: flat state support that reduces spending power (she said the equivalent of a 3–4% reduction over time), federal research funding cuts (she referenced approximately $40 million already cut), and tuition revenues that have not kept pace with inflation. Cunningham said the proposed tuition increase is intended to avoid deeper cuts and noted that, adjusted for inflation, Twin Cities tuition with the proposed increase would still be about 3% lower than a decade ago.

Cunningham emphasized decentralized decision-making: individual colleges and units will decide how to apply reductions based on local academic priorities. She said the administration has set aside recurring funds for workforce reinvestment, and that the FY2026 proposal includes a 3% merit raise pool and a 1% market adjustment pool for employees. The president also signaled new hiring protocols to track hiring and growth decisions across the university while preserving local authority over hiring decisions.

On revenue strategies, Cunningham highlighted work with the University of Minnesota Foundation on new philanthropic models, the RAISE program to support scholars affected by federal funding loss, and ongoing efforts to prioritize investments in people and infrastructure.

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Cunningham asked the board to consider these choices in advance of a special meeting next week to consider the FY2026 budget. She repeatedly framed the decisions as trade-offs intended to protect core academic programs, invest in people and maintain the university’s mission in constrained fiscal conditions.