Disagreement Between Union College Faculty and Administration Regarding Curriculum Proposal

Recently, Michele Angrist, the Dean​ of Faculty and Vice President for⁣ Academic Affairs at Union College,‍ circulated a memo among the faculty.‌ The memo outlined a proposal to request the college’s Academic ⁢Affairs Council to establish a task force dedicated to curriculum innovation.

The primary objective of‍ this task force is‍ to investigate the possibility of introducing academic programs that could attract a ‍more diverse student⁣ body. This could potentially lead‌ to an increase in the number of students who require less financial aid, thereby boosting the revenue of ‍this private engineering and liberal arts‍ college located in Schenectady.

“Our goal is ‌to widen the admissions funnel,” Angrist explained. ⁤“The more students we have applying, the more successful‍ we can be in achieving a balance and making Union a⁣ top choice for a diverse range of‍ students.”

However, during a ‍recent meeting, the faculty voted‌ 105 to 70, with 17 abstentions, against the‍ creation⁢ of the ⁢task force that Angrist hopes to ⁣launch this summer. The final decision rests​ with the school’s Academic Affairs Council.

There are concerns among some faculty members that this move could result in staff and program reductions in various departments. However, no faculty member from Union College was willing to comment on the record at the time ​of reporting.

“We need to rethink some things and possibly reallocate⁤ resources, which are difficult decisions to make,” Angrist admitted. “But I want to stress that we’re ⁢not planning ​to reduce the ‌size of the faculty or eliminate ⁣programs entirely.”

This story was first reported by the Albany Times Union.

Union’s annual ‍enrollment has remained steady​ at approximately 2,000⁤ students. However, many ‌of ‍these students receive‌ substantial financial aid packages, which means their tuition doesn’t contribute as much⁢ to the college’s revenue compared to students who receive ‍less aid. In fact, only about 10% of Union’s students pay⁢ the full tuition price.

Earlier this year, credit analyst Moody’s gave Union ​a “negative outlook,” citing the college’s high financial aid expenditure and ⁢significant debt, as​ reported ‌by ⁢the Albany Times Union.

“We’re exploring all possible avenues to either control our expenses or increase our revenue,”​ stated Mark Land, Union’s Vice President for Communications and Marketing.

The college typically uses between 5% and ​6% of its endowment for expenses each year,‍ a practice common in higher education, according to Land.

Angrist stated that the purpose of the proposed task force is to reconsider the liberal arts curriculum, including humanities, social sciences, and mathematics.

“Our engineering majors are flourishing,” said Angrist, who joined ⁤Union over twenty years ago as a member of the political science department and has⁢ been in administration for​ the past six years. “But I strongly believe that ⁢to navigate and thrive in this challenging higher education climate, it’s a strategic ⁣moment to review our liberal arts curriculum.”

Union’s financial difficulties are part of a larger‌ trend ​in higher education, with many institutions facing declining enrollment. For instance, Saint⁤ Rose in Albany is closing ​this year after operating for more than a century.

Land ‍assured that ⁣Union’s⁢ financial situation is not ​as severe as Saint Rose’s, and he ⁢expressed ​confidence that⁢ the faculty and administrators will find common ground.

“We value faculty input. We don’t want this to be ​a top-down‌ initiative, we want ⁢the faculty to have ⁣a say,” Land said. “[Angrist] is a‌ strong believer in shared governance. ​We’re hopeful‍ that we can continue to work through this and arrive at a framework ⁢that everyone is comfortable with.”