Central State University announced this week that it will lay off more than a dozen faculty members at the end of the current academic year as part of a broader effort to address deepening financial challenges and comply with newly enacted state legislation affecting public higher education.
According to university communications, at least 16 professors received notices informing them their positions will be eliminated, though they will continue to receive pay and benefits through August. The decision was approved last month by the university’s Board of Trustees.
University leaders cited an ongoing budget shortfall and the need to realign academic programs to meet enrollment benchmarks and state policy requirements under Ohio’s Advance Ohio Higher Education Act (Senate Bill 1), which took effect last year. The law mandates that public colleges and universities eliminate academic programs that graduate fewer than five students on average over a three-year period.
“The University is undergoing an academic realignment process approved by the Board of Trustees and aligned with [Ohio] Senate Bill 1,” said Rebecca Kocher, vice president of Institutional Advancement, in an emailed statement. “While we do not comment on specific personnel matters, we appreciate the contributions of all CSU faculty and staff. CSU is resilient and remains committed to aligning academic programs and operations to strengthen long-term sustainability and student success.”
Under the legislation, Ohio public institutions must conduct program reviews and make structural changes to ensure compliance. According to reporting by The Columbus Dispatch, ten majors at Central State fall below the required graduation threshold, including political science, water resources management, and industrial technology.
The layoffs mark the latest chapter in a series of financial challenges facing the historically Black university. Central State has been under fiscal watch since 2024 under orders from the Ohio Department of Higher Education. A state audit identified severe deficiencies in fiscal oversight, academic operations, and facilities maintenance.
The audit cited several contributing factors to the university’s financial instability, including an unapproved free-tuition program for alumni and their family members, a growing amount of unpaid tuition with limited collection efforts, scholarships awarded without sufficient consideration of budget impact, an outdated accounting system, and a failure to provide audited financial statements.
Financial strain can be traced back to 2019, when the university entered into a partnership with the for-profit Student Resource Center to expand academic offerings as part of a fiscal recovery strategy. However, after the U.S. Department of Education raised concerns about the “free college” funding model and compliance with Title IV Pell Grant guidelines, the program’s financial structure was significantly modified, according to state reports—further complicating the institution’s recovery efforts.
Faculty leaders say the impact has been profound. Genevieve Ritchie-Ewing, president of Central State’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors and an associate professor of sociology and anthropology, said 38 faculty members have been laid off over the past three years.
Since 2023 alone, the university has lost roughly a quarter of its faculty through layoffs and attrition, she said. Central State currently employs just over 100 faculty members, many working on short-term contracts.
The continued reductions have raised concerns about course availability, program continuity, and faculty workload heading into future semesters.
As Central State works to stabilize its finances and comply with state mandates, the institution now faces a delicate balancing act: preserving its historic mission as Ohio’s only public HBCU while navigating mounting fiscal pressures and legislative demands.
