New Jersey City University announced it is eliminating three senior management positions on its executive leadership teams, consolidating its management divisions from six to four as part of a significant reorganization following the financial crisis declared by the board of trustees earlier this year.
The announced moves follow significant concessions between university management and its faculty union designed to reduce costs.
Aaron Aska, the school’s chief financial officer, will retire, effective Dec. 2. it is unclear if other senior officials will leave or retire — or take other positions at the school.
Joseph Scott, the chair of the NJCU board of trustees, gave thanks to all for helping the school reach these decisions.
“I could not be more grateful to our administrative team, namely acting President Jason Kroll, who has led NJCU admirably through this challenging period, but also our entire community of faculty, staff, students and alumni for their support during this challenging time,” he said.
“The sacrifices that we must make in order to solve this budget crisis are not easy, but we are dedicated to preserving NJCU as a pillar of high-quality, accessible higher education and as a key component of the community in Jersey City and Hudson County. We are committed to sharing these burdens throughout all levels of the university staff, and to continuing to put our students first.”
The executive level reorganizing plan includes consolidating four divisions, reducing the total number of divisions at the executive level from six to four. It also includes the elimination of three positions: chief operating officer, chief strategy officer and vice president for enrollment management. The four new divisions will be Academic Affairs, Advancement, Finance and Administration, and Student Affairs and Enrollment Management.
New Jersey City University already has instituted $10 million in cost containment strategies in recent months that have sharply reduced its budget deficit with a goal of reaching budget neutrality by June 2023 through continued cost reductions and revenue increases, university officials said.
To date, the management-level workforce at the university has been reduced by over 30% since the pandemic. University leadership said it has worked closely with the faculty unions to ensure that these burdens are shared equally throughout the senior leadership as well as faculty and staff, while maintaining services and the student experience.
