A document recently published on UNK’s website outlines a recommendation from the Deans of UNK to Senior Vice Chancellor Julie Shaffer and Interim Chancellor Charlie Bicak for the restructuring of UNK’s colleges.
Currently, UNK has three colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Business and Technology and the College of Education. The document, which is marked as a draft, has the colleges restructured as follows: the College of Business, Technology, and Professional Studies, the College of Education and Humanities and the College of Health and Science.
The document reads, “These proposals are guided by the 2021 and 2023 Faculty Advisory Committee (FAC) recommendations that the ‘UNK Administration consider the educational needs of Nebraska over the next 5-10-20 years and consider all programs, not based on current strength, but what may be needed to ensure success of the rural health initiatives, the success of state workforce initiatives, and to position greater Nebraska into a stance of strength.’”
The process, guided by Shaffer, will look to set UNK up for the future by building on current areas of strength.
“We want to ensure that we don’t need to continue to cut budgets,” Shaffer said. “We want to save jobs by greater synergies of departments that should be working together. Potentially, we are looking at areas of need and where we might be able to create new programs (and) new opportunities for degrees.”
With this being the first draft, Shaffer is currently taking comments and suggestions and answering any questions. The hope is through faculty workshops that there will be a more structured plan to present to the incoming chancellor around July 1.
“This is just a draft to get faculty and staff and students talking about what we need the universities to look like in the future and how we can better meet the needs of rural Nebraska specifically, but also students from all over the region and the world,” Shaffer said.
The process is expected to be finalized by August 2026. Shaffer also said that the university will be talking more specifically to students about the plan when it is more structured.
A full copy of the document can be found under “Forms and Links” on the Academic Affairs page of UNK’s website.
More information will be reported on The Antelope’s website and in future print editions.
