Regents, colleagues, and members of our university community:
Today is a milestone day for the University of Nebraska, the state of Nebraska, and indeed, for all those who will benefit from improved access to world-class health care across our region. At the center of our agenda today is Project Health—the multi-billion-dollar clinical learning and health care facility we are building here, on this campus. This initiative represents not only the most ambitious project in our university’s history but also one of the most consequential investments in the health and well-being of the people we serve and as an exemplar for the future of modern academic medical centers.
Project Health will be the state’s largest teaching, clinical research and clinical care facility. It will serve as the primary inpatient hospital for Nebraska Medicine, housing state-of-the-art clinical care rooms, and at the same time will be a dynamic clinical learning environment for the next generation of health professionals. The importance of this cannot be overstated. Each year, Nebraska Medicine serves as a training ground for more than 3,000 students across more than 50 different health programs and 10 colleges of medicine. Some 700 residents and fellows gain essential clinical experience through Nebraska Medicine every year.
These learners—most of whom go on to practice in Nebraska and surrounding states—form the backbone of our health care workforce today, and even more so in the future.
At a time when shortages in physicians, nurses, pharmacists, dentists and other professionals threaten access to care—particularly in rural communities—Project Health gives us the ability to expand enrollment significantly across the health professions. It also provides the space needed to accelerate capable learners into practice and to expand access to cutting-edge research and life-saving clinical trials. This is the very heart of our land-grant mission: to meet the needs of the people of Nebraska where they are, and to prepare the workforce that will care for them for generations to come.
I want to thank UNMC Interim Chancellor Dele Davies for his vision and leadership, as well as this Board, our Governor and the many public and private partners who have rallied behind this ambitious vision. This is the largest and truly highest impact public private partnership in our state’s history. Together, we are making an investment in lives saved, communities strengthened and a healthier future for our state.
Last month, we had the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C. not once, but twice. In addition to important conversations with our health, defense and policy partners, we spent meaningful time with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its Agricultural Research Service. Nebraska’s partnership with ARS is one of the most unique and valuable in the country. On the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s East Campus, ARS scientists are embedded within UNL departments, collaborating closely on research that directly benefits Nebraska producers. They mentor our students, publish alongside our faculty and help us tackle challenges from animal health to crop resilience to sustainability.
The collaboration extends beyond Lincoln. The U.S. Meat Animal Research Center and UNL’s Great Plains Veterinary Education Center in Clay Center have long worked hand-in-hand, ensuring Nebraska remains a national leader in livestock production and animal health. Together, USDA, ARS and NU scientists innovate new tools, train agricultural leaders and deliver solutions that feed and fuel the world. These are relationships decades in the making, and they are vital to our state’s economy and global competitiveness. The conversations I had in Washington underscored that the appreciation for this unique partnership is shared by our colleagues at USDA, and that we both look forward to building upon this strong foundation.
These Beltway meetings also included the senior leadership of ASPR, NDMS and others. In follow up, I am proud to share a remarkable achievement for the University of Nebraska Medical Center and its partners, Emory University and New York Bellevue Hospital, through the National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center (NETEC). Late last month the consortium has been awarded over $60 million in new federal funding to strengthen national preparedness and response capabilities for emerging health threats, including avian influenza. This funding underscores our leadership in public health and healthcare and recognizes UNMC's vital role in safeguarding the health and safety across the nation.
Here in Nebraska, we feel the impact of our University each day, all across our state.
The University of Nebraska at Omaha, in partnership with KANEKO, the Greater Omaha Chamber and the City of Omaha, will host OMA x AI on Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025, in Downtown Omaha. This event is designed to make AI knowledge accessible to everyone, from those just getting started to those already applying AI their work each day. This event reflects both UNO’s deep commitment to workforce development and the University of Nebraska’s systemwide leadership in AI innovation and highlights how AI fluency is transforming careers and fueling breakthroughs in medicine, agriculture and beyond.
The University of Nebraska at Kearney, in partnership with the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, is leading a new statewide early literacy initiative that will strengthen language development for young children in every corner of Nebraska. Funded by a $1.295 million grant, the five-year project will use innovative “talk pedometer” technology and educator coaching to create language-rich environments for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Building on UNK’s expertise in rural early childhood education and the Buffett Institute’s statewide reach, the effort will impact more than 1,300 children in its first two years.
