Brain Leiter breaks the news that Illinois Institute of Technology has declared a “financial exigency” and has begun firing faculty. “Up to one-third of the faculty may be terminated, although in the law school, Chicago-Kent, it appears the number is lower (maybe one-fifth by some accounts). . . . If readers have more details, please email me. The main source of the budgetary crisis is the decline in the enrollment of international students, no doubt due to Trump…” Tough time for the new interim law dean.

UPDATE (July 30): I received an email, a portion of which is below, from a source who appears in the know who contacted me. The emailer asked to remain anonymous:

“I am writing to confirm that tenured faculty members across multiple departments are being laid off or terminated with two weeks’ notice and offered six weeks of severance pay.

It appears that a significant number of the affected faculty members are over age 50, although we do not yet have complete demographic information or data regarding the selection process.

. . . .

A few key points:

• IIT’s Faculty Handbook states that a tenured appointment ordinarily continues unless one of several specified circumstances occurs, including a declaration by the Board that the university is experiencing “extraordinary financial exigency.” See Faculty Handbook § IV.B.1.a–b, pp. IV-1–IV-2.
• University leadership previously announced that the Board of Trustees had approved a declaration of financial exigency. However, the [University Faculty Council] does not have a copy of the operative Board resolution.

This remains a rapidly developing situation.”