St. Cloud State University closes program, staff cuts

St. Cloud, Minnesota – EDITOR’S NOTE: The above video originally aired in May 2024.

A month after proposing a series of massive budget cuts, St. Cloud State University has released its final list of program and personnel cuts as part of its five-year plan.

In a presentation to the campus community on Tuesday, SCSU Acting President Larry Lee confirmed that the university will suspend 42 majors and 50 minors. Four majors that were originally scheduled to be suspended will remain unchallenged: MS in Social Studies, BS in Manufacturing Engineering, PSM in Software Engineering and BFA in Studio Art.

The university will also eliminate 54.33 full-time equivalent positions of its IFO faculty, representing a 13% decrease in its IFO positions. An additional 8% of staff and 13% of administrative positions will also be eliminated.

“The reductions in faculty are a direct result of streamlining the academic program portfolio and a smaller student body,” SCSU officials said in their campus presentation. “They in no way reflect the performance of any individual faculty member.”

Of the faculty members to be reduced, 35 will remain at SCSU through the end of the 2024–25 school year and the remaining 20 through the 2026–27 school year.

SCSU originally proposed cutting 57 positions, but three faculty members in the atmospheric and hydrological sciences, manufacturing engineering and sociology programs will remain at the company.

After the cuts, SCSU now has a total academic portfolio of 94 degree programs (62 bachelor’s, 29 master’s and three doctoral degrees) and 35 minor programs. According to the university, 92% of current students are enrolled in one of the 94 remaining degree programs.

“Students have identified the programs that most interest them through their enrollment and choice of major,” university officials said in a statement. “We shape our portfolio of academic programs to offer high-quality, in-demand programs that meet the needs of our students.”

University officials say all students whose courses are currently suspended will be offered “a clear path and sufficient time to complete their studies.”

Here is the final list of courses to be cut, according to the presentation to SCSU faculty:

• Life Sciences, MA
• Child and Family Studies: Family Studies, MS
• Criminal Law, BS
• Criminal Justice Studies, MS (program admissions currently frozen)
• Cultural Resource Management, MS
• Early Childhood Special Education, MS (program admissions currently frozen)
• Geosciences, BA
• Economics, BA
• Educational Administration and Management, SPEC
• Educational Leadership and Technology, MS
• Electrical Engineering, MSEE
• English Teaching, MS
• English Studies, MA
• Entrepreneurship, BS
• Environmental Engineering, BS
• Environmental Sciences, BS
• Environmental Studies, BS
• Gender and Women’s Studies, BA
• Geography, BA
• Geography: GIS, MS
• Gerontology, MS
• Global Studies, BA
• Health & Sports, BS
• History, MA
• History, MS (program admissions currently frozen)
• Hospitality and Tourism, BA
• Hydrology, BS
• Manufacturing Engineering, BS
• Musical performance, BMUS (study admissions currently frozen)
• Music Education, BS (K-12)
• Music therapy, BS (not started)
• Music, BA
• Nuclear Medicine Technology, BS (program approvals currently frozen)
• Sports, BS
• Teaching Physics Grades 9-12, BS
• Physics, BS
• Physics/General Science, Grades 5-12, BS
• Public Administration, MPA
• Rehabilitation Counseling, MS
• Sociology, BA
• Spanish, BS
• Writing and Rhetoric, MA (admissions currently frozen)

In addition, SCSU will also eliminate 50 minors:

• African American Studies, Minor
• American Indian Studies, Minor
• Applied Analytics, Minor
• Applied Behavior Analysis, Minor
• Applied Mathematics, Minor
• Art Entrepreneurship, Minor
• Asian-Pacific American Studies, Minor
• Sports Coaching, Minor
• Vocational/technical training: Communication, minor
• Vocational/technical training: Civil engineering, minor
• Vocational/technical training: Manufacturing, minor
• Vocational/technical training: Transport, minor
• Chicano Studies, Minor
• Conflict Management, Minor (Study admissions currently frozen)
• Creative Writing, Minor
• Criminology, minor
• Early Childhood Education, Minor
• Economics, minor
• English as a minor
• Entrepreneurship for Business Administration, Minor
• Entrepreneurship for Non-Business Students, Minor
• Environmental Sciences, Minor
• E-sports broadcast. Minor
• E-Sports Management for Business Majors, Minor
• E-Sports Management for Non-Business, Minor
• Ethnic Studies, Minor
• Film Production, Minor (Admissions currently frozen)
• Forensic Science, Minor
• Gender and Women’s Studies, Minor
• Geography, minor
• German, minor
• Gerontology for Nursing Staff, Minor
• Gerontology, minor
• GIS, minor
• Monument Preservation (CMTY), Minor
• Hospitality & Tourism, Minor
• Human Relations, Minor
• Hydrology, minor
• Intercultural Communication, Minor
• Linguistics, minor
• Mathematics, minor
• Mathematics for middle school, minor subject
• Music, minor
• New Media – Music and Art, Minor
• Optics, minor
• Real Estate for Business Administration, Minor
• Real Estate for Non-Business Students, Minor
• Sociology, minor
• STEM education, minor
• Teaching English as a Second Language, Minor

“SCSU has long struggled with a budget deficit resulting from expenses that exceed our revenues,” university leaders said in a statement. “Today’s difficult decisions will lay a solid foundation for SCSU’s future and allow us to innovate and grow in the future.”

St. Cloud State is the second largest university in the state of Minnesota.

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