Colleges in Dire Financial Straits

[Wahoo Redux]

The article explains it, Marshy.  Some things you have to figure out yourself.

[marshwiggle]

The article explains it, Marshy.  Some things you have to figure out yourself.

Can anyone else explain what Wahoo is getting at that I'm obviously missing? Specifically, how is cancelling courses that not a single student signed up for a bad thing? (Other than the fact that those courses are that unpopular, of course; that indicates the institution isn't serving its student population very well.)

[Wahoo Redux]

Oh for pete's sake, my poor friend Marshy.


It works like this: enrollment decline = dropped courses & majors = fewer options for students = fewer students attend b/c their options are fewer = enrollment declines = dropped courses & majors = fewer students attend b/c their options are fewer = enrollment decline = repeat = repeat = repeat.

It's like this.

Michelle Gallaga, a second-year student at Berkeley City College, was hoping to take a sociology of gender course this coming fall, but when she went to register, she found out the class was no longer being offered. She hopes to transfer to the University of California, Berkeley, to major in gender and women's studies, but with related coursework unavailable at the community college, she worries it may not be an option.

"It doesn't allow me to consider gender and women's studies even though I'm leaning more toward that now," she said. "It's kind of limiting."

<snip>

[Shanoski] worries the district is in a "downward spiral," where professors get cut because there aren't enough students, which limits students' course options, frustrates them and risks the district losing more students.

Which is what I already posted before.

[marshwiggle]

Oh for pete's sake, my poor friend Marshy.


It works like this: enrollment decline = dropped courses & majors = fewer options for students = fewer students attend b/c their options are fewer = enrollment declines = dropped courses & majors = fewer students attend b/c their options are fewer = enrollment decline = repeat = repeat = repeat.

And my point is that the courses which no one signs up for are part of the problem in the first place. A department needs to be constantly adapting their own offerings so that what is available has a decent matchup with what students are interested in. There's no value to offering "electives" that no-one elects to take.

It's like this.

Michelle Gallaga, a second-year student at Berkeley City College, was hoping to take a sociology of gender course this coming fall, but when she went to register, she found out the class was no longer being offered. She hopes to transfer to the University of California, Berkeley, to major in gender and women's studies, but with related coursework unavailable at the community college, she worries it may not be an option.

"It doesn't allow me to consider gender and women's studies even though I'm leaning more toward that now," she said. "It's kind of limiting."

<snip>

[Shanoski] worries the district is in a "downward spiral," where professors get cut because there aren't enough students, which limits students' course options, frustrates them and risks the district losing more students.

Which is what I already posted before.

Even in that example, the student talked about a course she wanted to take. If she's the first person (and only?) in a couple of years to want to take it, it's not worth offering. They'd be much better offering something which they have a definitely sufficient market for.

[dismalist]

Even in that example, the student talked about a course she wanted to take. If she's the first person (and only?) in a couple of years to want to take it, it's not worth offering. They'd be much better offering something which they have a definitely sufficient market for.

And if there is no sufficient market, turn it off. Let the institution die.

Otherwise, this gets into a plea for more money from people who aren't benefiting from the expense.

The student population is declining, so far concentrated at two year colleges. Are we collectively supposed to save faulty positions?

Labor market is booming at the moment.

[Wahoo Redux]

Gosh Marshy, that's brilliant.  You have solved the problem.  Give'em a call.

[Istiblennius]

Balancing between offering enough variation in courses with recognizing the lack of interest in topics and/or veering away from poorly structured or poorly taught courses is pretty challenging. Ideally, the Marshy strategy of identifying and triaging poorly enrolled courses would be balanced with the Wahoo strategy of ensuring that wide variability in course offerings remains, but that might involve sunsetting or eliminating some courses and innovating new ones. Because Academia tends to move and to innovate slowly, that balance isn't easily achieved.

Apologies to both Marshy and Wahoo - I know I greatly oversimplified what both of you discussed.

[dismalist]

Balancing between offering enough variation in courses with recognizing the lack of interest in topics and/or veering away from poorly structured or poorly taught courses is pretty challenging. Ideally, the Marshy strategy of identifying and triaging poorly enrolled courses would be balanced with the Wahoo strategy of ensuring that wide variability in course offerings remains, but that might involve sunsetting or eliminating some courses and innovating new ones. Because Academia tends to move and to innovate slowly, that balance isn't easily achieved.

Apologies to both Marshy and Wahoo - I know I greatly oversimplified what both of you discussed.

Mostly, who is gonna pay for this balancing act?

There is no free money.

[Wahoo Redux]

Apologies to both Marshy and Wahoo - I know I greatly oversimplified what both of you discussed.

No, you were pretty much on the money.

