Shrinking College Majors Affect Rural Students, Labeled as 'Easily Disregarded'

Shrinking College Majors Affect Rural Students, Labeled as 'Easily Disregarded'

In recent times, many rural universities across the United States are grappling with significant cuts to programs and majors, primarily due to plummeting enrollment and financial crises. This trend is particularly affecting low-income and Black students, as seen at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, where more than half of the students are low-income, and 35% are Black.

One such university, Delta State, has eliminated 21 degree programs, including history, English, chemistry, music, and digital media arts. This leaves students like Dominick Bellipanni, one of the last remaining music students, facing the phase-out of their department.

The American Council on Education estimates that over a dozen private, nonprofit universities and colleges in rural areas or serving large proportions of rural students have closed outright since 2020. The University of Alaska System has scaled back more than 40 programs, including earth sciences, geography, and environmental resources.

The situation is even more critical for tribal colleges, which serve Indigenous and other disadvantaged rural communities. The Trump administration’s proposal to cut funding for tribal colleges by nearly 90% poses a significant threat to their viability. The 37 tribal colleges nationwide have historically been underfunded and serve populations impacted by systemic inequities.

The American Association of State Colleges and Universities has reported that some institutions have no other options than to cut programs due to financial problems and plummeting enrollment. The potential impacts of these cuts are severe for students and education in rural areas.

For instance, the reduction in programs may limit educational diversity and access, as many of the affected programs are in the humanities and languages. This makes those disciplines less available to rural students than to urban and suburban ones.

Moreover, the cuts may lead to institution closures and reduced capacity, particularly for tribal colleges. The loss of critical access points for Indigenous students and communities historically underserved by higher education would be a significant blow.

Furthermore, new federal policies may limit financial aid options, making postsecondary education less affordable for rural students. This could widen educational inequities, as families with means might leverage private school vouchers while public rural schools lose critical funding and serve more vulnerable communities with fewer resources.

In the long term, reduced educational opportunities in rural areas may exacerbate socioeconomic challenges, hinder workforce development aligned with local industries, and impact community vitality and growth.

Rural Americans have less access to higher education than their counterparts in cities and suburbs, with about 13 million people living in higher education "deserts," mostly in the Midwest and Great Plains, where the nearest university is beyond a reasonable commute away.

The large-scale cuts, particularly at universities that serve rural students, have been disproportionately happening during and since the Covid-19 pandemic. St. Cloud State University is cutting 42 degree programs, including criminal justice, gerontology, history, electrical and environmental engineering, economics, and physics.

These cuts have forced students like Shamya Jones, who enrolled at a local community college due to lack of transportation and a new baby, to transfer to a four-year campus closest to her home, Delta State University.

The American Association of University Professors has criticized administrators for closing programs as if colleges and universities were businesses. The organization emphasizes the importance of maintaining a diverse range of academic programs to ensure access to quality education for all students, particularly those in rural areas.

1. The elimination of numerous degree programs at Delta State University, such as history, English, and music, is a significant issue for students like Dominick Bellipanni, as it threatens to phase out entire departments.
2. The Trump administration's proposal to cut funding for tribal colleges by nearly 90% poses a significant threat to their viability, as tribal colleges historically serve Indigenous and other disadvantaged rural communities.
3. In the long term, reduced educational opportunities in rural areas, as a result of cuts and closures, may exacerbate socioeconomic challenges, impede workforce development, and adversely impact the vitality and growth of rural communities.

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