The University of California was hit with $558 million in unanticipated costs in March alone due to coronavirus, a staggering sum as students canceled housing and dining contracts, medical centers paused elective surgeries and campus costs soared for online learning.
UC President Janet Napolitano detailed the grim financial picture in a letter Wednesday to Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders and asked them to provide more funding to help cover the unprecedented costs.
She noted that the public research university system was incurring added expenses and revenue losses in multiple areas, as health centers treated high-cost COVID-19 patients, researchers worked on potential cures and campuses sent most students home.
“As the world’s largest public research university system, UC is confronting many of the worst impacts of the virus all at once,” she wrote. More funding, she added, would “help UC provide students the education they were promised, treat our employees with fairness and provide our communities with compassionate care.”
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