Earlham hopes big cuts foster long-term survival

Hoping to continue its acclaimed liberal arts education offerings well into the future, Earlham College in Richmond is pursuing big cuts in staffing, educational programs and campus operations.

In recent communications to its campus community, Earlham’s leadership said expenses have far exceeded revenue for too long. Following its board of trustees’ mandate to balance its budget by 2030, Earlham will cut $18 million from its annual operating expenses over the next four years, a 32% decrease from its current budget.

The stakes are high: while Earlham representatives say it has “no plans or intention to cease operations,” they acknowledge the institution is facing “serious financial challenges.”

“The steps being taken to balance our budget will help us secure our financial sustainability so that we can continue to educate future generations of students,” said Brian Zimmerman, Earlham’s assistant vice president for strategic communications.

One way they plan to meet that goal is a “significant reduction in personnel,” cutting staffing costs by about 35%. The college implemented a hiring freeze in May and sent out an early retirement offer to some faculty earlier in the year.

Now, it’s offering to pay other employees to resign. WWN reviewed an early October letter sent to one current faculty member offering $5,000, with the requirement that the employee voluntarily resign in June 2026 and forfeit any unemployment insurance benefits. Earlham representatives would not confirm compensation amounts but said incentives have been sent out to eligible employees, and that some could voluntarily leave by the end of 2025 while teaching faculty would stay through June 30, 2026.

Employee decisions about the incentive are due this month and Earlham representatives said that, based on the result, an undetermined number of additional layoffs could happen later.

Declining revenue

In 2007, Earlham had over 1,200 undergraduate students. This fall, that number was 671.

The college has mostly retained the same number of teaching faculty in that time, around 100 full-time and 10 part-time professors for the 2024-2025 school year, including those teaching at the Earlham School of Religion, according to its website.

Zimmerman said many small colleges are facing similar challenges. He said declines in the number of students graduating from high school nationally, inflation, shifts in public perception about the value of higher education, increased competition and delays or restrictions for international students all affect enrollment, which then translates to significant financial pressures.

The school has been scrambling for years to raise enrollment, expanding pathways for area high school graduates to be admitted, hiring new leaders focused on marketing and enrollment, and updating its branding to reach new high school seniors. In 2022, Earlham announced its Epic Advantage offering, which guarantees students access to funded internship or faculty-led research experiences to boost their career options, made possible by alumni donations.

However, operational costs, including teaching faculty salaries and the expense of maintaining a 535-acre campus, have continued rising. Without student numbers meeting needed goals, the school is reckoning with the gap and the implications for its future.

Campus reactions

“Sad, devastating.” That’s how one college employee described the recent announcements to WWN. WWN is not using their name because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. They described the impossible balancing act of wanting Earlham to remain a place that students want to attend and that its alumni want to support, while at the same time making reductions that make those things more difficult.

Hiyori Kobayashi, a senior politics major and former WWN intern reporter, said it has been concerning to see educational programs such as language majors being removed. She said she understands it as a financial dilemma the college is facing, but that it’s “very, very hard to embrace the college’s choice.”

Ryan Murphy, an associate professor in the history department, told WWN that the announcements have prompted a range of reactions on campus. He said Earlham remains “a great place to be” and that “every day is so great to go to work” to be a part of educating students, many of whom are from Indiana. At the same time, he said the cuts feel “apocalyptic” and that budget struggles are “a terrible thing looming over our heads.”

Several people WWN spoke with said they felt Earlham president Paul Sniegowski, who was hired in 2024, is doing a good job handling an awful situation. Kobayashi said she appreciates Sniegowski’s “active communication and purposeful leadership.” Another said that many of these challenges should have been addressed more aggressively 10 years ago, and that it’s fallen to Sniegowski to make up for that.

Ferit Güven, a philosophy professor who has been at Earlham since 1999, told WWN he found the financial incentive to end his employment “offensive.” He explained that, “as a tenured faculty member, being fired is more advantageous than leaving by early retirement.” Güven has been publishing essays online about Earlham’s challenges, saying he wanted “to voice the thoughts of the community that people were too scared to share.”

