West Virginia University’s board of governors slashed 28 majors and over 140 faculty positions during a Friday meeting, despite outcry from students and professors who say the plan could have a long-term impact on education and economic mobility in the state.
The cuts come as the flagship school attempts to mitigate a $45 million deficit that could swell to $75 million by 2028. Between three and four board members voted against each of the cuts out of 17 total board members.
When board members began voting on the cuts, they were interrupted by dozens of students who flooded the area where the governors were seated. Students — decked out in red as a callback to a 1921 coal miners’ strike — chanted and held signs with sentiments like “Gordon Greed” and “Burn couches not courses,” references to WVU President Gordon Gee and the university’s infamous couch-burning riots that followed football games.
After several minutes of protests, board of governors chair Taunja Willis Miller chastised the disruption and the vote continued. Minor disruptions persisted throughout the remainder of the meeting.
When the vote concluded, Ms. Willis Miller strained her voice to read a statement about the university’s future as meeting attendees yelled sentiments like “no confidence.”
“It hasn’t been easy, but we believe it was necessary,” Ms. Willis Miller said. “...Our overarching goal throughout has been to access ways to make WVU even better than it is today.”
Students and professors did not have the opportunity to publicly comment during Friday’s meeting, but did address the board at a Thursday meeting, expressing frustration and desperation.
Several university administrators did talk at Friday’s meeting, speaking in favor of academic transformation. Their comments largely focused on perceived positive aspects of transformation and skimmed over faculty layoffs and program slices.
Upon Friday’s decision, WVU has completely eliminated its world languages majors and public administration majors. The school initially planned to eradicate all in-person world language education, but now intends to offer face-to-face instruction in two languages, Spanish and Chinese. University officials have signaled that minors in these languages could be possible.
Other departments drastically impacted by the cuts include the Plant and Soil Sciences division, which will see its faculty reduced by roughly 40%, and the schools of Education and Mathematical and Data Sciences, which will lose a third of their faculty members. WVU has eliminated the only math doctorate degree in the state.
The 148 undergraduate students and 238 graduate students directly impacted by program cuts will likely be able to complete their degrees, school officials said at the meeting. Those students make up under 2% of the student body, which currently has 24,366 students.
About 12% of faculty members — excluding clinical, research, service and library categories — will lose their jobs as a result of the cuts. The university currently employs 1,230 faculty members who are not in the aforementioned categories.
The university initially planned to cut 32 academic programs and lay off nearly 170 faculty members. An appeals process brought those numbers down.
The contentious decision is part of the university’s sweeping academic transformation, a term WVU officials have used to describe the changes they are implementing as the school faces financial hardship. Declining enrollment, increased employee costs and nationwide higher education struggles brought on money troubles for the Morgantown school.
School officials have categorized these academic slashes as necessary. Students and professors have disagreed.
In August, hundreds of students protested the plan, and last week, nearly 800 faculty members voted to express no confidence in Mr. Gee. About 400 students have also formed a students’ union that aims to represent students during the academic transformation process.
First Published: September 15, 2023, 3:47 p.m.
Updated: September 16, 2023, 11:58 a.m.
