“UNAVOIDABLE BUDGET CUTS”: FONTBONNE UNIVERSITY DISCONTINUES SEVERAL PROGRAMMES AND JOBS

“Unavoidable budget cuts”: Fontbonne University Discontinues Several Programmes and Jobs

By the autumn of 2024, Fontbonne University plans to eliminate numerous faculty and staff positions in addition to 21 degree programmes, the university announced via email.

The cuts, according to university officials, were “unavoidable” and brought on by a ten-year drop in student enrollment.

Nancy Blattner, president of Fontbonne University, stated, “As a small private institution with a total student enrollment of just under 1,000, the university has had to make difficult decisions to ensure its long-term sustainability.” “Some academic majors, faculty positions, staff positions, and athletic programmes have been reevaluated as part of these decisions.”

Undergraduate studies in Actuarial Science; Art, Communication, Culture, and Change; Data Science; Fashion Merchandising; Fine Art; Game Development; Global Studies; Health Education & Promotion; Healthcare Management; Management Information Systems; Religious Studies; Social Work are among the curtailed programmes.

Graduate programmes in Speech-Language Pathology (located in Kansas City), Art, Computer Science, Fine Art, Instructional Design and Technology, and Ed.D. in Collaborative High-Impact Instruction are among them.

Art, early childhood, speech-language pathology, education, biology and behavioural sciences, family and consumer sciences, humanities, computer science and mathematics, business, and social work are among the fields with reduced faculty positions.

Given that her daughter recently completed the social work programme at the university, Clayton Mayor Michelle Harris said the school holds a special place in her family’s heart.

“I have complete confidence that Nancy Blattner will be doing the right things in order to ensure the financial security of the university,” Harris stated.

Since 2011, the university’s enrolment has decreased by more than half, from 2,293 students in 2021 to 955 in 2021. Since then, according to earlier filings, the university has been running at a $5.2 million deficit.

“I believe that everyone is worried about these private establishments. Looking around, we first observe Webster University before moving on to other establishments located outside of our city. Furthermore, I am aware that the trends for new students are changing. And eventually, every single one of these private universities is going to have to figure it out,” Harris stated.