UPEI Board of Governors approves balanced operating budget with focus on student and employee supports
On April 2, the UPEI Board of Governors approved a balanced operating budget of just under $183 million dollars for the 2024–2025 fiscal year, representing growth of almost 12 per cent in both revenues and expenses. The University is making substantial investments in employees, particularly those involved with providing frontline services to students, staff, and faculty. Salary and benefits for faculty and staff comprise 73 per cent of expenses in the 2024–2025 budget.
In preparation for this budget, the University identified that student success and employee supports would be priorities. In the wake of the release of the University of Prince Edward Island Review in June 2023, the University consulted with the community and developed the UPEI Action Plan, which was supported by Senate and approved last week by the Board of Governors. UPEI began the necessary investments in these areas in December 2023, with the creation of an Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) and Human Rights department, and additional support in Student Affairs. With this budget, the University is investing further in these areas, as well as adding capacity in Human Resources and Security Services.
The 2024–2025 budget allocates new core funding to support the hiring of additional tenure-track faculty members in the Faculty of Indigenous Knowledge, Education, Research and Applied Studies (IKERAS), as well as in other strategic areas. In addition to the growth in IKERAS, all other faculties see substantial growth in their budgets, ranging from 4.3 to 11.5 per cent. Additionally, UPEI is continuing to invest in information technology improvements.
In a message to the members of the UPEI community, Dr. Greg Keefe, Interim President and Vice-Chancellor, said, “All of this growth comes at substantial financial cost. We are grateful for the support given to us by the provincial government, but we also need to continue to grow internal resources.”
To support and meet the financial needs of academic programs, both domestic and international tuition at UPEI and the Atlantic Veterinary College will increase by 5 per cent for the 2024–2025 academic year. This equates to an increase of $34 per course for undergraduate students. UPEI continues to have the lowest domestic undergraduate tuition fees in the region according to the Maritime Provinces Higher Education Commission.
“I want to thank everyone who was involved in the development of this year’s budget,” added Dr. Keefe. “The growth we are experiencing will allow UPEI to continue as a vital part of the PEI landscape—bringing educational opportunity, cultural enrichment, population and diversity enhancement, and economic advancement to the province.”
2024–2025 UPEI Operating Budget
