In November, the State University System of Florida (SUSF) decided to terminate 18 academic programs, citing underperformance in producing graduates.
SUSF identified 214 programs it claims are underperforming; it intends to keep at least 150 of them, while consolidating another 30. Most cuts are to bachelor’s programs, notably African American Studies, Middle Eastern Studies and gerontology. Select master’s programs and doctoral-level programs are also poised to be cut.
The SUSF conducts routine evaluations and productivity reviews, which occur roughly every three to four years after each generation of graduates.
The FSView reached out to the SUSF for comment, but the organization did not respond.
The program rollbacks are a part of a broader trend from conservative leaders who seek to play an active role in college campuses around the country, like President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. These leaders have threatened cuts to federal funding for universities that do not comply with their approach to higher education.
Earlier this year, FSU President Richard McCullough braced for funding cuts of anywhere between $50 million-65 million in a speech to the FSU Faculty Senate.
Faculty morale a concern amid university program cuts
The criteria for determining how university programs are performing have drawn scrutiny following the recent program slash. David Newheiser, an associate professor of religion at FSU, has been outspoken against the trend of criticizing the humanities for underperforming.
“In principle, it’s a good idea to review under-performing programs, but the criteria being applied do not measure actual performance,” Newheiser said in an interview with the FSView. “The SUSF measures performance solely based on degrees awarded. Both the required threshold (30 degrees awarded) and the review period (3 years) seem arbitrary. Since students pursuing a second major don’t count toward these statistics, these criteria don’t measure the number of students these programs actually serve.”
Newheiser believes that evaluations should be conducted through more holistic criteria that account for students’ personal growth and societal needs.
“Cuts to the humanities misunderstand today’s labor market and they misrepresent the purpose of higher education,” Newheiser said. “The evidence is clear that humanities majors get great jobs, but college is about more than money … Studies have shown that students do best when they study what they love — for that reason, it is counter-productive for the legislature to take this choice away from them.”
The slash comes as the Florida Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) requested “additional information regarding the rigor and performance of programs, majors, and departments within each university,” in a Nov. 17 letter to the Florida Board of Governors (BOG), with that information being due on Dec. 3.
It is unclear what the BOG intends to do with this information. Robin Truth Goodman, Distinguished Research Professor of English and President of the FSU chapter of the United Faculty of Florida union (UFF-FSU), says that faculty are “demoralized.”
“Given the political climate, many faculty are already demoralized, looking for jobs elsewhere and speculating that the governor is up to no good,” Goodman said to the FSView. “After the past three years of censoring general education courses and graduation requirements and vilifying whatever they mean by DEI, faculty feel that they may say something in class that would go against what the governor, legislature and Board of Governors wants and they could easily and inadvertently get themselves into trouble for doing the same things they’ve been doing for their whole careers.”
‘Students should be worried about this’: FSU students weigh in on the change
Goodman claims that faculty are not the only ones who should be concerned about the recent cut to university programs.
“Students should be worried about this,” Goodman said. “It means that they are not getting the full gamut of the teaching the faculty member could give them if the faculty member were not afraid of losing their jobs or getting into trouble with the law.”
Whether the program cuts become a trend or not, students and faculty alike are watching the state government’s moves carefully. Some students share similar views, even those outside of the humanities.
“I think it’s very debatable to claim that a lack of productivity should lead to just the straight cutting of these programs,” biology major Lauren Yoakum said to the FSView. “To me, it just looks like SUSF is neglecting what these programs actually are and how they can contribute to both students and the working world.”
Yoakum is an undergraduate researcher in vertebrate paleobiology, but still emphasized the importance of the humanities, being more skeptical than nervous about the recent cut to degree programs.
“There’s definitely a cultural weight to cutting these programs,” Yoakum said. “By targeting Ethnic … Studies programs solely based on ‘productivity,’ it’s kind of like saying that the research of these subjects and the pursuit of more knowledge within them is pointless.”
Yoakum believes that a compromise can be made without completely terminating these programs.
“I think SUSF should focus on shrinking/altering the curriculum of these programs before resorting to widespread termination,” Yoakum said. “I know that professors in these fields would be more than willing to work with SUSF on more productive, alternative solutions; SUSF’s current strategy just kind of feels like an iron fist on university power, or like an undermining of professor and dean authority.”
Skyler Burrus is a Senior Staff Writer for the FSView & Florida Flambeau, the student-run, independent online news service for the FSU community. Email our staff at contact@fsview.com.
This article originally appeared on FSU News: Florida universities are cutting 18 degree programs. Here’s why
Reporting by Skyler Burrus, Senior Staff Writer, FSView / FSU News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
