Corning Community College says it’s cutting class.
Some classes will be cut this year, as the college, like many other across the state deal with enrollment changes and declines.
Some of the classes cut include automotive, early childhood studies, manufacturing technology, health and physical education studies, and human services.
The college said that a one-year study determined that these were the areas in which the college could safely cut.
“The changes are in response to regional workforce demands and the need to offer programs that lead to jobs with livable wages,” the college said in a statement. “These decisions incorporate local business feedback and faculty recommendations.”
Facility union president tells Spectrum News that the community was ignored. “It’s baffling how they came to these conclusions. In automotive, for example, these are careers that students walk into. They’re eagerly sought,” Ryan Hersha said.
“They are still going forward with eliminating faculty for no reason. They’ve not spoken to any financial reason to do so. There’s no academic reason to do so,” she contended in an interview. “Under our contract, tenured faculty members, when the college indicated that their positions will go away, they have an obligation to make every effort to see that those faculty members can continue to work at the college.”
She’s calling for the state to jump into the debate.
A Times Union report last month showcased major decline in enrollment at community colleges across the region and New York State.
Corning Community College was no exception having lost 21% of its student enrollment in the last decade. It equated to more than 1,100 students.
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