St. Cloud State University Interim President Larry Dietz Focuses on Enrollment Rebound Amid Fiscal Challenges

St. Cloud State University Interim President Larry Dietz is settling into his role.

Dietz came out of retirement and started on July 1st. He stated his priorities will be to ensure the university lives within its means and increase the student population. Dietz sat down with KNSI News and told us that enrollment is the biggest cause of the college’s problems. “In the Midwest, the number of students who are college age, if you will, have declined. And that’s just a birth rate issue. It has nothing to do with the institutions.”

The number of students at St. Cloud State has slipped from its peak of 18,300 in 2010 to just over 10,000 in 2023. SCSU had a net operating loss of $18 million in 2023, which lowered the institution’s year-end cash balance from $28.7 million to $10.8 million. Last month, SCSU announced cuts to 42 degrees and 50 minor programs to right size the college. At the same time, 57 instructors or about 13% of the total faculty, will be cut by 2027. About 8% of students are affected, though they will be able to finish their classwork at the school.

Read the full article here.