Projecting an enrollment nosedive, West Virginia University is preparing for a lean future. Some call it an act of surrender, while others say it’s a prudent choice to be replicated elsewhere. West Virginia University president E. Gordon Gee gave a blunt assessment to a crowd of faculty, administrators, students and staff: WVU is too big—and its student body shrinking too fast—to operate sustainably. With enrollment rates eroding and costs skyrocketing, the university had to shed weight, he said. Programs and positions that served the most students effectively would be prioritized; the rest were up in the air.
