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MU head: School will meet challenges

HENDRICKS

MANSFIELD — The university and town here have been abuzz since a story indicating a decision to close Mansfield University could be made sometime in the coming months due to declining enrollment and increasing budget deficits ran in this paper Sunday.

In response, university President Gen. Francis Hendricks said he thought the headline was “totally unfair” to Mansfield.

“I just think it was irresponsible and sensationalizing a headline and just poor journalism,” Hendricks said. “This was just so unfortunate. If someone was really going to shove the meter the other way, the headline did not help Mansfield at all.”

Hendricks also issued a statement on the university’s position about testimony shared last week by state system of higher education Chancellor Frank T. Brogan and other leaders of the state system to state House and Senate appropriations committees.

According to Hendricks, during that session, Brogan made a “strong case” for increased investment in Mansfield and the 13 other state-owned universities in the proposed 2017-18 state budget.

“The chancellor talked about how short we were in funding this year and articulated the need for increased funding,” Hendricks said.

He said an appropriation formula is used that treats all the state system schools in the same.

“The unfortunate part is we are not all the same. Mansfield is more than rural. The closest large metro area is 2 1/2 hours away, where the rest are within an hour away from a major metro area or in the suburbs,” he said.

For Mansfield to be on a level playing field, he said, “we should have consideration for the fact that we are a little more off the beaten path, and it shouldn’t cost our students more because it costs us more to bring services here.”

“The testimony also fueled more speculation about the future of PASSHE and MU in regards to the comprehensive study of all 14 PASSHE universities announced last month by the chancellor,” Hendricks said.

To determine where changes need to be made, a consulting firm will conduct the review of Mansfield and the other schools in the system, which Hendricks said he “welcomes.”

“This study will look at everything including the functioning of the staff at the state system office, but no one is predisposed to close any university,” he said.

Hendricks noted the university has been working since 2013, when it published a “White Paper” calling for a similar review.

“Since that time, we published our MU2020 Strategic Plan which sets the directive for Mansfield and clearly states student success as our primary objective,” he added.

Hendricks also acknowledges the review will “undoubtedly also document the challenges we have and will continue to face.”

“There is no denying that our enrollment has declined since 2009. What was not included in reporting on this is that as of fall 2016 that tide is beginning to change — MU’s vision and innovations are taking hold. Fall 2016 new student enrollment surpassed the fall enrollment of new students for each of the prior two years. Projections for fall 2017 show the trend of increased new enrollment continuing,” he said.

Mansfield is not alone in its funding issues.

“Due to funding constraints a lot of schools are stretching to meet their budgets. We have been working extremely hard, and the programs we have put in place have made the exception,” he said.

“Folks are finding Mansfield. This past year we had 107 new students from 11 states and three countries,” he said.

“We recognized the ongoing changes in higher education and the need for us to carve out our own niche to be Pennsylvania’s premier public liberal arts school,” Hendricks said.

As such, Hendricks said, Mansfield offers students an affordable option to the similarly sized and costlier private liberal arts colleges within the state.

“Our record of academic excellence and the Mansfield experience positions us well for this role. We were the first and only school in the state to freeze tuition and room fees for our students, providing predictability to the cost of attendance,” he said.

Hendricks said he is confident the university will come out on top following the review, which he said “provides us the opportunity to tell the Mansfield story, to share why Mansfield is a difference maker in lives of our students and the nation they will serve. This is our university and we are the masters of its destiny.”

Mansfield clearly is supported by its students, instructors and employees.

Business Department Chairman Dr. Gopalan Kutty, said he was “surprised” when heard about the possible closing.

“Everyone was taken aback by the news,” Kutty said.

“It would be so bad for the community. This community depends upon the university,” Kutty said.

Kutty said he thinks the state should provide more funding for the university, noting the state appropriation has declined over the years.

“They don’t have the money, and so the first thing they do in a financial crisis is cut education and health care. The two things they need,” he said.

Kutty hopes to see something worked out to keep Mansfield open, as enrollment in his department is slowly climbing.

“Our enrollment in the business department has increased since our program was accredited last year,” he said, noting enrollment climbed from 140 students in 2015-16 to 160 students in 2016-17.

Former employee Barb Nichols, of Wellsboro, said it would be “devastating” to the whole county if Mansfield closed.

“Employees, people who can’t afford to go to college elsewhere would suffer. There are no other state universities in the northern part of the state except Lock Haven,” she said.

“Our faculty has worked so hard to get programs accredited,” she added.

Business student Savana Dunlop, of Blossburg, a junior in majoring in business administration, said the idea that her university may close is “troubling.”

“It’s my junior year and I’d like to graduate from Mansfield,” she said.

Dunlop, who graduated from North Penn High School before it closed two years ago, said she already has lived through seeing a local school shut down.

“I think about everyone else who started here and enjoy it. Having to go to a different college to finish would be challenging,” she said.

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