UMD Announces Program Cuts and Budget Implications

Staff and Faculty fill Kirby Ballroom for the town hall regarding the future budget of the university. Photo by William Bauer

Faculty and Staff filled the seats of Kirby Ballroom late afternoon on Tuesday, Oct 21  for the “Academic Program Refinement and Budgetary Implications” town hall meeting with information regarding the future budget, which included program cuts and other information. 

Program Cuts:

The following programs — four majors, twelve minors and one certificate — were cut:

Majors

  • Cultural Entrepreneurship

  • International Studies

  • Linguistics

  • Writing Studies

68 students combined are currently enrolled in these programs. 

Minors

  • Arts in the Media 

  • International Studies 

  • Linguistics 

  • Digital Writing, Literature, and Design 

  • Film Studies 

  • Professional Writing 

  • Financial Markets 

  • International Business 

  • Geology 

  • Physics 

  • Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages 

  • Physical Education-Outdoor Education

83 students combined are currently enrolled in these programs.

Certificates

  • Discontinue Teaching English as a Foreign Language

(Unknown number of students currently enrolled)

Students who are currently enrolled in these programs can continue to receive the major or minor through “Teach-out” at UMD. They will work one-on-one with an advisor to complete the program. 

Some of the affected programs now sport the following disclaimer on their web page:

“Notice: This program has suspended new enrollment. Current UMD students who have questions about the program are encouraged to contact the college’s academic advising office.”

One of the staff at UMD asks a question regarding a timeline for narrowing the gap in the structural budget to about $500,000. Matt Massman, the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Operations, responded saying the timeline is still in flux because funding changes every year. Photo by William Bauer

Other Prospects:

In addition to cutting these programs, the following were discussed:

  • Reorganize College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences (CAHSS)

  • Restructure graduate education in Swenson College of Science and Engineering

  • Seek curricular efficiencies to optimize course enrollments and provide a robust experience for students

  • Seek partnerships, other support, or efficiencies to preserve additional programs; if not viable, discontinue or reduce scope

  • Decrease faculty numbers through voluntary faculty departure

Though no discussion concerning the restructure of graduate education in Swenson or reorganization of CAHSS happened at the town hall, Chancellor Nies spoke at the Student Government Congressional session on Oct. 20. According to the SGA’s Congress Minutes for the meeting, Nies talked about a new marine engineering program, saying “We will be launching in the Fall of ‘26 our marine engineering major.” 

He flew to Germany this summer to better understand the program. “We are working on a joint program with the University of Kiel in which you would work at UMD for the first two years and finish it in Kiel,” Nies said. 

As far as reorganization of CAHSS, Jennifer Brady, the Interim Dean said in an email, “We are still at the very beginning of the restructuring process in CAHSS. We put together an ad hoc committee of faculty and staff that we are calling the CAHSS Transformation Committee…. I look forward to their insight into how we can restructure to make the most powerful units for our students to thrive in.” 

The Budget:

The chancellor assured staff and faculty at the town hall that the university has to balance the budget every year, so they aren’t in danger of debt, despite the structural budget being 4 million dollars over budget. That's only a small portion of the total budget — which is 329.4 million— and it should be covered by non-recurring funds. Since those funds are non-recurring, they hope to balance the budget and narrow that gap as much as possible before using those non-recurring funds. 

The emcees reiterated that they want to exit a budget cut mindset. “We don’t want to be in a cutting mode constantly,” said Rebecca Ropers, the Executive Vice Chancellor & Provost. She emphasized creativity within the budget going forward, saying that change is a normal part of the process. She and Matt Massman, the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Operations, thanked everyone present for the part they played in the budgeting process. 

NewsWilliam Bauer