A Northeast Ohio college has a plan to slow the increase in its tuition. It includes the voluntary buyouts of more than 300 faculty and staff.
Oberlin College expects savings of about 3 million dollars per year depending on how many employees opt to retire.
Marvin Krislov, the president at Oberlin, says "it allows us to think about our resources and to do it in a way that honors our employees but also allows us more flexibility."
Flexibility like moving positions to departments with a greater need. More junior faculty cost less to employ than senior faculty nearing retirement age. Krislov says the college is committed to supporting full-time faculty positions and does not plan to fill vacancies with part-timers.
John McNay is the president of the Ohio branch of the American Association of University Professors. He says that plan can work. "You know each university would have to make those decisions themselves and I would hope that there would be faculty input in decisions like that."
The college plans to use some of the savings toward student aid.
Michelle Faust is a reporter for StateImpact Ohio.