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The Burlington, Vermont City Council postponed consideration of a settlement agreement with developers of a downtown project and also chastised the University of Vermont during Tuesday evening’s meeting.
In December, the University of Vermont Dean of Arts and Sciences, by direction of the college president and provost, announced that three departments, 12 majors, 11 minors and four masters programs would be eliminated due to budget shortfalls and low enrollments. The cuts to the liberal arts programs has enraged some faculty, students and staff. At Tuesday night’s Burlington City Council meeting a resolution was offered calling on the college administration to reverse the actions. Ward 1 resident Eliza Fairs, a UVM student, echoed the sentiments of those who commented. “These barbaric cuts are justified by our administration and Board of Trustees as necessary steps in reducing the deficit caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. These justifications are false. The cuts are a strategic move by the administration to remove the Liberal Arts from UVM and invest instead in entrepreneurial and job oriented disciplines.”