The first day of the two-day, four-session public hearings on the State System Redesign was dominated by speakers who were against the plan to consolidate six universities into two, and one can expect the same to be true for the second day today.
Among many concerns voiced yesterday, speakers spoke against the timeline, the reliance on online courses, the lack of input in developing the plan, the lack of state funding for the 14 state-owned universities, and the impact on communities. One often-repeated complaint was that the consolidation is being rushed through without proper study, and without details being released on how the plan would be implemented.
The hearings yesterday were designed to focus on the three western universities, California, Clarion, and Edinboro, that would be combined into one. Today’s is supposed to be about the mergers of Lock Haven, Bloomsburg, and Mansfield, which is termed the “northeastern plan.” However, comment is being accepted on whichever part of the plan the speakers were concerned about.
The sessions today will be at 8 AM and 4:30 PM and are available at the State System website, (passhe.edu), and at the website of the faculty union, APSCUF, (apscuf.org).
The Board of Governors is expected to vote on whether or not to move forward with the State System Redesign at its quarterly meeting next month.
