Fanshawe College program suspensions announced to staff as major cuts begin

Fanshawe College has begun telling staff and faculty which programs will be cut as it faces a dramatic drop in enrolment.

The school is anticipating 64 per cent fewer international students, a major source or revenue, by next year, said President Peter Devlin in February. 

Fanshawe's international student population has been among the highest in Ontario, with roughly 11,700 permits approved for the college in 2023. That number has recently been cut by more than half.

On Tuesday, meetings were held across campus where employees learned the fate of different programs. Other colleges across Ontario have already made public their plans, allowing students and staff to plan for the upcoming year.

Devlin has repeatedly said he would wait to make the news public until a provincially funded audit was complete this spring. He is expected to provide more information on the specifics Wednesday.

Meanwhile, CBC News has learned eight programs in the Faculty of Creative Industries will face cuts, a faculty that includes the School of Media and Digital Arts, and the School of Design. CBC News has also learned the postgraduate in the Journalism of Television and Digital News program has been indefinitely suspended.

Other faculties at the college, which has locations in London, St. Thomas, Simcoe and Woodstock, are also expected to be impacted. It's not yet known which courses will be cut.

Tuesday's meeting made no mention of layoffs as officials are waiting to see how many staff members will choose the early retirement option. While Fanshawe won't accept new students for those eight programs, those who are already enrolled in them will be able to finish their courses, CBC News has learned.

The audit was being done by Consultants StrategyCorp Inc. and looked at which programs have high demand, retention, labour market need and how much they bring in, along with reviewing off-campus spaces Fanshawe leases.

Devlin asked for the review in October after sounding the alarm on how much pressure the federal government's cap on international student enrolment had put on the school's budget. 

Fanshawe is offering an early retirement incentive to full-time staff who are 55 and older and have been working there for more than 10 years. It's part of its efforts to "right-size" the organization, according to an internal email sent to employees last week.

The college implemented a formal hiring freeze in February. 

"We will have fewer programs and a right-sized workforce. We will have a deficit position while we reshape Fanshawe over time," Devlin said, in February.