PennWest says move to consolidate academic colleges will save $2M

PennWest University will consolidate its six academic colleges into three and rename them as the year-old university — itself created through a merger — seeks to cut costs while reversing enrollment losses.

The university’s Council of Trustees approved the measure Thursday. Officials gave few details afterward about the reorganization, but said the move is intended to enhance faculty and staff collaboration, expand student opportunities and save money.

The State System of Higher Education created PennWest on July 1 by combining California, Clarion and Edinboro universities. It was one of two mergers that reduced the number of State System universities from 14 to 10.

The other merger brought Bloomsburg, Lock Haven and Mansfield universities under the umbrella of Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania.

Before Thursday’s vote, PennWest enrolled students in six colleges. They included the colleges of Arts and Humanities; Business, Computer Sciences and Information Systems; Education; Health Sciences; Natural Sciences and Engineering Technology; and Social Sciences and Human Services.

Thursday’s vote created the colleges of Science, Technology and Business; Education, Arts and Humanities; and Health Sciences and Human Services.

“The reorganization of the colleges will provide more opportunities for collaboration among faculty and staff,” said Wendy Mackall, PennWest’s executive director for communication. “We expect that it will save approximately $2 million. The reorganization is not reliant upon a reduction in faculty.”

Mackall did not address other questions about impact on staff, deans or if the move would involve programmatic reductions or building consolidations.

In a subsequent statement Thursday night, Mackall said, “The reorganization of colleges is an evolution in the integration process. The streamlined college structure will allow faculty and staff to collaborate more readily across disciplines, expanding learning opportunities for students. It will allow us to communicate more frequently, consistently and transparently as our university evolves.”

Kenneth Mash, president of the Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties, said the organization was aware of the looming change.

“We believe that both the system and PennWest University understand that, given their situation, they can’t afford to retrench faculty and further cut programs,” he said. “They know that they need to attract students.”

PennWest experienced an 11% enrollment decline last fall, though freshmen numbers increased by 1.5%.

Collectively, the three-campus institution, with 12,780 students, is the second largest among the state system’s 10 universities after West Chester in suburban Philadelphia. PennWest is Western Pennsylvania’s second largest public university after the University of Pittsburgh.

Like other state system universities, PennWest has kept its base in-state tuition at $7,716 a year in recent years. Penn West in October announced a plan to discount online courses by 20% for state employees. Thursday’s meeting also included action items on new online degree certificates, moves to blend tuition and fees across the three-campus university and adjustments to room and board prices, including an 8% increase in at least some meal plans.

Laurie Bernotsky, Penn West’s acting president, could not be reached for comment after Thursday’s meeting, which was held on the Clarion campus about 80 miles northeast of Pittsburgh.

Bernotsky succeeds Dale-Elizabeth Pehrsson, PennWest’s founding president, who announced in February that she would transition to a new role with the state system as president-in-residence and CEO for PennWest Investment. The entity is intended to provide support for the university. Bernotsky is slated to become PennWest’s interim president July 1 when Pehrsson moves into her new role full-time, according to the university’s website.