To: All RIO Staff
From: Cynthia Carnes, Vice President for Research and Innovation
Subject: University Budget Message: RIO’s Long-Term Planning & Next Steps
Date: September 24, 2026
Dear RIO colleagues,
This morning, all University of Minnesota faculty and staff received a message from President Cunningham, Provost Ritter, Interim EVP Volna, and Interim EVP and Dean Bradford regarding our long-term institutional budget planning. The message outlined the broader financial realities and national trends facing higher education, including a reduction to the overall university budget over the next two fiscal years as we shift toward a multi-year budget model.
I want to acknowledge first and foremost that messages about university-wide budget reductions naturally create worry and uncertainty. The work you do every day—whether in our research centers and institutes or in our core support offices—is the foundation of the University’s research excellence. Your expertise, dedication, and daily efforts are vital to our mission, and I want to thank you for everything you contribute to RIO.
Like colleges, campuses, and units across the institution, RIO is taking a thoughtful, proactive approach to ensure our long-term resilience. Earlier this month, I met with RIO academic and support unit leaders to begin transparent discussions about how we can navigate these financial headwinds together. While I recognize that making structural budget decisions involves hard choices, I firmly believe that taking strategic action today will safeguard our core mission and position RIO to emerge stronger.
Our goal is to build a sustainable operational and financial foundation that supports the University’s research enterprise far into the future. To achieve this, RIO is moving toward an integrated budget model. Rather than managing our centers, institutes, and central support units in isolation, this unified framework allows us to strategically deploy resources where they have the greatest impact—strengthening foundational support functions like SPA, RDO, and Compliance while continuing to drive high-impact, multidisciplinary research.
Adapting our processes across the institution is essential to our long-term stability, but I recognize that change can feel unsettling. Please know that I am deeply committed to guiding RIO through this transition with transparency, empathy, and clear communication.
Because university budget planning occurs in phases over several months, we will not have every answer immediately. However, I want to provide clear context on what you can expect in the near term:
- Operational budgets and local resource allocations for the current fiscal year (FY27) remain set. No immediate budget changes are happening today.
- Any structural or budget model shifts resulting from this process will not take effect until July 1, 2027 (FY28).
- Our finance team and unit leadership will review budget scenarios for FY28 to align with the guidance we have received. Budget scenarios will be refined over time before budgets are finalized next spring.
- We are committed to keeping you informed as central guidance develops and will share updates at key milestones along the way.
Thank you for your continued dedication to advancing research excellence at the University of Minnesota. By planning thoughtfully and working together as one RIO team, we will build a stable and vibrant future for our research and innovation enterprise.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Carnes, PharmD, PhD
Vice President for Research and Innovation