[Note: you do not have to be a UCW member to sign this letter, though we encourage our coworkers to join our union.]

To the UofL Board of Trustees, Provost, and Dean of Arts and Sciences,

We write in deep concern regarding the proposed restructuring of the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) of the University of Louisville. We are concerned about both the process through which this major transformation of A&S is being undertaken and its potential outcomes. Moreover, we wish to acknowledge the existing severe understaffing and lack of institutional support for important programs within the college of A&S.  

Top-down restructuring of major units like A&S are rarely undertaken in times of plenty, and messaging from the interim provost and department supervisors reveals that the looming plans for restructuring will bring yet more cuts to our institution. Examples of restructuring that have taken place at other universities show us precisely this: at the University of Akron in Ohio, a major restructuring effort resulted in the elimination of 80 programs (https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/07/16/budget-bloodbath-university-akron) and the University of Marymont in Virginia cut 26 departments down to 10 interdisciplinary schools (https://marymount.edu/blog/washington-business-journal-marymount-university-is-restructuring-its-academics-with-help-from-these-business-leaders/). Restructuring aimed at “efficiency” and “academic prioritization” invariably results in  staff, faculty, and program cuts (https://www.forbes.com/sites/michaeltnietzel/2020/10/16/higher-educations-big-shake-up-is-underway/?sh=4d92c813cd53). Our research shows that these cuts, which are justified under the false rhetoric of "efficiency" and "academic prioritization," target programs in the liberal arts that promote diversity, and which overwhelmingly employ and serve those that hail from populations traditionally underrepresented in academia, such as: people of color, LGBTQIA+, and first-generation college graduates (https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2019/03/01/shrinking-liberal-arts-programs-raise-alarm-bells-among-faculty). Moreover, the kinds of so-called "interdisciplinary opportunities” that the restructuring promises to create are already present at the university - for example, in the Department of Comparative Humanities, whose BA was just threatened with sunsetting. In all, such a restructuring would be antithetical to UofL’s intention of being a premier anti-racist institution.

We, the undersigned faculty, staff, students, and community members at the University of Louisville, demand that, if the restructuring of the College of Arts and Sciences is to proceed, there be no staffing, instructional, or departmental cuts. In addition, we demand that departments not be combined, as this would increase the duties and workloads of faculty and staff — who are already stretched thin. For this reason, we call for our college, which is already severely under-resourced, to receive further funding through this reorganization so as to better meet student needs. If budgetary concerns are driving this restructuring effort, such cuts should be made to upper executive salaries, unnecessary capital projects, unchecked spending on athletics, and new tone deaf PR efforts.  

We call upon the UofL community, including faculty, staff, students, and other community members who have an interest in maintaining a vibrant and diverse community at UofL, to join us in demanding that restructuring efforts prioritize the stability of jobs, workloads, and well-being of current staff and faculty.  This will translate into a more resilient employee base that can better serve our students, in keeping with the Cardinal Community of Care and Accountability principles.

This letter was written by members of the UofL Chapter of United Campus Workers of Kentucky. Join us by clicking on the link! ucwkentucky.org/join

List of signers: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pDZqsmiC0R-WOHdSqILhm5vQcQxbXcm7vyY4JS1Scis/edit#gid=2084136532

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