The president of Utica University, Laura Casamento, at the prompting of Utica’s Board of Trustees, has recommended that the university no longer offer students the opportunity to major in philosophy. A petition has been launched to protest the proposed elimination of the philosophy major. Utica Philosophy Professor Douglas Edwards writes in with the following information: On Wednesday January 18th, 2023, the President of Utica University, Laura Casamento, and the Chair of the Board of Trustees, Robert Brvenik recommended the elimination of 15 majors, including Philosophy, and also demanded that 8 other programs needed to make significant changes or face elimination. The process for cutting programs began back in September 2022 when the Board of Trustees of the University charged the University with conducting an Academic Portfolio Review, due to what they called “an unsustainable faculty-to-student ratio”, which asked for recommendations for program deletion. Whilst this was claimed to be for the purpose of cutting costs, no information has been given on how any of the proposed cuts will save the University any money.
philosophy major
Fresno Pacific University (FPU) has just laid off Nathan Carson, director of the university’s philosophy program and its only full-time (and tenured) philosophy professor, and plans to eliminate the school’s philosophy major and minor programs. An appeal of the decision has been made and is currently being considered by the administration. The decision on the appeal is expected on January 13th. Dr. Carson is asking members of the philosophy profession to support the appeal of the decision to remove Philosophy at Fresno Pacific University. Messages of support can be directed to FPU President André Stephens, FPU by email to FPUPres@fresno.edu. The Philosophy Program at Fresno Pacific has been in place for 47 years, according to Dr. Carson. The cuts, which eliminated not just the sole full-time philosophy professor, but 4% of the university’s total faculty, were intended to help the university administration cope with a multi-million-dollar budget deficit it created. Regarding the cuts, Dr.