SARASOTA, Fla. — Leaders at New College of Florida continue meeting over new plans for the school, but quitting faculty is presenting a new set of challenges.
A dwindling faculty now appears to be the next big hurdle for administrators to overcome. They're trying to stay ahead of that new curve with expedited hiring to prevent any impact on students before the fall semester.
At a recent board of trustees meeting, New College of Florida leaders revealed several faculty members have left or will soon leave.
"Thirty people either are resigned, on leave or retired," Richard Corcoran, interim president at New College of Florida, said.
School officials said out of around 100 full-time teaching positions, 36 are currently vacant.
One trustee, Provost Bradley Thiessen, called the departures a "ridiculously high" turnover for the small liberal arts school.
"A majority of the faculty that have left have not given us any kind of consideration or notice or thoughts or anything so that expedited the process," Corcoran said.
A union representative on the New College faculty said the development is concerning.
"It's going to be a rocky year, like, there is no question about it," Steve Shipman, who is the president of the NCF chapter of the United Florida Faculty. "We're losing about a quarter of the people who teach classes regularly and there's some replacements coming in and kind of visiting on like a one-year contract."
At a meeting last week, school officials said they've recruited around 16 visiting faculty, some of whom they hope to make long-term.
"We keep hearing they want to completely change the academic program but aren't really presenting any models for that. There's not much stability here and a bunch of people really are looking for other places where they can get more pay and have more stability," Shipman said.
A massive renovation process is also underway at several dormitories in the school after extensive dilapidation and molding were discovered.
However, several upperclassmen were disheartened after they were notified of housing reassignments to make way for the freshman class and athletes.
"There is going to be this social divide among students that wouldn't need to be there," Grace Keenan, a student trustee for NCF, said. "A bunch of the first-year baseball players and basketball players and all of that are getting the nicest and now newly renovated dorms while many upperclassmen are tripled up in the 'Pies' which will be cleaned but not renovated. There's going to be a lot of concern with that."
According to a representative of NCF, only roughly 25 percent of the total staff departures occurred after changes were made within the board of trustees.
Fall classes are set to begin on Aug. 28th.
New College of Florida representatives released the following statements to 10 Tampa Bay on Wednesday:
On the Faculty Departures
The excitement for the changes that have taken place since January is remarkable, as we have been inundated with curricula vitae from faculty members from many of America's most prestigious institutions. These applicants recognize the elite status of New College and understand the value of its rigorous academic standards and student-centered liberal arts curriculum.
As a result of retirements, scheduled leaves of absence, and only six resignations, New College expects to be without 36 faculty members from the 2022-2023 school year. Again, as it's important to include in your story for context only six of these departures are the result of resignations, and additionally, only roughly 25% of the total departures followed the changes in the New College Board of Trustees. Just as we are welcoming a record incoming class of students, we will complete record hiring to fill the 36 vacated positions and more to meet the needs of our growing enrollment. As we have consistently stated, the full roster of classes will be available to our students this fall.
Regarding On-Campus Housing
In his first month, President Corcoran promised to tackle the ongoing issue with student safety and comfort as the priority and commissioned a Targeted Mold and Moisture Assessment Report for all of the residential and dormitory buildings.
The report found that previous administrations failed to take appropriate remedial and corrective action from the last assessment report from four years ago. Based on the findings and recommendations of professional inspectors, New College has taken all affected rooms offline to ensure the safety and security of students. New College's ongoing multi-million-dollar campus renovation includes substantial enhancements to all residence halls, meaning students will enjoy some of the finest accommodations at any college in America this fall.