UNC Asheville Chancellor Kimberly van Noort is proposing to eliminate several academic programs and departments from the university. According to van Noort, enrollment and tuition declines has led to a current $6 million deficit for the university. This deficit is projected to grow to $8 million next year.
The following programs have been :
- Ancient Mediterranean Studies (degree program and academic department)
- Drama (degree program and academic department)
- Philosophy (degree program and academic department)
- Religious Studies (degree program and academic department)
- French language concentration
- German language concentration
According to van Noort, these programs and concentrations have averaged 25 graduates a year combined. Seventy-two students are currently majoring in the affected programs. UNC Asheville鈥檚 student body is about 2,900 undergraduate students.
Over the past five years, UNC Asheville鈥檚 enrollment has decreased 25%. This decline has caused a in tuition and state enrollment funding.
Last month, van Noort announced she was beginning an (APR) to address the financial deficit.
鈥淏y carefully identifying a number of consistently underenrolled academic programs to be phased out,鈥� . 鈥淭he University will ease its budget deficit and free resources for necessary reinvestment in higher-demand programs.鈥�
UNC Asheville is the second university in the UNC System to announce significant program cuts following an APR this year.
In February, UNC Greensboro Chancellor Franklin Gilliam told his campus he was , majors and minors.
Chancellor van Noort said UNC Asheville鈥檚 APR process will also come with cuts to faculty. In her proposal, she said tenured and tenure-track faculty will receive six to 12 months notice before they are laid off.
Van Noort has from student affairs, academic affairs and her chancellor鈥檚 office.
She and her team have also left vacant positions open as faculty and staff retire or quit, as well as reassigned some employees to different roles. They have also changed the university鈥檚 schedule for next semester, so that it 鈥渉eavily鈥� relies on permanent faculty.
According to van Noort, any students enrolled in discontinued programs should not be impacted and will be able to complete their degrees.
鈥淭he university will help students in any affected programs to complete their studies with minimal disruption,鈥� she said.
However, she might need to make 鈥渁dditional adjustments鈥� later this year, depending on the university鈥檚 fall enrollment. UNC Asheville will have updated enrollment totals by August 30.
This year, almost 2,000 more students applied to UNC Asheville compared to last year.
鈥淲e surpassed last year鈥檚 record application numbers by 37 percent, with more than 7,600 applications to date,鈥� . 鈥淭hat鈥檚 enabled us to grow the number of admitted students for next fall by 65 percent.鈥�
The university鈥檚 retention rate is also its highest in three years, at 90% for spring 2023 students.
But it is too early to know how many of UNC Asheville鈥檚 admitted students will also choose to attend the university. Even if a significant number enroll, van Noort said it wouldn鈥檛 change the need for program cuts.
鈥淒ue to the timing of the enrollment funding appropriations, however, these gains will not immediately contribute positively to the budget,鈥� van Noort said.
In the future, van Noort said she will make academic program reviews more frequent.
鈥淪uch reviews should have been 鈥� and now will be 鈥� a standard part of our academic, financial, and overall institutional planning,鈥� van Noort said in an to campus.
Chancellor van Noort said she plans to submit her program cuts proposal to the UNC Board of Governors in time for their . Her submission will also include feedback from department chairs.
鈥淔or too long, we didn鈥檛 do enough to evaluate and update our academic offerings in line with student needs,鈥� van Noort said in a . 鈥淲e鈥檙e now at a turning point. While not in a crisis, we have a civic and ethical responsibility to reinforce and grow the university for generations of students, families and communities 鈥� both today and in the years to come.鈥�
The Board of Governors and UNC System President Peter Hans have to approve van Noort鈥檚 proposal before it can be implemented.
