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The board of governors for the Pennsylvania State System of High Education approved the proposed West and Northeast university integration implementation plans, which kicks off a 60-day public review and comment period prior to final consideration in July.
Implementation of the university integrations is scheduled for fall of 2022.
The plan would merge six universities in the system into two entities, while maintaining the identity of each individual university under a unified leadership model. Each campus will keep its historic name and own unique brand, traditions and on-campus life.
In the northeast, Mansfield, Lock Haven and Bloomsburg would merge and California, Clarion and Edinboro would become a single entity in the west.
Decline in enrollment, decreased state funding and a change in student demographics were the drivers for PASSHE pursuing the mergers.
"The biggest challenge any of our universities face when they begin to lose enrollment and many have lost enrollments in the 30's and 40's and even 50 percent, is that in order to operate at the new enrollment levels they need to begin to compress the number of programs and support they offer their students," said Chancellor Dan Greenstein.
Characterizing it as a vicious cycle, Greenstein offered integration as a way to break the cycle.
"By working together our universities can create opportunities so that we may continue to operate affordable quality career relevant education across all regions of the state," he said.
Greenstein noted that integrating the universities will increase the amount of academic offerings for students and the potential for a 1 percent growth for the Northeast and a 2 percent growth for the West. "With access to a broader range of academic programs every student at any of the integrated universities will have access to twice as many different program areas, degrees, majors, minors, areas of concentration than they would have if their institution was able to stand on its own independent of an integrated entity," he said.
"A big chunk of the 1 percent increase in enrollment comes from new programs that we plan to launch as part of the integration process, once we're integrated and also improved retention," Lock Haven University President Bashar Hanna said. "We have to do a better job at retaining students that come to the integrated entity."
"We lose about one out of four or one out of three students, depending on the campus and we can do better than this by providing the services our students need," Hanna said.
Hanna noted that the integration plan contains a $.5 million investment in creating Student Service Centers at all three universities in the integrated entity. The aim of the centers is to focus on identifying the services students need for retention.
Those in opposition to the plan cited the reduction in staff, including faculty and auxiliary employees and the effect that would have on course offerings as well as local economies.
Speaking for the statewide faculty union, Sam Claster, a native of Lock Haven and a member of Edinboro's faculty, said that a major concern was the lack of depth in the plan addressing the impact on communities where the universities are located.
Citing research done by the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Claster said that the planned reductions in campus sustainability plans would have a "devastating impact" on communities.
"The planned cuts at the eastern consolidate university totals 20 percent of its workforce and the planned cuts at the western consolidated university totals 26 percent of its workforce by 2023," Claster said.
Claster added that the "spillover effects will cascade through the regional economy resulting in spikes in poverty rates."
"These local economies simply cannot sustain this level of damage," Claster said.
Rep. Tim Briggs, D-King of Prussia, who voted against the plan as it stands, cited the lack of reporting on the financial impact on communities as one of the reasons for delaying voting on the plan.
"The proposal does state the existing campuses will remain open and that the sporting programs will be continued, which we still don't quite have any answer on yet," Briggs said.
He said that the plan does not anticipate any impacts, but added that he wanted a more in-depth financial repiort.
"I was envisioning this impact report would go beyond just the campus, but how it would affect the entire community," Briggs said.
In 2019 PASSHE had tasked system universities with becoming financially stable by 2021, which was then pushed back to 2022 because of COVID. Staff reductions were a part of that and have occurred independently of the integration process.
"We are doing everything we can to minimize those impacts," Greenstein said.
He noted that originally there were around 113 retrenchment letters and that has been reduced to around 40 due to retirement incentives as well as efforts to place faculty at other universities.
Greenstein also addressed the non-represented staff, which make up about 11 percent of the universities employees.
"They make up a very modest potential impact on the community," he said. "We will do everything we can to mitigate the need for furlough and layoff in the non-represented group."
The retention of individual sports teams at the integrated universities was another issue that surfaced during the board meeting, with questions centered on whether the NCAA will give their approval.
"It would be irresponsible for the board to approve this consolidation, before the NCAA gives us determination as to whether individual campuses are able to retain their own athletic programs," Claster said.
Briggs and Nicole Dunlop voted against the plan. Voting in favor were: Alex Fefolt, William Gindlesperger, Donald Houser Jr., Sen. Scott Martin, R-Lancaster, David M. Maser, Marion D. Moskowitz, Thomas S. Muller, Tanya Garcia, Rep. Brad Roae, R-Meadville, Sen. Judith Schwank, D-Berks County, Cynthia Shapira, Samuel Smith, Larry Skinner, Stephen Washington, Jr., Janet Yeomans, Allison Jones and Jamie Phillips.
The integration plans have been posted on the PASSHE website with instructions on how the public can comment.