We treasure the University of Idaho’s location here on the Palouse. Our students have access to great outdoor opportunities within a short drive, and a vibrant, welcoming community in Moscow. We also know getting to and from the Palouse can be challenging.

We’ve made investments in our transportation infrastructure in recent years and they’re paying off nicely. Alaska Airlines revived its direct flights to and from Boise in August of 2021, with the backing of the University of Idaho and WSU. We jointly guaranteed the airline would make a 10% margin on the flight. The U of I and WSU will provide a subsidy up to $500,000 per year over the next three years if needed. Even if the full subsidy is paid, the U of I will only need approximately 40 new students from our largest recruiting market to break-even on its commitment to the agreement.

Our enrollment is highly correlated with the direct flight to Boise. We began seeing enrollment declines of about 200 students per year when we lost both Moscow and Lewiston flights to Boise. The return of the Boise-Moscow flights coincided with a 16% jump in freshman enrollment last fall, which we don’t believe is a coincidence. Our students and prospective students, employees and community members are also saving time and money thanks to this investment.

Recently we pledged $400,000 to the airport’s new $43 million terminal, which will enable greater flight capacity and open our university to new markets across the west. The new terminal is expected to be completed in 2023. We need approximately 12 new students over the three annual payments to break even on this investment. One new route will likely generate those students.

Access to our institution is central to our land-grant mission and we believe investment in our airport and related routes will generate a strong financial return. Increasing that access and making wise investments in our future is a win for the U of I, our community and our state.

In other news, I’m pleased to report that Amy Lientz has been appointed assistant vice president for alumni relations at the U of I. Amy earned her master’s degree at the U of I in 1995 and has been a leader in the energy sector for more than 30 years, most recently at Idaho National Laboratory.

She will lead the Office of Alumni Relations and administer the U of I Alumni Association, which includes more than 111,000 members across the globe. Amy will succeed Kathy Barnard, who served our institution with distinction and decided to retire at the end of 2021. We’re excited to have Amy officially join us April 11.

Micron offers $1 million in engineering grants: In an effort to attract more students to engineering careers, Micron Technology and the Micron Foundation are adding more than $1 million in grants to the colleges of engineering at the U of I and Boise State University. The grants support targeted programs that expand access, diversify enrollment and prepare students for engineering careers.

UI on the cutting edge of evolving meat industry: Students and faculty focusing on meat sciences at the U of I will soon have a new $8 million facility that will help the region and the country develop competition in the industry and promote sustainable local agriculture. Students in the program run all aspects of a USDA-inspected meat processing facility and then sell the products locally.

McCluskey family donates $1 million to UI’s indoor track: Matt and Jill McCluskey donated $1 million to the U of I to resurface the indoor track at the ASUI Kibbie Activity Center. The track will be named for Lauren McCluskey, who was killed in 2018 while she was a student-athlete at the University of Utah. McCluskey grew up in Pullman and spent many hours training at the Kibbie Dome throughout high school and college.