UA and UA System Division of Agriculture Sign Special Agreement

The University of Arkansas and the UA System Division of Agriculture have signed a special agreement to guide the ongoing cooperation and basic interactions between the two entities.

The agreement includes operations for the remainder of the current fiscal year and fiscal year 2023, or until completion of a memorandum of agreement (MOA) to take effect no later than the beginning of fiscal year 2024. 

The MOA will include but is not limited to terms and procedures related to finance and human capital operations, services, benefits, facilities and space allocation, and management of joint appointments. 

Until then, the current agreement provides the following guidance:

• The division and U of A will evenly split indirect costs related to sponsored research
• No administrative service fees shall be charged by the U of A to division during the period of the special agreement
• Faculty hired in FY22 or FY23 with a minimum 20% U of A appointment will be eligible for a tenured or tenure-track position with the minimum 20% assignment for the U of A-budgeted appointment, to be in either teaching or research
• Current division employees on campus or at the Milo J. Shult Research & Extension Center will have access to the current benefits and discounts applicable to U of A employee
• Retired division employees who held joint appointments between the U of A and division will receive benefits and discounts customarily awarded to retirees who worked on campus

The two entities will also begin working together soon on a comprehensive analysis to inform the development of a jointly agreed upon cost-share model for implementation of the new MOA. 

The U of A and the Division of Agriculture have their own administration and policies. The agreement is meant to ensure fluid operations between them.

System President Donald Bobbitt said the special agreement is an “important step forward” in formalizing and reinforcing the mutual association between the two entities.

Ed Fryar, UA System board of trustees member and chair of the agriculture committee, shared a similar sentiment.

“The agreement reflects a new spirit of collaboration for the mutual benefit of the University of Arkansas, the Division of Agriculture and the state of Arkansas,” he said in a news release. “I’m thankful to all those who are working together with the best interests of Arkansans in mind to strengthen the collective impact of both entities.”