BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) – Buffalo State University announced Friday it will cut several academic programs after a review found lower enrollment and completion rates, sparking a backlash from students.
“I think the administrators at Buffalo State treated us like dollar signs,” said Dakota Richter, a graduate student in the higher education and student affairs administration master’s program.
Buffalo State University is eliminating one undergraduate program, two graduate programs and several minors and certificate programs, pointing to its “Fiscal Stabilization Plan Framework,” saying in a statement that “regular elimination of low-enrollment programs is a necessary component of the plan.”
The university said the following programs will be affected:
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Environmental Geography, Bachelor of Science
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Conflict Analysis and Resolution, M.A.
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Master in Higher Education and Student Affairs Administration
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Meteorology and Climatology, Minor
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Geographic Information Systems, Undergraduate Certificate
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Higher Education Assessment, Graduate Certificate
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Human Resource Development, Graduate Certificate
“It’s said that these programs have low enrollment, low retention, low graduation rates, but that’s definitely not the case for our program,” said Sierra Mills, a graduate student also in the master’s program in higher education and student affairs administration.
Students facing layoffs said they heard the news from professors days before the school announced it.
“Professors at Buffalo State, I’ve never seen them actually cry in front of me, so the raw emotion was so conflicting it made my stomach knot,” Richter said. “I’ve heard … about Buffalo State’s reputation, you know, ‘If you’re interested in higher education, go to Buffalo State’ … so thinking about that and hearing these professors share that these programs are going to be eliminated, I was shocked.”
Mills also noted a lack of input from those within the program when decisions were made. “It’s shocking to hear students being completely excluded from the discussion,” Mills said. “It’s very frustrating.”
The university said the change affects less than 1% of students and that students already enrolled in these programs can complete their degrees. Those affected say the impact is far-reaching.
“It’s going to be difficult to accomplish,” Richter said. “Then going to a prospective employer and saying, ‘My plan was deactivated,’ has a negative connotation of, ‘Oh, your plan was deactivated… was it because of quality?’… It’s not quality, it’s budget.”
Richter also highlighted the toll he believes this decision will have on the WNY community. “Right now, for higher education, for universities … you’re just going to have professionals from the area saying they graduated from the University at Buffalo or Canisius University, and you’re no longer going to have a third option for Buffalo State higher education professionals to hire.”
In a statement to WIVB News 4, Buffalo State University Interim President Dr. Bonita Durand said, “Buffalo State University is continuing its Financial Stability Framework plan in an effort to Eliminate structural deficits by 2020. As we have communicated throughout this process, periodic retirement of low-enrollment programs is a necessary component of this plan, along with growth strategies to increase overall enrollment, residential student enrollment, and retention. This combination of fiscal policy and revenue growth enables Buffalo State to continue to position our university as a leader in higher education today and into the future.”
“This feels like a short-sighted solution to a long-standing problem that will impact Buffalo State in the long run,” Mills said.
To view Buffalo State University’s FAQ page regarding deactivation, click here.
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Angelica Gallagher is a Lancaster native who joined the News 4 team in 2025. See more of her work here.
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