Despite state funding cuts that he called “the steepest in the history of higher education in America,” UNH President Mark Huddleston expressed confidence in the school’s future during his annual State of the University address.

The Legislature slashed state support for UNH by nearly 50 percent this year, cutting the university’s budget by $32.5 million. During his address, issued in the Granite State Room of the Memorial Union Building in Durham on Sept. 15, Huddleston called the funding cuts a crisis that has affected virtually every office on campus.

“At times, it felt like the Legislature was determined to transform us from a state-supported university to one that is simply state-located,” he said.

In response, the university will eliminate approximately 150 staff positions, freeze salaries and hiring, and reduce faculty benefits. Huddleston said those actions helped keep tuition increases to $650 per New Hampshire student.

Huddleston cited 16 reasons why he is confident that “UNH is becoming more dynamic, innovative, and sustainable.” Top among those reasons was the school’s high enrollment this year, with 13,200 undergraduate students and 2,500 graduate students between the school’s Durham, Manchester and Concord campuses.

He also cited growth in online courses and the securing of federal research grants. He noted the groundbreaking of the Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics and the opening of the Confucius Institute, which offers a full curriculum in Chinese language and culture, as well as numerous partnerships with area businesses.

“UNH is emerging from a storm—weathered perhaps, but unbroken,” he said.