A year-long study to reshape the Arizona university system concluded Thursday when the Arizona Board of Regents approved the proposal.
Each university will assume a new, more specific identity according to the study. UA will concentrate on research by heightening admissions standards and increase accessibility by making UA South cheaper.
ASU will continue its mission of expanding the downtown, east and west campuses by giving each a defined mission.
NAU will focus on enhancing its "statewide" presence through distance learning.
The board began the study in May after projections warned of increasing population demands in the coming decades. The plan estimates the university system will grow from 115,000 to 185,000 by 2020.
The approved plan builds on the current system's structure but suggests the regents concentrate on expanding access to the university system and enhancing diversity.
Regent Robert Bulla said the board must be careful not to consider this plan a final step.
ASU President Michael Crow said the problems the plan addresses can't be fixed overnight, though the board is off to a good start.
"It's not the end of the process that we're lauding today, but rather the end of the beginning of the process," he said.
Reach the reporter at rkost@asu.edu.
