Controversial UA Global Campus set for new leadership as top official steps down

Helen Rummel, Arizona Republic
·2 min read
The University of Arizona's latest COVID-19 data shows their positivity rate and number of new positive cases continue to increase slightly following the end of the term.
The University of Arizona's latest COVID-19 data shows their positivity rate and number of new positive cases continue to increase slightly following the end of the term.

The leader of the University of Arizona’s Global Campus on Monday stepped down from the position not long after the online school was integrated into UA’s system.

Former Senior Vice President Paul Pastorek oversaw the academics, marketing and student affairs at UAGC, an online school with an enrollment of more than 24,000 students. The change in the school’s leadership comes as the university navigates immediate cash flow issues that came to light last month following increased spending toward certain projects like the online school, research and sports programs.

Gary Packard, dean of the College of Applied Science and Technology, will take over as the interim senior vice provost of online initiatives overseeing both UAGC and Arizona Online, UA's online program providing degrees marked as being from the University of Arizona. The Global Campus degrees come with a UAGC distinction.

UAGC’s site specifies Packard will ensure “consistent strategic oversight and coordination of the University’s online initiatives.”

UA spokesperson Pam Scott would not comment further on why Pastorek stepped down.

UA’s acquisition of the school was met with criticism from faculty when announced in 2020. UA acquired the private, for-profit college Ashford University to start UAGC, a nonprofit online school.

Some faculty members were concerned the move would harm UA’s overall reputation and felt they were not sufficiently consulted before the decision. Ashford had previously been sued for misleading students in an effort to convince them to enroll. The U.S. Department of Education later discharged millions of dollars of loans students took out to attend the college.

In an email to faculty, UA Faculty Chair Leila Hudson said the change could be an opportunity for faculty to provide more input on how UAGC is supervised.

Hudson has been skeptical of the money invested in UAGC, saying the investments UA put toward the online program put pressure on UA's finances and contributed to its current budget shortfalls. In the email, she said she hopes to be included in a UAGC advisory board that would choose a permanent leader for the online school.

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Helen Rummel is a reporter for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at hrummel@azcentral.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Leader of University of Arizona Global Campus steps down