A total of 89 faculty and staff positions are being cut as part of the cost-saving measures Western Illinois University leaders are taking to help restructure WIU for a financially sustainable future, a Friday news release said.
That release, posted on the university’s website Friday, Aug. 9, also said WIU leaders made the decision to eliminate positions at its Macomb campus and at WIU-QC Quad Cities Riverfront Campus in Moline after extensive exploration of cost-savings measures. According to the release, an additional 16 positions at the Moline campus will be relocated to Macomb.
The current cuts and change come four months after then newly appointed WIU Interim President Kristi Mindrup’s April 10 inaugural address, which introduced the new WIU “Financially Sustainable Future” plan.
In her address, made on the WIU Macomb campus, the former WIU-QC vice president promised that there would be bright days ahead. But she warned that “As a university community we are called to recognize that the university is in fact in a budget deficit. It requires attention from everyone at every level and a culture change.”
In Friday’s release, Ms. Mindrup said, “In order to address financial stability, we must recognize that our institution, like so many others across the country, must be the right size and the right shape to serve this number of students.”
As part of that strategy, 57 faculty and 32 staff positions will be eliminated, affecting a range of departments and roles, and 16 unidentified faculty and staff positions will relocate from the Quad Cities to Macomb.
By putting the focus on maintaining high-quality academic programs, excellent services and engaging on-campus experiences, the university news release said, it is working to minimize the impact of those changes on students.
More changes in works
Additional cuts that have been or are being made, according to the news release, include:
- Non renewal of 35 Unit B faculty contracts effective July 1.
- A hiring suspension and spending freeze that was implemented June 3.
- More than 100 vacant positions eliminated from future budgets, including two vice president slots.
- Department consolidation and restructuring in order to improve operational efficiencies.
- Departmental operating budget reductions.
- Discontinuation of non-essential contractual agreements.
- Increased efficiency through continued reductions in building operations.
- Strategic reduction and realignment of student aid.
In addition, the release said, WIU will continue to serve students on the Quad Cities Campus; however building operations will be streamlined. And as the university implements the Quad Cities Strategic Initiatives Plan, adjustments will be made to program offerings, including relocating QC faculty and staff to the Macomb main campus next year.
“I want to acknowledge the gravity of these decisions and the profound impact they will have on our dedicated faculty and staff, and the impact personnel reductions have on our Macomb and Quad Cities communities,” Ms. Mindrup said in announcing the changes.
QC programs continue
Under the latest reorganization, the release said, the Quad Cities Campus will continue to offer select undergraduate and graduate programs on campus, and students will have access to several online programs. WIU-QC students also will have access to student services, activities and amenities, and the campus will continue to house the Small Business Development Center, WQPT and other university partners.
Meanwhile, under WIU Board of Trustee regulations and contractual agreements, Unit A faculty will have the academic year to continue to teach, and Unit B faculty will remain on contract through the Fall semester. Civil service employees who faced cuts were given the contractually required 90 days notice.
WIU Human Resources are available for affected employees, including counseling services, a job fair in the Fall semester, and four Rapid Response sessions over two campuses, where the Illinois Department of Employment Security (IDES) and the State Universities Retirement System (SURS) will give presentations.
“Each person affected by these changes has contributed positively to Western Illinois University’s mission,” Ms. Mindrup said in the release.
“Each individual takes great care in their work to educate and serve students and is woven into the fabric of our University. It is heartbreaking to come to this point in our institution’s path where we are at a crossroads with no choice but to make a significant financial shift for the ultimate sustainability of the institution.”
