Salem State Prepares For Smaller, More Diverse Student Body

SALEM, MA —The sustainable future of Salem State University involves serving a smaller, more diverse student body.

The school shared its "vision" for that future on Wednesday in what is a "time of change for Salem State, the North Shore and the higher education sector."

"Higher education was at a crossroads even before COVID-19 emerged, and the pandemic has accelerated the pace of change," Salem State University President John Keenan said. "This moment gives us a chance to reflect and make sure everything we do on campus is aligned with the interests and needs of our students today and in the future. As a public regional university, we must evolve with the needs of those we serve, just as Salem State has done many times over its 170-year history."

The school said the student body is 3,000 less than it was a decade ago and significantly more diverse. Forty percent of students are students of color, 35 percent are first-generation students and 37 percent are eligible for lower-income Pell grants.

The school said the vision includes focusing resources toward student support services, closing opportunity gaps by 2030 and becoming a designated Hispanic Serving Institution.

HSI status is a designation by the U.S. Department of Education for institutions at which at least 25 percent of undergraduate full-time equivalent students identify as Hispanic.

The school said it will also refocus its faculty on areas of "high demand," though anyone accepted for the fall of 2021 will have an opportunity to finish their degree in their chosen field. Sixty percent of students since 2015 earned degrees in business, education, nursing, psychology and social work.

The school, which recently announced a second round of "voluntary faculty reductions," references the possibility of "involuntary personnel reductions" in the future if enrollment does not stabilize.

"The 'vision' responds to the changing higher education landscape that has prompted colleges and universities across the country to evolve," the school said. "Salem State's enrollment faces retention challenges, changing demographics, declining community college enrollments that produce far fewer transfer students and the success of the university increasing its graduation rate.

"The university's personnel reductions have not kept pace with declining enrollment, and compensation makes up 70 percent of the university's expenses"

The full plan can be found here.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)