I am not arguing that courses should be kept on the books or that majors should be left open if there are no students (something I think Marshy is confused about), rather that we are witnessing a phenomenon which probably has no answer except what dismalist posted. 

This is maybe the situation that my current institution will be in in a decade or so, if not sooner----exactly this cycle of decline; cuts; fewer options; bad PR; declines; cuts etc. until the bitter end.  Pollymere spoke often and vehemently about this scenario, and she was right.

I have argued that we as a culture spend huge amounts of money sometimes mindlessly and could afford to salvage our campuses in one form or another, but I think we lack the will and our faculty and admin have no plan but to guide their institutions to the ground.

Then again, maybe it is time to tear the whole system down and rebuild it?  I just don't know.

[marshwiggle]

Balancing between offering enough variation in courses with recognizing the lack of interest in topics and/or veering away from poorly structured or poorly taught courses is pretty challenging. Ideally, the Marshy strategy of identifying and triaging poorly enrolled courses would be balanced with the Wahoo strategy of ensuring that wide variability in course offerings remains, but that might involve sunsetting or eliminating some courses and innovating new ones. Because Academia tends to move and to innovate slowly, that balance isn't easily achieved.

Apologies to both Marshy and Wahoo - I know I greatly oversimplified what both of you discussed.

That was pretty much good. At our institution, they instituted a policy some time ago that when a department wants to add a new course, they have to retire one. This keeps us honest so that there aren't courses on the books that haven't actually been taught in years. It makes departments pro-active about identifying unpopular courses and getting rid of them to make way for things that are more relevant now.

[Istiblennius]

Glad to know I wasn't too far off in interpreting your arguments.

At our place, we really struggle with a relatively small, but loud group of folks want to cling, tightly, with both hands to courses that students are not taking and often have to be cancelled. Students are frustrated because the popular courses are full, or because they have to rework their schedule around a cancellation. They also express annoyance that we do have some limited variability - 20 History courses about Europe, 1 about Africa and 2 about Latin America seems like 42 choices, but to students it doesn't feel that way. It feels like 3 choices, and most of the space is in courses they don't find relevant. 

Several programs have proposed some innovative strategies to build enrollment by building programs and courses that would attract students. The curriculum process, which requires faculty senate approval (although our provost can override that) often kills outright, or through 1,000 cuts in the form of tabled motions these innovative courses and programs because they could - wait for it - pull resources away from the struggling courses. Granted, not all of the new ideas are awesome and they should be revisited to ensure wise use of tuition dollars. But the knee jerk assumption that what we've always done is good (I mean, it worked in the 1980s!) and new ideas are bad is troublesome. I do understand that folks are worried about their jobs, but doubling down on what isn't working feels like a way to accelerate that concern.

[Ruralguy]

I've come to the conclusion that there is no academic program that really attracts students of "traditional" age.  Maybe some attract their parents. But even there, its mostly related to what of their child's interested can be converted into a job. 

[Mobius]

We have some cool programs on my campus. Mine is struggling. Too many courses on the books that don't get taught at all, and we have some needs to actually help students get jobs.  Too many resources devoted to GE when they could be taught in larger sections to free up load.

[apl68]

Glad to know I wasn't too far off in interpreting your arguments.

At our place, we really struggle with a relatively small, but loud group of folks want to cling, tightly, with both hands to courses that students are not taking and often have to be cancelled. Students are frustrated because the popular courses are full, or because they have to rework their schedule around a cancellation. They also express annoyance that we do have some limited variability - 20 History courses about Europe, 1 about Africa and 2 about Latin America seems like 42 choices, but to students it doesn't feel that way. It feels like 3 choices, and most of the space is in courses they don't find relevant. 

Several programs have proposed some innovative strategies to build enrollment by building programs and courses that would attract students. The curriculum process, which requires faculty senate approval (although our provost can override that) often kills outright, or through 1,000 cuts in the form of tabled motions these innovative courses and programs because they could - wait for it - pull resources away from the struggling courses. Granted, not all of the new ideas are awesome and they should be revisited to ensure wise use of tuition dollars. But the knee jerk assumption that what we've always done is good (I mean, it worked in the 1980s!) and new ideas are bad is troublesome. I do understand that folks are worried about their jobs, but doubling down on what isn't working feels like a way to accelerate that concern.

You make a good point there.  If a department doesn't respond to long-term changes in what students want to study, then ultimately they could lose their relevance and end up being eliminated.  If there's very much of this in social sciences and literature departments around the country, it could account for some of the decline in student interest in these fields.  This is one of the arguments for bringing in "diverse" new hires, since some of them could, if carefully chosen, be more able to teach courses that students would consider relevant.  In some departments the turnover in faculty may be falling behind the change in student interests.

