"West Virginia University Faces Crisis Amid GOP's Economic Development Focus"

West Virginia University (WVU) is facing a financial crisis due to dwindling enrollment, revenue loss during the pandemic, and increasing debt. To address its budget deficit, WVU is proposing to cut 32 programs, including its entire foreign languages department, graduate and doctoral degrees in math, music, and English. The university's administration argues that these drastic cuts are necessary for an "academic transformation" amid an "existential crisis" in higher education. However, critics accuse the administration of financial mismanagement and poor strategic planning. The situation at WVU raises questions about the responsibilities of states to offer diverse academic offerings and the value of different types of education.