Procedures for Closing Departments II.E.14.
Universities exist for the creation and dissemination of knowledge.
The decision to discontinue a department should therefore be based upon academic considerations as determined by the faculty as a whole or appropriate committees thereof. Accordingly, there should be early, careful, and meaningful faculty involvement in decisions relating to the reduction of instructional and research programs. There are a number of general procedures that should be followed when a department closing is contemplated. Most, if not all, schools, and the University as a whole, have faculty committees charged with the responsibilities of reviewing planning and budgetary decisions. Such committees should be involved in decisions to limit the resources of departments or close them.