Central State University will lay off more than a dozen faculty members at the end of spring semester, according to its faculty union.
Administrators at Ohio’s only public historically Black university notified 16 faculty members last week that their contracts would not be renewed for next school year. Faculty will be paid through August.
Genevieve Ritchie-Ewing, president of Central State’s American Association of University Professors chapter and an associate professor of sociology and anthropology, said the university has lost a total of 38 faculty positions in the past three years.
Central State’s Board of Trustees approved a plan to reduce staff in February. When The Dispatch asked, university officials would not confirm the total number of individuals laid off. Rather, administrators said the layoffs are the result of financial strain and recent state legislation impacting the university.
“The University is undergoing an academic realignment process approved by the Board of Trustees and aligned with [Ohio] Senate Bill 1,” said Rebecca Kocher, vice president of Institutional Advancement, in an emailed statement. “While we do not comment on specific personnel matters, we appreciate the contributions of all CSU faculty and staff. CSU is resilient and remains committed to aligning academic programs and operations to strengthen long-term sustainability and student success.”
Ohio Senate Bill 1, also known as the Advance Ohio Higher Education Act, requires Ohio’s public colleges and universities to, among other things, eliminate academic programs that graduate fewer than five students on average over the last three years.
Ten majors at Central State fit that description, including political science, water resources management and industrial technology.
A decorative logo inside the University Student Center at Central State University on Oct. 23 in Wilberforce. Ohio’s only public historically Black university or college, Central State will lay off more than a dozen faculty members at the end of the spring semester, its faculty union said.
The Ohio Department of Higher Education put Central State on a fiscal watch in 2024. A state audit found severe deficiencies in fiscal oversight, academic operations and building maintenance. Auditors already identified multiple problems: an unapproved free-tuition program for alumni and their family members, a rising amount of unpaid tuition along with minimal efforts to collect, scholarships being awarded without considering the budget impact, an outdated accounting system and a failure to provide audited financial statements.
One of the major contributors to Central State’s current financial picture started in 2019, when the university partnered with the for-profit Student Resource Center to provide more online education programs, according to the university’s fiscal recovery plan.
Student Resource Center was one of the two online program providers that the now-defunct Eastern Gateway Community College used.
Students walk past the Hallie Q. Brown Memorial Library at Central State University on Oct. 23 in Wilberforce. Ohio’s only public historically Black university or college, Central State will lay off more than a dozen faculty members at the end of the spring semester, its faculty union said.
Central State’s program rapidly expanded, especially as the COVID-19 pandemic sparked greater interest in online degrees. However, the financial structure for the program was “drastically modified” because the U.S. Department of Education had concerns about “the ‘free college’ funding model and Title IV funding guidelines for Pell Grants,” according to the report.
Student enrollment plunged as a result. In fall 2021, 4,048 of Central State’s total 6,044 students were enrolled in online programming. By fall 2025, that number dropped to just 875 students, according to the report.
Central State employs a little more than 100 faculty members, but some are on one-year contracts. Since 2023, Ritchie-Ewing said the university has lost about a quarter of its faculty between layoffs and attrition.
Originally called Galloway Tower and later renamed Walter G. Sellers Alumni Tower, the clock tower, seen here Oct. 23, has stood on the Central State University campus since 1906. Ohio’s only public historically Black university or college, Central State will lay off more than a dozen faculty members at the end of the spring semester, its faculty union said.
That doesn’t include staff positions, she said, which have also seen significant cuts in recent years.
Ritchie-Ewing said she worries about what future semesters will look like for remaining faculty and staff members. The university has asked some faculty to help more with recruitment efforts and others to increase their teaching load.
“All of this places additional pressure on everyone,” she said.
Higher education reporter Sheridan Hendrix can be reached at shendrix@dispatch.com and on Signal at @sheridan.120. You can follow her on Instagram at @sheridanwrites.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Central State University lays off faculty amid financial strain, SB 1