University of Minnesota president is no stranger to triage. That has helped lately Q&A with Rebecca Cunningham, who’s leaning on her experience as an emergency physician

https://www.statnews.com/2025/07/21/university-minnesota-president-rebecca-cunningham-q-and-a/?utm_campaign=morning_rounds&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9rVQ4RrIDEaWZZ6gXuFIITOGof3lBVz_5hJUW8lftCW5388HV5hWW0kPd2KZxIiQXkGTf4h-m-z46ILRmFvFPACDqhlA&_hsmi=372144235&utm_content=372144235&utm_source=hs_email One year into her job as president of the University of Minnesota, Rebecca Cunningham has found herself often drawing from previous experience as an emergency medicine doctor. Her school has seen grants terminated, an international student arrested, and state support flatline. STAT’s Jonathan Wosen sat down with Cunningham to talk about making tough budgetary choices, how she’s supporting students and faculty, and why she’s still optimistic about the university’s long-term future. “I like to say emergency medicine is the best senior management training you can possibly have,” Cunningham said. “Leadership at this level is around crisis management, as well as setting strategy.” Cunningham proposed a $5.1 billion budget for the university, which the board approved. But still, there have been layoffs. Read the conversation to get a sense of what this triage looks like from the top.