New ASA NEA Brief: Faculty Retrenchment
This study of 17 community colleges reveals how cuts in government funding, declining enrollment and other market forces are threatening faculty and staff positions across the U.S.
Below are key takeaways:
- Enrollment declines, changing labor force demands and changes in government funding have forced colleges to restructure their academic programs, service offerings, and delivery; often these efforts target faculty positions.
- Across all U.S. community colleges, the number of faculty declined 5 percent over the past 10 years, with two in three community colleges experiencing faculty declines averaging 17 percent.
- In the face of a restructuring event, faculty should be given the opportunity to work with administrators to find opportunities to realign their expertise to new programs and/or be reassigned in lieu of being laid off.
