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WIU Interim President Kristi Mindrup announced 89 job cuts in
addition to the 36 layoffs announced in June. Fifty-seven
faculty positions and 32 staff positions are being eliminated
with the latest round of cuts.
Mindrup said student retention will be a significant focus as
the school strives to foster opportunities for first-generation
college students and traditionally-underrepresented populations.
“Today we gather to establish a point of focus for our
university community to work toward a common cause, and that is
closing equity gaps,” Mindrup said.
Merrill Cole, professor of English and WIU Chapter president of
the University Professionals of Illinois, told The Center Square
what he thinks the school must do to help bring people back to
the university.
“We need to do all that we can to keep being the institution we
are, an institution that, for generations, has served
underserved students,” Cole said.
Earlier this year, the Equal Protection Project filed a federal
civil rights complaint against Western Illinois, claiming that
16 scholarships at the school are discriminatory.
University trustees said earlier this month that WIU’s
restricted funds have been exhausted.
Merrill Cole said he is trying to lift everyone’s spirit and
bring people together.
“We need to work to create a better WIU for our students, for
the communities that surround us, and for the people who work
here. I am trying to bring everyone into the conversation,
including Interim President Kristi Mindrup,” Cole said.
Cole added that the people at WIU need to keep being the
institution they are and do an even better job.
“I am dedicated to bringing back every single faculty member
who’s been laid off and every single faculty member who has
received a layoff notice,” Cole said.
Mindrup described the layoffs as heartbreaking.
“Together from different vantage points and different depths, we
are all grieving,” Mindrup said.
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