The New School, a Manhattan institution, has cut 19 full-time faculty members and 68 staff as it grapples with a $160 million structural deficit. President Joel Towers claims this is part of a 'redesign' aimed at achieving a balanced budget by 2028.
The cuts have sparked criticism from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), who see them as a 'catastrophic' blow to the university's intellectual mission. AAUP President Todd Wolfson argues that these separations represent a 'profound betrayal' of the institution’s founding legacy.
These cuts come in tandem with department mergers, which will now instruct 80% of the university's students, potentially shrinking the scope of its humanities colleges. The New School has already lost 65 full-time professors since last year through voluntary separation agreements and early retirement offers, sparking protests from community members.
As the Trump administration seeks to tighten guidelines for graduate arts programs, further impacting enrollment in degrees deemed low-earning, critics argue that these cuts are directly 'destroying job security and academic freedom required for critical scholarship.' The New School's decision is part of a broader trend facing many American universities.
