As the spring semester came to a close, NAU leaders began projecting an estimated loss of up to $100 million, almost 20% of the university’s operating budget, in the coming fiscal year as a result of enrollment declines, a trend they said would be worsened by the pandemic. Departments were asked to adjust their fall 2020 budgets to schedule for 25% lower enrollment and personnel expenses, prompting a large round of layoffs in May.
In a statement, Cheng said fewer than 100 faculty positions were affected, none of which were tenure track, but an official number of total jobs lost was never publicly released.
The following month, NAU announced employees would need to take tiered pay cuts between 2.3% and 4.6%, and between six to 10 days of personal flex time in order to cut an additional $6 million in response to its projected revenue shortfall. NAU Executive Team members took 10% pay cuts.
Starting July 1, 60% of Northern Arizona University employees will take a pay reduction in t…
Enrollment
When the first day of in-person classes began Aug. 31, though, the enrollment decline was not as much as anticipated. The university was down 5% of its student enrollment, with a head count totaling 29,594 total students. Lost tuition and fees, along with state appropriations and the loss of revenues from canceled events, led to a total decrease of $78 million in expected revenues for the year. It was NAU’s second year of declining enrollment for the fall semester and faculty layoffs accounted for 700 fewer classes than the previous year.
