[T]he University of Vermont’s College of Arts and Sciences announced a predicted multi-million-dollar budget shortfall and canceled 12 courses taught by part-time faculty the day before registration opened Nov. 13, spurring one department chair to step down from his post.
The college was left with $3.7 million to $4 million less than expected due to cuts in both undergraduate and graduate budgets, according to a Nov. 13 email from College of Arts and Sciences Dean William Falls. The college cut courses taught by part-time faculty because the rest of the budget was set and could not be changed, his letter said.
The situation unfolded in the midst of contract negotiations between the university administration and the faculty union. The course cancellations were a central concern at a rally held by UVM’s faculty union, United Academics, on Wednesday.
Union spokesperson Tom Streeter said the cuts are a result of failing to direct enough funds toward academic programs.
UVM administrators said cancellation of courses occurred for a number of reasons.
The College of Arts and Sciences is adjusting to a decline in the number of students majoring in liberal arts since the Great Recession in 2009. Students have instead favored majors in business and engineering, said Provost David Rosowsky, and the college is adjusting to balancing budgets with fewer students.
Overall, Rosowsky said the class cancellation rate in the College of Arts and Sciences is not out of the ordinary and represents a tiny fraction of all courses offered by the college.
Sara Helms Cahan, the chair of the biology department, said she fully supports Dean Falls’ decision, but wonders what could have been done to forestall cancellations right before registration.
“I feel that at a time when the university is not facing a budgetary crisis it is very disruptive to have one college bear a weight like this,” Cahan said.
When budgets are tight in the college, there are a variety of ways to cut costs, Cahan said, but often, part-time, non-tenured faculty bear the brunt.
Rosowsky said part-time faculty are hired and fired as student course demands shift. “That’s what part-timers are for, to flex with the demand of the colleges,” he said.
Streeter said the union is concerned about the loss of lecturers. “It’s disturbing that the part-time faculty are the first to go, not because they are too expensive, but because they are the easiest to let go,” he said.
In Falls’ memo, he stated that part-time faculty are fundamental to the college’s success and that in the future the college does not “intend to eliminate courses taught by part-time instructors, but we will have to balance curricular needs with fiscal responsibility.”
He also apologized to faculty for the cuts.
“I’m truly sorry we got to this point,” Falls stated in the memo. “I believe that despite this very challenging time, our plan which involves right sizing faculty; growing undergraduate enrollment through stronger retention; increasing transfer and spring admits; increasing summer revenue; and creating a new degree completion program, will move us toward a balanced budget and beyond.”
Falls did not respond to a request for comment.
