Professors at Wilfrid Laurier University (WLU) said they aren’t happy about a report that recommends phasing out 18 academic programs.
The Integrated Planning and Resource Management Report was published in 2014. The 340-page report sets out recommendations for resource allocation and prioritization and among other recommendations, assigns programs with one of six designations—the last of these being “phase out or minimize.” The 18 programs at risk of being cut fall into this category.
The university has emphasized that the potential program cuts are not a result of its recent financial struggles as the IPRM process began in 2012 when Laurier was doing well financially.
Some of the programs potentially facing the chopping block are Muslim studies, anthropology, and media studies.
These programs are being cut due to low enrollment and/or high cost.
Ali Zaidi, associate professor in global studies and co-coordinator of Muslim studies at WLU said he understands the need for the report due to changes in university budgets and student enrollment, but said the value of a program shouldn’t only be based off enrollment or profit.
Zaidi said the internal review has pitted faculties against each other and created division within the university, which has been counterproductive, but he acknowledged universities need a review process to deal with current challenges. He said he believes the review was the best way to make these decisions, as it allows more people to weigh in before decisions are made.
He said he is hopeful people will look at the programs differently when serious discussions take place. He said looking at them independently and within the parameters of enrollment or monetary value goes against what the university stands for, and isn’t in the best interests of the university.
“On one hand we’re saying, let’s internationalize the university and that we have an international mission to cultivate citizens of the world. And then you engage in this kind of review of isolated programs [being] slated for cutting. That’s against the academic mission of the university,” Zaidi said.
Zaidi said people with experience in reviews told him and others that smaller programs don’t tend to do well in these kinds of quantitative reviews.
He said he thinks while making decisions on whether to follow through on the recommendations, more than just the numbers will be considered.
“Some programs, even if they’re not financially viable, we need to keep in place in order to fulfill the mission of the university. So there might be more profitable programs and less profitable programs, but we have to look at the university as a whole,” Zaidi said.
Zaidi used Muslim studies as an example, saying despite the low enrollment, the program is important because it teaches people about Islam, and this education is something the global community needs in the current day and age.
The university senate has already passed the report’s recommendations, and the report goes to the board of governors for approval in February. If approved, serious discussions and decisions about how to implement any recommendations will begin.