[apl68]

Some reactions to the Henderson State University cuts in this article. 

A total of eight speakers -- each given three minutes to address the board -- shared their opinions on the restructuring during the online meeting this past Thursday, but others submitted written comments released to the Democrat-Gazette under the state's public disclosure law.

"Under Chancellor Ambrose's plan no longer would students who plan to attend medical school, veterinary school (like my daughter), dental school, pharmacy or law school have a place at the University... majors that are most common for those students would no longer exist," stated a comment submitted by Jennifer Billingsley, identified in the message as a "concerned parent" of a Henderson State student.

Ambrose's plan states that while degree programs are being phased out, academic disciplines included in those programs are to "continue to be incorporated through the general education and interdisciplinary studies curriculum to enhance outcomes for all students."

Jeff Hankins, a spokesman for the ASU System, in an email on Tuesday said the university's curriculum, with what are to be known as "meta-majors," will "support all of these pre-professional programs."

"The Meta-Majors will broaden career pathways and competencies," Hankins said. "For example, students will utilize math, biology and chemistry to obtain a degree in population health management that can prepare more students to go directly into the workforce or go on to graduate or medical school."

Ambrose's proposal described how the approximately 40 remaining degree programs -- of which about 28 are undergraduate programs -- are being organized into four "meta-majors": Health, Education, and Social Sustainability; Applied Professional Science and Technology; Business Innovation and Entrepreneurship; and Arts and Humanities.

In other comments to trustees, Charles Still, who identified himself as a current Henderson State student, wrote to "plead and encourage you to vote no on getting rid of Henderson's Criminal Justice Degree."

"It is a degree plan that is integral to the furthering of everyone studying law enforcement and is a key stepping stone for those looking to further their education into law schools, and where else than Arkadelphia, and more importantly, where else than Henderson to do just that?" Still wrote.

Criminal justice, like other degree programs being phased out, will continue to be offered for current students and those incoming in the fall.

"We will utilize a combination of instruction on the Henderson campus and in some cases may work with our educational partners," the university states on its website to describe how students will be supported in programs being phased out.

Amanda Ritter-Maggio, in a letter to trustees, identified herself as a member of the university's Alumni Advisory Board and also as a former teacher at Henderson State.

Ritter-Maggio stated she had heard Ambrose speak over the past months. Ambrose became Henderson State's chancellor in November.

"I have heard [Ambose] say time and again, 'You have to decide which parts of Henderson are worth saving.' On Monday, I saw all those parts -- music, English, history, drama, dance, communications, fine art -- wiped away," Ritter-Maggio said.

Ritter-Maggio called it understandable that "HSU needs to tighten its belt if it wants to survive at all."

"However, gutting the majority of the core college faculty is not the answer. How in the world will Henderson be able to attract students without faculty on campus?" Ritter-Maggio said, adding later in the letter that eight members of her immediate family "attended, graduated from, or are currently attending Henderson."

A declaration of "financial exigency," as specified in Henderson State's faculty handbook, allows for the elimination of tenured faculty positions, though some faculty members have said the university has not followed proper procedures.

The 88 positions being eliminated included 21 currently unfilled. Out of the 67 filled positions, 44 are tenured faculty who can keep their jobs through the 2022-23 academic year.

As of the spring semester this year, Henderson State had 237 instructional positions, including 157 full-time positions, 47 part-time or adjunct faculty, 29 staff or administrators who teach and four noninstitutional employees considered a part of the instructional position total, said Tina Hall, the university's vice chancellor of advancement.

As of April 29, Henderson State had 337 total full-time employees, Hall said.

Several other commenters also expressed opposition to the elimination of programs.

Tricia Thibodeaux Baar, in a message to trustees, referred to "my alma mater" and described concerns about students foregoing college.

"I believe this reimagining is a mistake which would create an educational desert in a region where so many students from rural districts desperately need the opportunities associated with traditional college," Baar said. "The shift to a focus on career training (away from intellectual and personal growth which broadens rather than narrowing graduates' choices) would deny these students a chance to experience the wealth of subjects and ideas that so often reveal to them to their future paths."

Hankins, asked whether eliminating academic programs reduces opportunities for students, said in an email: "The academic restructuring is specifically designed to better serve our students and increase the likelihood that they will graduate with a degree that leads to a successful career."

The university "simply can no longer financially support every program," Hankins said.

"Henderson will continue to have very robust degree offerings in areas such as business, health professions, education, aviation, social services, and engineering. These graduates are, and will continue to be, major contributors to the regional and state economy," Hankins said.

https://www.nwaonline.com/news/2022/may/11/letters-to-henderson-state-university-in/