In an effort to absorb the latest round of budget cuts, TheUniversity of Memphis will cut another foreign language programthis fall, despite heavy protests from students and faculty.
University Provost Ralph Faudree said cutting the Chineseprogram is a necessary part of The University's recovery from theloss of state funding. The University cut the Russian program lastsemester, citing its poor enrollment numbers as a decidingfactor.
During last fall semester, University officials were told by theTennessee Board of Regents The U of M would have to cut 5 percentof its budget. The cuts came on the heels of a state mandated 5percent budget reduction for higher education put into place byTennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen.
"I'm the one who has to cross the line, but I don't make thesedecisions alone," Faudree said. "There was a lot of input" fromUniversity administration and those in the Chinese department.
University officials look at programs to see which ones have theleast impact on students, he said.
The administration decided cutting a program with a low impacton degree-seeking students was preferable to making small cuts toall University departments, Faudree said.
However, those in the foreign language department protested theadministration's decision and the way the decision was made.
De-An Swihart, who heads The U of M Chinese program, saidstudents working toward a minor in Chinese had no warning that theprogram was to be cancelled.
Unlike the dance program, which is being phased out, the Chineseprogram will be cut without consideration to juniors and seniorsplanning to graduate with a minor in Chinese.
The Chinese Faculty Association sent a petition to Universityadministration, including U of M President Shirley Raines in hopesof preserving the program , Swihart said. The petition includedinformation on the Chinese program's high enrollment numbers ofmore than 100 students each year, higher than enrollment in boththe Japanese and Italian programs, which aren't being cut.
"Our department did not have the lowest enrollment," Swihartsaid, "Why cut us?"
However, the number of students taking the courses and thenumber of students majoring in the program were factors, Faudreesaid. Numbers were really the deciding factors, he added.
The Chinese program is also one of the least expensive at TheUniversity, Chinese department officials said. The program has onefaculty member and eliminating the program would mean eliminatingthat faculty position.
The administration was unmoved by the faculty's petition andmoved ahead with plans to eliminate the program. But more petitionsfollowed.
Students enrolled in the Chinese courses also petitioned theDepartment of Foreign Languages and Literatures Chair RalphAlbanese.
The petition stated the students were not only disappointed withthe decision to stop the program but that they were also upset overthe time and money they invested in having Chinese as a minor.
In addition, the students asked for reimbursement for the costof taking the Chinese course or to be given an option to transfertheir credits in Chinese to other universities since they receivedno warning about the cancellation.
Despite the many protests, the program is still scheduled to bediscontinued in fall 2004, administration officials said.
The reduction of the languages department comes at a time whenUnited States Senate Resolution 170 designates 2004 and 2005 as"Years of Foreign Language Study."
"It's a blow to the international program," Albanese said. "Wedon't get the big grants other departments do ... The faculty isdemoralized, but we're doing our best here."
