Six weeks into the federal government shutdown, University of Arizona students are feeling the strain, from family members missing paychecks to stalled research projects and disrupted travel plans.

What began as a national budget standoff has now sparked deeper questions on campus, as students weigh how federal policies could reshape their education and future opportunities.

“My mom and dad have seemed to be stressed about it due to my dad not being paid,” said Marques Ramirez, whose father serves in the Army. “But we've also dealt with this before during the last government shutdown, so we're treating it as we need to, like, be cautious about how we're spending our money.”

Ramirez said while his family is staying afloat with help from relatives, the situation feels unjust.

For other students with family in the military, the shutdown has brought back familiar concerns. Sierra Zeeman remembers the last shutdown and is frustrated for her family and friends in the service.

“It's never fun when that happens,” Zeeman said. “I have friends of friends who work in the military that don't know when they're getting paid.”

Annie O’Donnell described how one of her close friends has watched her father, a longtime National Park Service employee, struggle through repeated shutdowns and staffing cuts.

“He's actually been sent home multiple times over either government shutdowns or just stuff with the government. And he actually had to fire his entire team this year with all the cuts,” O’Donnell said. “He's the only one that works in his department now and he's so overworked.”

The ripple effects of the shutdown have also hit airports hard. On Friday, the federal government released a list of 40 major U.S. airports that will implement an immediate 10% reduction in air traffic to take pressure off air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration workers who have gone without pay during the shutdown.

O’Donnell is one of many students and community members concerned about the impact of the shutdown and cuts on upcoming travel plans.

“I was going to fly, so it would be faster, except now it is going to take me the same amount of time to drive … so I'm kind of upset,” O’Donnell said.

Thomas Butler said he's seen similar issues arise for family members outside of Tucson.

“My uncle spends a lot of time traveling, and I know his flight was canceled the other day. Shortage of TSA staff is kind of a big problem in San Francisco,” Butler said. “I like traveling, so I don't like things shutting down.”

The impact on Arizona's tourism and park systems was also a concern for many students, including Ella Van Wiel, who said the shutdown hurts workers and visitors.

“Those are vital employees that we need to maintain our public lands,” she said.

For many students, the effects of the shutdown and budget cuts hit closer to campus through disrupted research and grant programs.

Gordon Higgs said his own research has not yet been halted, but many of his peers’ projects have been impacted, including a friend in the cellular biology department.

“She's an undergrad, but she's just on the verge of getting funding, and she had been working in this lab for a year and a half,” Higgs said. “Her whole academic career kind of hinged on getting funding to move forward with everything. And, like last second, it was like everything's shut down, no more funding.”

Higgs said the cuts have “totally reshaped” his peers' academic paths.

“All these projects that were on the verge of becoming reality … they all got cut,” he said, adding that the university's reliance on government grants has left many feeling trapped. “It's interesting because these projects were already approved for funding, just waiting on the money, and at the last second it was like, ‘No.’”

Tucson Spotlight team members Nya Belcastro and Angelina Maynes contributed to this story.

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