I am a first-year student at UVM who was planning to double-major in Spanish and Latin American and Caribbean Studies. One of the primary reasons I chose to come study at UVM was because the school offers Latin American and Caribbean Studies as a major, but it appears now that this opportunity will be stripped away from me and other prospective students.
Hearing the news of these 27 programs being cut was completely soul-crushing. Over the course of this past year, a looming cloud of uncertainty and fear has accumulated over the heads of young people and students who no longer have any assurance of being able to secure a job post-graduation. This addition of uncertainty is the last thing that students want.
UVM cannot claim the title of a “public ivy” if it continues to cut humanities programs year after year. Classics, regional studies and language must be strengthened, not done away with. I am especially concerned with language, as the breadth of courses offered was already quite limited and underwhelming.
It is incredibly disappointing and devaluing to watch the humanities programs diminish and dwindle while the majority of the university’s resources are directed toward STEM programs. This university must have greater respect and appreciation for lecturers and professors. They are being regarded as expendable while administrators maintain their comfortable salaries. These program cuts are unjust and don’t align with the values of Our Common Ground.
Sophie Aronson
Class of 2024