Murphy said he is concerned for the Earlham employees who have lived in Richmond for a long time and may be affected, with limited other job options in the area. “You can’t just pivot … there isn’t a different college to switch to.”

Murphy has also been involved in efforts to unionize the school’s teaching faculty and improve what he describes as not enough transparency from the school’s leadership. Earlham’s board announced Feb. 3 that they were declining to recognize the union, saying that allowing collective bargaining would diminish Earlham’s distinctive approach to governance based on its Quaker values.

Is Revitalize Richmond affected?

The $25 million that Lilly Endowment Inc. awarded to Earlham College in 2023 for its Revitalize Richmond project will not be affected by these challenges, officials say.

“Those funds can only be used for that initiative, which remains on track and is in its second year of implementation,” Zimmerman said.

The initiative has already contributed to funding four projects in the downtown Richmond area, including the 6Main apartments being constructed on the site of the former Elder-Beerman building. In total, Revitalize Richmond will see investment of about $108 million in the community through 2028.

What about the endowment?

Earlham has over $400 million in endowed funds, but most of that money was donated to the college with restrictions, meaning the dollars can only be used for specific kinds of programs and services based on stated donor wishes.

“We have depleted the amount of unrestricted dollars that we are legally allowed to spend to address this deficit and support operating costs,” Zimmerman told WWN. “The situation now requires special permission from the Indiana Attorney General [Todd Rokita] to access one-time use of further unrestricted funds in our endowment. We have submitted a petition to the attorney general’s office and are awaiting a decision,” he said.

In an Oct. 16 email to community members, Sniegowski said the petition was sent to Rokita’s office Aug. 20 and that the college expected to hear back around Oct. 20. “If the Attorney General supports the petition, swift approval by the Court is expected. If not, we have the right to appeal all the way to the Indiana Supreme Court,” Sniegowski wrote.

Teaching program shuttered

One casualty of Earlham’s financial challenges is its graduate programs in education, including its Master of Arts in Teaching and Master of Education programs, which developed educational leadership skills and, in the case of the MAT program, licensure for those wanting to teach at middle and high school levels.

Zimmerman said the decision was made to discontinue the programs after the end of the current academic year, given low enrollment and other factors.

A number of Wayne County school teachers have been licensed through the program, benefiting area schools and increasing the local teacher talent pool since its launch in 2002.

What happens next?

In an email sent to students and parents last week, Sniegowski wrote that several committees have been established to quickly make recommendations on “how Earlham can become stronger.” They will consider changes in curriculum, student programs and staffing, all with an eye on attracting and supporting students.

Sniegowski wrote that “December will be a key month” and that a series of all-campus meetings, forums and other events will give campus community members a chance to ask questions and share their thoughts. Zimmerman said that Sniegowski has also been holding multiple meetings with the campus community over the last year to discuss the situation.

Sniegowski told WWN he finds hope in the work he and others are doing, “the hard, honest work that will allow a stronger and enduring Earlham to emerge. It also lies in the remarkable commitment of our colleagues who are shaping the academic foundation of that future.”

Murphy remains hopeful about resolving what he calls “communication issues” with college leadership and says the school is poised to flourish. “No one wants to give up. Earlham has made a lot of mistakes, but this is not about Earlham College disappearing,” Murphy said.

When asked what the surrounding community should know about Earlham’s changes, Zimmerman said collaboration will be important. “We recognize that any change we make at Earlham may affect the broader Richmond community as well. As we navigate this challenging period, what we need most is the continued partnership and goodwill of our neighbors,” Zimmerman said. “Whether that means recommending Earlham to students, collaborating with us on local initiatives or simply continuing to take pride in having a nationally respected college in Richmond, every bit of support matters.”

Disclosure: Chris Hardie is a graduate of Earlham College.