DE PERE, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — St. Norbert College has announced that it is eliminating more faculty positions and discontinuing over a dozen majors and/or minors, as it continues to battle a budget deficit.
The college has already made two rounds of layoffs in the wake of enrollment dropping by about 500 students in recent years. Now, it is in a process called “retrenchment” to cut academic programs and layoff faculty.
According to the university, 27 total faculty members will be terminated. 21 of those layoffs will take place in May 2025, with another six in May 2026.
“Our College exceeds national norms regarding the percentage of tenured or tenure-track faculty members on campus. Our current situation requires us to reduce the number of faculty to align with the size of our student population more closely,” SNC President Laurie Joyner said in an online letter to the college community.
Additionally, at a special meeting of the Board of Trustees, 15 majors and/or minors were approved for discontinuation:
- Studio Art Major and Minor; Art Education Major
- General Chemistry Major
- Earth Science – Geology Major; Earth Science Environmental Geology Major
- French and Francophone Studies Major and Minor
- History Major
- International Studies Major
- Theoretical Math Major; Applied Math Major
- Physics Major and Minor; Engineering Physics
- Spanish Major
- Theatre Studies Major and Minor
- Theology and Religious Studies Major and Minor
“We had to make tough decisions. And we made them together,” Joyner said in the letter.
These moves have drawn criticism from some SNC students, parents, alumni and others. Additionally, in a symbolic vote last month, a majority of SNC faculty members expressed “no confidence” in Joyner, citing her “failed leadership” throughout the school’s financial and enrollment crises and calling for “immediate action by the Board of Trustees to restore leadership that aligns with the mission, values, and sustainability of the College.”
Joyner took over leadership duties at St. Norbert in July 2023 and was officially inaugurated in October 2024. She is the college’s ninth president and the first-ever female president in St. Norbert’s 126-year history.
Earlier this month, the St. Norbert College Board of Trustees and the leader of St. Norbert Abbey released statements expressing support for Joyner.
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