The impact of the University of Nebraska can also be seen every weekend this fall, as our athletic programs demonstrate excellence on the field, on the court and beyond.
This fall, I’ve been particularly inspired in how athletics connects back to our academic and service missions. During last month’s Husker football game against Michigan, we celebrated World Marrow Donor Day. During a special halftime recognition ceremony, we honored Julia Morrison, a young girl from Lincoln whose life was saved by a bone marrow transplant at UNMC, and Dr. Erica Brockberg, the Michigan physician who became Julia’s donor. Their story highlighted not only the lifesaving work of our Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center but also the generosity of donors, the power of partnerships across institutions, and the lasting impact that just one person can have on the life of another, even if they cheer on opposite sides of the stadium. Let’s enjoy a brief video of this special event.
In addition, our entire university community is once again joining the “We Give Blood” challenge with Abbott and the Big Ten Conference. This campaign addresses the national shortage of blood donations while showcasing the service-minded spirit of our students, faculty, staff, and alumni. Last year, Nebraska led the nation in this effort, with donations that helped save more than 60,000 lives and earned $1 million for student and community health at UNL. We are proud to defend that title this year—and even more proud of the impact every donation makes for patients in need.
This blending of athletic pride with academic purpose and service to others is the essence of who we are as a university. Across our campuses, our athletic programs embody the same collaboration, culture and resilience that define our state and its people.
Of course, we cannot talk about Athletics without honoring Coach John Cook, who we honored earlier at this meeting. Last month we ensured his legacy will be a constant presence at home volleyball games with the dedication of a bronze statue in his likeness at Devaney Center.
Coach Cook has built not only a championship program, but also a culture that is second to none. He had the unique ability to take groups of young women from different places and backgrounds and mold them into cohesive, high-performing teams.
But beyond the numbers, he transformed Nebraska into the epicenter of women’s volleyball. Volleyball Day in Nebraska, with 92,003 fans filling Memorial Stadium—the largest crowd ever for a women’s sporting event worldwide—was a testament not only to the program he built but to the inspiration he provided an entire state. His mantra to Dream Big will continue to echo in the hearts of players, fans, and Nebraskans for generations to come. On behalf of the University of Nebraska, I extend our deepest gratitude to Coach Cook for his leadership, vision and legacy.
Even as we celebrate these successes, we cannot ignore the challenges before us. Last month, Chancellor Rodney Bennett announced proposed budget reductions at UNL as part of a broader systemwide effort. These proposals include eliminating six academic programs, realigning several others and making difficult cuts across multiple colleges. These recommendations follow announcements of budget reduction plans at each of our other campuses that, together with the UNL announcement and reductions within the office of the President.
We all recognize how painful these recommendations are. They will affect lives, livelihoods, and the very fabric of our institution. It is also important to remember that the announcements represents proposals—just one step in a process that will include review, feedback and final consideration by this Board in the months ahead.
As I said in my State of the University Address last month at the State Capitol, our momentum is real. We are growing in research productivity, philanthropic support and statewide impact. At the same time, we face the realities that demand difficult decisions. As time has shown, the longer we wait, the more difficult these decisions be. Our responsibility is to act with discipline and care, always keeping student success and the long-term strength of the university at the center of every decision. At the same time, we must advocate for robust, sustained support that will allow us to continue to serve Nebraska students, families, industries and communities and contribute billions to the state’s economy each year.
I am grateful to each of you, and to our faculty, staff and students, for engaging in this process with thoughtfulness and honesty. These challenges, while significant, do not define us. Rather, they test us—and I believe they will help us to look even more carefully in the mirror and define the future of higher education.
As we look across our campuses today, we see a University of Nebraska that is living its mission in powerful ways: investing in the future of health care, advancing food, fuel and water national security, building community and confronting our challenges with honesty and resolve.
These are not isolated stories. Together, they form a narrative of a university that is resilient, ambitious and dedicated to serving Nebraska and the world. This is exemplified by our system wide strategic planning implementation, now more than 1000 initiatives across all campuses, colleges, centers, institutes, business units and more. I am confident that if we continue to dream big, work together and stay focused on our mission, we will emerge stronger than ever. The University of Nebraska’s best days are still ahead, and I am honored to work alongside all of you to make that future a reality.
Thank you.