The Trump Administration announced on Apr. 9 that it is implementing changes to higher education, including ending certain gender-related programs and cutting underused academic offerings.
These changes are described as a shift in focus for colleges and universities, with an emphasis on workforce-oriented and high-need programs. The administration said the goal is to ensure graduates are better prepared for employment after college.
According to the announcement, some universities have closed women’s and gender studies programs due to employer concerns about the relevance of these degrees for job skills. Institutions named include East Carolina University, New College of Florida, Texas A&M University, Towson University, the University of California at Santa Cruz, the University of Iowa, the University of Toledo, and Wichita State University.
The administration also said that at least 20 university-affiliated hospitals have ended or suspended puberty blockers and hormone therapies or transgender care for minors. Hospitals listed include Denver Health; Children’s Hospital (University of Colorado); Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine (Lurie Children’s Hospital and Northwestern Memorial Hospital); NYU Langone Health; Oregon Health & Science University; Penn State Health; Phoenix Children’s Hospital; Rush University Medical Center; Stanford Medicine; UI Health at the University of Chicago Medicine; University of Illinois (Chicago) Health; University of Michigan Health; CHLA’s Center for Transyouth Health and Development at USC; Penn Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Health System; UPMC at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center; University of Utah Health; UVA Health; UW Wisconsin Health System (University of Wisconsin); Yale New Haven Health System (Yale); Virginia Commonwealth University's VCUHealth system with Children's Hospital Richmond.
In addition to program closures related to gender studies or healthcare services for minors, other academic cuts were highlighted. The State University System of Florida has decided to eliminate 18 academic programs because they had low enrollment numbers. Most affected are bachelor’s degrees in African American Studies, Middle Eastern Studies, gerontology among others. Indiana, Ohio, and Utah have passed laws requiring institutions to remove degree programs graduating few students over three years unless an appeal is successful. Texas has enacted a law mandating reviews every five years for minors and certificate programs with low enrollments.
The announcement concludes by stating these measures are part of efforts aimed at restoring what it describes as America's Golden Age in higher education.
