Despite a proposal to cut 10 positions from the University of Akron’s polymer science and polymer engineering program, the school's president in a December statement said the university will not do anything to “harm” the program’s “integrity, reputation and strength.”
President R.J. Nemer and Ali Dhinojwala, a former director of the polymer school who's been with the program for more than 20 years, in a joint statement reaffirmed the university’s commitment to the program.
“Your collective understanding of those challenges allows us to work together and strategize future solutions, including alternatives to UA’s currently proposed merger of three academic units. University leadership welcomes your strategies and prefers to engage in pragmatic alternatives that your faculty, world-class students, alumni, and all stakeholders can genuinely support," the joint statement reads.
Prior to the statement, the university in November told the Akron chapter of the American Association of University Professors, the union representing faculty, that it is proposing merging the polymer program with several other programs and cutting staff, to save money as the university continues to lose enrollment.
Toni Bisconti, president of the Akron AAUP, said that proposal is still on the table.
“But the emphasis remains on ways in which we can reduce the need for retrenchment in all departments through other creative counter proposals,” she said on Dec. 17.
But what is the School of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering exactly, and why is it important to the university, and the region?
In an interview with Ideastream Public Media. Dhinojwala noted UA has had polymer chemistry classes going back to 1909, around the time when rubber production in Akron really started to pick up.
“So we were pretty ahead of time. We had recognized that the rubber is going to play a very important role in industry,” he added.
The university’s first PhD program in polymer chemistry was introduced in the 1950s, and the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering was created in 1988. For years, Dhinojwala said, the program has produced stellar graduates who have gone on to work in plastic- and rubber-focused industries in the region and beyond.
“Plastic is really now taking over in terms of demand,” he said. “We have about 150-plus industries just surrounding us here in Greater Akron and then about 550-plus industries in northeast Ohio, almost all who are in polymer industries or have some affiliations around it."
The program survived a significant wave of budget cuts in 2020. At the time, its designation was changed to a “school” from a “college,” but Dhinojwala – the last dean of the college – said they managed to retain all faculty.
The current program is marked by a focus on sustainability, with junior faculty earning accolades and research grants to study ways to mitigate the serious environmental impacts of plastic’s production and degradation, according to Dhinojwala.
“Plastics remain in the environment forever. And this has been a cause of concerns for industry, concerns for environmentalists,” he explained. “And so there was a challenge and opportunity for us to design and change the chemistry and perhaps come up with innovations that will help us become more sustainable.”
Recently, the program and local partners have brought in a significant amount of money for sustainable polymer research, and to support the growth of polymer industries in the region.
- The Greater Akron Chamber and the university along with other partners are creating a “Sustainable Polymers Tech Hub,” which was awarded $51 million from the U.S. Economic Development Administration this year. $7.1 million will go to the university allowing it to create “educational content around sustainability,” among other programming, according to a news release.
- Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine announced the Greater Akron region will be Ohio’s third “Innovation Hub,” led by the chamber, the university and companies like Goodyear, with $31.25 million in state funding and $10 million in local funding to support polymer research, development and technology. The state in a press release suggested as many as 2,400 jobs could be created.
Dhinojwala said the School of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering currently has about 140 graduate students and 20 undergrads in their second year.
The program has 19 full-time faculty. Dhinojwala declined to elaborate on how proposed cuts might impact the program, but in the letter with Nemer, the two struck a hopeful tone.
“Ultimately, we wish to develop a plan that maintains polymer school integrity and leverages this branding to increase enrollment and resources,” they wrote.
