Ambitious agenda keeps growing for UConn president

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — The agenda keeps growing for officials at the University of Connecticut.

Susan Herbst, who became president in 2011, is moving on several fronts to boost UConn to the top ranks of state universities.

A key priority is hiring nearly 300 faculty members to strengthen research and grant applications.

Other initiatives include construction of campus retail, residential and office park and a technology complex set to open in 2015 to boost corporate research and economic development.

Herbst says UConn is a strong research university and her goal is to put it in the top ranks of public universities such as UCLA, the University of California-Berkeley, the University of Michigan and University of Wisconsin.

To accommodate the growing workload, UConn's Board of Trustees is meeting more often as well.