Emerson may lay off faculty, staff due to projected fall numbers: president
Facing lower than expected fall enrollment numbers, the president of Emerson College placed part of the blame on the “negative press” coverage of pro-Palestinian protests on campus in a recent campus email.
The Massachusetts college may lay off faculty and staff as a result of the drop, President Jay Bernhardt said in an email to faculty and staff last week, The Berkeley Beacon reports.
“We attribute this reduction to multiple factors, including national enrollment trends away from smaller private institutions, an enrollment deposit delay in response to the new FAFSA rollout, student protests targeting our yield events and campus tours, and negative press and social media generated from the demonstrations and arrests,” he wrote.
Bernhardt wrote the projected enrollment for fall 2024 “is significantly below what we had hoped,” according to the Boston Herald.
He did not provide a specific number, and campus spokesperson Michelle Gaseau told The Beacon that the final tally is not available yet. In 2022, the most recent data available, the college reported 4,104 undergraduate students.
The Boston Herald reports more:
Due to the decline, the letter stated, the college will limit staff and faculty searches next year, review existing programs and offerings, and eliminate both filled and vacant staff positions. The administration could also “potentially reduce some faculty positions.” […]
The enrollment decline is expected to be a “a one-year phenomenon,” Bernhardt said, but to have a ripple effect on the school’s budget due to the losses in tuition and housing.
In the spring, Emerson leaders were accused of coddling student protesters by providing bail and extended housing to those who were arrested during the clearing of a pro-Palestinian encampment.
Bernhardt said in an April statement that the college would not discipline protesters. Additionally, he said he would encourage the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office to drop charges against the students.
City police arrested 118 protesters in April after repeated warnings to break up their pro-Palestinian encampment on campus, according to the statement.
Four police officers were injured, including one who sustained serious injuries, MassLive reported at the time. Most of the arrests involve charges of unlawful assembly and disturbing the peace, according to Boston police.
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IMAGE: Emerson Students for Justice in Palestine/Instagram
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