UI Provost says program cuts not at final stage

IOWA CITY - A process to analyze all 108 graduate and doctoral programs at the University of Iowa is at the starting line, not the finish line, Provost Wallace Loh told concerned faculty Tuesday.

"There will be ample opportunity for shared governance in this process," Loh told the Faculty Senate.

That was in response to concern voiced by some faculty that the process has gone too fast, or that the task force charged with assessing graduate programs has not considered external reviews or quality measures regarding the programs. The work of the task force on graduate education has caused some angst on campus in recent weeks.

"I think many faculty would ask you to slow down the process," Richard Fumerton, professor in philosophy, said. "Better that we get it right."

Loh said he has not yet seen the task force report and urged faculty to wait to read the full recommendations. There will be plenty of time for feedback and study, Loh said, as he expects it will be September before he takes any recommendations to the state Board of Regents. The final reports of all six task forces on strategic planning, including graduate education, likely will be ready and made public next week. It's part of a long-term effort to find efficiencies in light of budget reductions.

Several faculty on Tuesday voiced concern the humanities will be more harmed by the potential changes. Another professor said there is little evidence program mergers would save that much money, but they would lower morale.

Just because programs rank poorly in the report does not automatically mean closure, Loh said. The deans will deliberate and make recommendations, and there could be mergers or reorganization of programs instead.

"I would far more prefer that," Loh said.