Utah State University | USU 2026 Legislative Priorities

Utah’s Need

Utah’s strong economy depends on a highly skilled workforce and dynamic partnerships between universities, the state, and private organizations to create innovative solutions to meet real-world challenges facing the state and nation. The renovation of the historic “Animal Science” building on the USU Logan campus will provide additional space to house learning and research in the math, stats, and AI disciplines.

USU’s Proposal

Utah State University proposes a renovation project to create the physical and intellectual infrastructure to support the university’s collaborative hub for interdisciplinary teaching and research, an expanded mathematics and statistics tutoring center, and a state-of-the-art artificial intelligence computing lab for both teaching and research.

Background

One of the first finished buildings on the Logan campus, the 107-year-old “Animal Science” building has not seen any building-wide structural upgrades in over 80 years. Since 2012, the building has housed the mathematics and statistics department, which needs updated facilities to provide students with the collaborative spaces necessary for modern innovation.

Renovating and expanding this antiquated building is a cost-effective and strategic way to create an efficient, student-centered 21st-century learning environment aligned with the university’s, USHE’s and Utah’s human-centered shared vision for the future of AI. This renovation will also facilitate the expansion of the USU Honors Program and co-locate it with programs critical to Utah’s workforce future.

USU’s Expertise and Investment

Utah State is home to faculty with nationally recognized research programs in data science and AI, including one of the few academics named to the AI Utah 100. USU has already invested $250,000 toward high-powered AI servers. Additionally, the university recently directed $900,000 in new faculty positions in related disciplines and $800,000 toward a new School of Computing through its strategic reinvestment plan. These investments will fund essential learning and research space in the newly renovated building.

This state investment will leverage the university’s expertise by adding infrastructure to support new faculty positions in high-impact areas primed for innovation and industry collaboration, as well as provide a prominent and welcoming home for the expansion of USU’s honors program in the heart of the Logan campus.

Outcomes of Project

Coupled with new faculty positions, this building project will expand access to data science and AI curriculum tailored for Utah’s rural communities, preparing students across the state for participation in high-demand careers and cultivating the talent pipeline needed to implement data and AI solutions across Utah’s industry and government sectors.
Provide the physical space and resources to facilitate the capturing, preserving, understanding, and utilizing of massive datasets.
Preserve and increase the utilization of a treasured historic building at the heart of campus on USU’s historic quad.
Increase participation in Honors Program, resulting in improved retention and graduation rates, as well as a more prepared workforce in mathematics, statistics, data science, and AI.