UA restructures Health Sciences, laying off dozens during ‘realignment’

The University of Arizona is dismantling its Health Sciences program,
redistributing operations among several of the university’s other
colleges, and dozens of staffers will be laid off this summer.

The changes involve about 20 UA programs, including the colleges of medicine in Tucson and Phoenix, and the colleges of nursing, pharmacy and public health.

UA representatives did not indicate how many employees are being let go, but sources told the Tucson Sentinel that at least 28 will be laid off by the beginning of August.

In an letter from Provost Patricia Prelock and Tomás Díaz de la Rubia, a senior vice president for Research and Partnerships, the university announced Tuesday its health science activities would be “integrated” within the coming weeks.

According to Prelock and de la Rubia, these reassignments mark the final phase of a “realignment” of health science colleges and centers, which began a year ago. UA President Suresh Garimella announced the initial phase in April 2025, following the departure of senior vice president, Dr. Michael Dake.

In this last phase, more than a dozen programs are being dispersed under six different offices. Some programs will be cut effective Aug. 7, the letter said, athough it did not specify which ones.

“The complete integration of health sciences activities into university operations allows us to align resources, reduce administrative redundancy and build a leaner structure that reflects our commitment to fiscal responsibility,” the letter read.

The letter confirmed that some employees will be laid off, and said Human Resources plans to help those workers find new positions within the university or assess their benefits and retirement eligibility.

UA spokesman Mitch Zak said employment for staffers being laid off would end on Aug. 7. He did not detail which positions were affected.

“University officials met with the leaders of each unit, as well as the affected employees, prior to today’s announcement. We recognize the dedication of these employees and the meaningful work they have done in support of health sciences,” Zak wrote in an email.

UA sources told the Tucson Sentinel that at least 28 employees were told they were being laid off. Sources also indicated that communications staffers working for the health programs under BioCommunications were having their jobs eliminated. Those staffers were not authorized to speak to the press and were granted anonymity to protect their positions at the university.

UA’s current budget includes about $360 million to the programs falling under Health Sciences, including the medical, public health and pharmacy programs. The administration and support provided by Health Sciences had a budget of about $49 million this past year.

Last month, the university touted the high rankings that UA Health Sciences colleges had received based on the research funding they had bought in.

The Coit College of Pharmacy ranked 4th in the nation, with other colleges ranking in the top 50.

Leadership changes

Dr. Jennifer Barton, the chair of Biomedical Engineering, was the interim vice provost for UA’s health programs. Barton will be stepping down from the latter role, resuming a faculty position and pursuing research to develop “miniature imaging tools” for early cancer detection, UA’s release said.

Garimella announced Burton’s role as interim vice provost when the realignment process was first announced last year.

Health education and professional programs will be centralized under the Office of the Provost to “provide cohesive oversight, simplify coordination and enhance opportunities for collaboration across colleges.”

The first two floors of the Health Science Innovation Building, 1670 E. Drachman St., which houses the College of Health Science’s administration and several program offices, were taken over on Tuesday afternoon by the 2026 National PFAS Conference.

Staff in the administrative, Interprofessional Clinical & Professional Skills Center, Arizona Simulation Technology and Education Center, all in the building, said their program leaders were out of the office.

The university created a new position, executive director of health operations, to oversee five health science programs: Interprofessional Clinical and Professional Skills Center, Center for Transformative Interprofessional Healthcare

Melissa Colchado, the assistant vice president of Strategic Initiatives and Planning, is expected to fill the director role on July 13.

“She brings extensive experience working across the university’s health sciences programs, centers and colleges, along with our clinical partner Banner Health,” the letter read. “Her deep institutional knowledge and collaborative leadership make her well-suited to lead these efforts.”

Pre-existing partnerships

Levi Esquerra, special advisor to the provost for Native American affairs, will now oversee health programs for indigenous people, while Health Sciences Scheduling will fall under the purview of the Office of the Registrar.

Several programs already have a long history of collaboration with the university’s College of Medicine in Tucson, said Prelock, which would “better align resources.”

The College of Medicine will absorb Interprofessional K-12 Initiatives and the All of Us Research Program. The Center for Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism will be split between the College of Medicine’s Tucson and Phoenix sites.

Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health will take over Clinical Placements and Partnerships.

Clinical and Translational Science Institute and the Arizona Center for Accelerated Biomedical Innovation will move to the the Office of Research and Partnerships.

The University of Arizona started its realignment of health programs a year ago by moving all Health Sciences colleges and administration under the Office of the Provost.

The office absorbed several research centers earlier, including the Asthma and Airway Disease Research Center, the Center for Advanced Molecular and Immunological Therapies, the Center for Biomedical Informatics and Biostatistics, the Center for Innovation in Brain Science, the Center for Sleep, Circadian and Neuroscience Research, the Comprehensive Center for Pain and Addiction, and the UA Cancer Center

Attempts to reach provost Prelock and Health Sciences administrators on Tuesday were unsuccessful.

Barton referred a Sentinel reporter to Zak for comment.

UA’s former “Arizona Health Sciences Center” was renamed as University of Arizona Health Sciences in 2015 to “to clearly identify Arizona’s academic health center as an integral part” of the university.