Declining enrollment and state-allocated funding have forced Savannah State University to layoff its 26 non-tenured faculty members starting in 2019-20 academic year.
The university made the announcement last Friday that it won’t renew contracts due to budget cuts stemming from the decrease in student enrollment and realigning of resources.
The move comes a month after university president Cheryl Davenport Dozier hinted at reducing the university personnel as enrollment saw a 10.6 percent decline in 2017 fall and 7.9 percent decline this fall.
The university has further established a Strategic Alignment of Resources (SAR) planning committee to redirect resources and achieve strategic priorities.
“All SSU faculty and staff are deeply valued and we appreciate their dedicated service to SSU,” said Dozier.
Meanwhile, the notified faculty members will continue to teach throughout the 2018-19 academic year.
Last week, Simpson College also announced to lay off its 12 full-time faculty members as a result of decreasing enrollment.