UPDATE | YSU announces program cuts and faculty layoffs for fall 2022
YOUNGSTOWN — During a closed-door meeting with Youngstown State University faculty union members, university administrators on Thursday discussed several academic programs set to end before the fall 2022 semester.
The cuts mean as many as a dozen faculty members could be let go or transferred elsewhere due to economic hardships at the university — a process called retrenchment.
Ohio Education Association's Youngstown State University union members, YSU Provost Brien Smith and Associate Provost Jennifer Pintar discussed the formal process of retrenchment for those faculty members in the fall 2022 academic year, according to an email from union President Susan Clutter obtained by Mahoning Matters.
According to the union's bargaining agreement, retrenchment of faculty can occur if there's an academic imbalance of student-to-faculty ratio, or if student enrollment declines.
YSU Vice President for Finance and Business Operations Neal McNally told Mahoning Matters the university estimates a $5.6 million structural deficit cut in response to this year's student enrollment decline.
For the Fall 2021 semester, YSU reported a record-low student enrollment of 11,298. Enrollment declined by 1,398 students, or about 11% If student enrollment continues to decline, for the 2022-2023 school year, the university could face a revenue shortfall of at least $10 million, and possibly more, McNally said.
YSU-OEA union members were provided a list of 19 academic programs being cut from university departments:
Bachelor's level:
- Gerontology
- Health Education/Physical Education
- French
- Italian
- Italian Education
- Manufacturing Engineering
- Religious Studies
- Music Theory
- Music History & Literature
- Family & Consumer Studies
- Computer Information Systems
- Dance Management
- Art History
Master's level:
- Music History & Literature
- Art Education
- American Studies
- Interdisciplinary Visual Arts
- Gerontology
- Creative Writing
Faculty members teaching those programs are expected to meet to discuss potential transfers to other areas within the university.
The YSU-OEA union says it expects some lecturers to also be let go based on the number of students and the workload within each program.
The faculty union's collective bargaining agreement states full-time faculty whose contracts are not renewed will be notified by YSU President Jim Tressel by Nov. 15.
This story was originally published October 28, 2021 at 11:21 PM with the headline "UPDATE | YSU announces program cuts and faculty layoffs for fall 2022."