Sept. 17, 2021

Dear faculty and staff,

As we have discussed many times in recent months, the University of Dayton faces two considerable financial challenges: five years of net-revenue losses expected as a result of measures taken to preserve enrollment and support students during the pandemic, and long-term demographic headwinds that all higher education faces, particularly private institutions with modest endowments.

We started this work in fall 2019 and winter 2020, with an extensive “road show” and many  unit-level meetings at which we identified the long-term challenge, establishment of the Budget Alignment Steering Committee, and collaborative work on initial issues — but it was interrupted by the pandemic. 

Prior to and throughout the pandemic, we have been able to achieve positive financial results by curbing spending across the University and employing other short-term tactics. However, this approach will not create the kind of transformational change that will ensure and sustain the long-term health and quality of University. 

The University is clear-eyed about the challenges we face. We will follow the lead of our Marianist founders and take bold, decisive action to maintain a high-quality University of Dayton education for current and future students and continue to live our mission in service to others, while remaining financially strong. The path we chart will enable the University to control its own destiny in a rapidly changing world. 

We are announcing today a planning initiative that will identify and consider a wide range of academic and operational changes to help the University thrive in the face of longer-term trends affecting higher education. 

The Committee on Sustainable Institutional Transformation (CSIT) will begin work immediately, charged with developing recommendations that will enable long-term financial sustainability, enhance academic quality, and ensure the preservation of the University's core mission and identity. Some recommendations will be implemented beginning in FY23, while others will take longer to develop.  

The committee will explore changes to a broad range of University functions such as, but not limited to, the areas below. Other ideas will be identified in broader consultation with leadership groups and the campus community. 

• reducing the number of academic programs
• the optimal size of the student body and housing requirements
• instructional standards including section sizes and class enrollments
• operational efficiencies such as shared administrative support and financial management
• continued effective stewardship of funds 

No decisions have been made yet; these are some of the items for initial study, and CSIT will carefully evaluate all ideas.  

The committee will consult regularly with the Board of Trustees, Executive Committee of Academic Senate (ECAS), Educational Leadership Council (ELC), Budget Alignment Steering Committee (BASC), and other leadership groups, as well as develop a plan for communicating with the broader University community. You can read more about the CSIT charge to the committee on the President's page on Porches and send questions and comments to the committee at csit@udayton.edu.

We look forward to engaging the campus community in this important work to prepare the University to navigate the challenges ahead and shape its future for generations of Flyers to come. 

Eric F. Spina
President