Overview

• At the start-of-year ceremony, the rector set three immediate tasks: preparing his first budgets, approving a strategic plan, and reforming the statutes.
• He said concrete budget figures will come in November and emphasized aligning spending with community needs while talks continue on increased public funding.
• An agreement with the Basque Health Department adds 32 Medicine places taught in Euskera, and the university aims to offer clinical practice in Euskera across all campuses, which requires recruiting Euskera‑speaking faculty, especially in Álava and at Txagorritxu.
• Student housing and facilities are advancing, with a Gipuzkoa residence already tendered and a Bizkaia project under study with the provincial council to combine standard places with spaces for vulnerable youth, alongside imminent upgrades in Leioa.
• International and civic initiatives include a new Boise State partnership to build a virtual campus for joint doctoral collaboration starting in science and technology and a renewed call for universities to work for peace following the Hiroshima commemoration.