I’ve seen some articles recently that Middlebury is looking to cut 10% of its staff to try to offset a $10 million operating deficit.
Is this a reason for concern? Do any current parents of students have any more info? I appreciate the need to staff the college correctly, but wanted to be sure that it won’t impact the classroom (or financial aid). Thanks!
@hviewer - I’m reading it as a measure to right-size the administration across both Middlebury and the campus in Monterey, CA. This should have a minimal impact on the student exeperience.
@“Contented Panther” - that’s how I was reading it too, but wanted to make sure that I wasn’t missing anything. Thanks!
@hviewer glad it helps - there’s a longer answer that the previous administration made some poor choices, but the current leadership are doing the right thing.
Moody’s Investors Service in June did downgrade Middlebury’s bond rating to Aa3 from its previous Aa2 rating, with a stable outlook. I do get suspicious whatever I hear the term “right-size” – it just oozes with what George Orwell would characterize as “New-speak.”
See the following link for Moody’s rationale:
https://www.moodys.com/research/Moodys-downgrades-Middlebury-College-VT-to-Aa3-outlook-stable–PR_904628979
@MinnesotaDadof3 I certainly wasn’t using right-sizing as an Orwellian term. My take is that having partnered with and then acquired MIIS in Monterey, CA, the previous administration under the last President never actually got around to integrating them. I’m optimisitc that the current administration are getting on top of this, and we should begin to see the real benefits over the next couple of years.
Just hearing about this now. Anybody have a student at Midd and care to comment on if this is affecting students? I read the school has been taking an additional 50 kids for the last couple of years and retiring professors. That must be affecting class sizes, no?
Here is an article about the problem: https://middleburycampus.com/39899/opinion/where-did-the-small-school-go/
@homerdog : I’ve just been at Midd for a few days helping teach a J-Term course, and naturally workforce planning came up in conversation.
Essentially, there are two points. First this is mostly about staff (rather than the faculty), which had grown from 850 to 1000 over the last decade and this is about right-sizing the staff and making sure that the job descriptions are appropriate and up to date, and reducing staff costs by about 10%. This will see posts cut in some areas and created in others. Faculty post cuts are, to my knowledge, not part of the programme, but individual faculty may be incentivised to leave/retire - read into that what you will, but I don’t think that this is necessarily a bad thing.
Second, there are more students on campus as a result of the unexpectedly large class that came in in September 18, so the campus feels a little more crowded (but hardly crowded!) than usual.
The college paper has a lot more detail in their current issue: https://middleburycampus.com/42577/news/staff-cuts-loom-as-workforce-planning-hits-critical-stage/
This period of readjustment is sad, but apparently necessary. Unfortunately, when common areas become makeshift dorms, it is time for those with other solid options to look elsewhere, in my opinion.
@Publisher yikes. Makes me wonder if they will accept fewer kids this spring so they don’t get another increase in class size.
Makes me think about schools like Northwestern University where a main concern seems to be how to spend money in order to avoid the endowment tax. Also makes me appreciate LACs who are managed well.
Middlebury College is a wonderful school in a spectacular location going through a readjustment period.
Every single LAC my D applied to this year had over-enrollment last year. So I think this will hurt a lot of kids applying to LACs. I’m expecting to see a ton of waitlists this year at these schools. It’s going to be very tough come March.
@Publisher higher-than-expected yield happens from time to time - my own Midd class was one where this happened (even now, I understand that we are one of the largest classes). And whilst converting freshman dorm lounges into triples (as happened to us) isn’t ideal, it’s also not the end of the world.
The adjustment seems like it is being pretty well managed, so am looking forward to a more focussed Midd going forward.
Most of the easy cuts have been made and now Midd will need to make some tough choices. Raise tuition? Increase class size? Reduce or freeze faculty hiring? Lower financial aid? Sell real estate? It will be difficult not to affect the quality of life and education. Maybe they can find an angel donor to save the day?
FYI–the college just announced a record number of applications for the class of 2023
http://www.middlebury.edu/newsroom/archive/2019-news/node/611351
Raise tuition? Increase class size? Reduce or freeze faculty hiring? Lower financial aid? Sell real estate?
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@AriBenSion AFAIK, none of these options are likely. Faculty numbers will be maintained, class sizes will stay the same as the size of the student body won’t increase, and there’s no need to sell real estate. Midd is going to be just fine.
This Globe article reports on the challenges Vermont colleges in general have encountered, with some discussion of Middlebury: https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/01/30/higher-education-struggles-hit-vermont-hard/hiN0TRBKM147Qbdrvx4QHJ/story.html. Middlebury, propitiously, remains highly popular among applicants (note its recent 17% acceptance rate). Its difficulties seem to pertain to correctible problems related to spending.
Things look better now than they did last January. They seem on track to get rid of their deficit next year, and they didn’t actually lay off any staff.
Having a decent sized endowment does help, as well.
Other colleges aren’t doing as well, of course. However, I’m pretty sure that Bennington will survive - they always do, somehow.
It was announced today that Bennington received a $12 million gift from an alumna.