100 UArts faculty and staff protest; a sharp rebuke is issued from its accreditor

About 100 University of the Arts faculty, staff and supporters rallied Wednesday, waving signs and chanting “shame! shame! shame!” to protest the way their school’s abrupt closure has been handled — and communicated.

“One, two, three, four, we won’t take it anymore!” the crowd shouted as cars on South Broad Street honked horns and passersby threw fists up in the air and placed hands over their hearts. “Five, six, seven eight, UArts must negotiate!”

The protest came with closure looming and no president in place, and shortly after the board of trustees announced it had hired a management firm to steer the school through next steps.

Judson Aaron, board chair, said in a Wednesday morning message to the university community that the board has hired Alvarez & Marsal, a global consulting firm, to “help us urgently address the needs of our students, faculty and staff as we work through this process.”

Aaron’s announcement came after another day of organizational disarray, with president Kerry Walk resigning and negotiations canceled with the faculty union. It was the first communication with university leadership since Aaron and Walk’s shocking announcement that UArts would close June 7 because of an unspecified financial crisis. Another board member has said that although she doesn’t know the details of the crisis, it would take $40 million to bail out the school.

The university is already facing two separate lawsuits over the closure — one filed Tuesday by one group of staff, and one Wednesday by the United Academics of Philadelphia, the union that represents the faculty. Both suits are seeking approval of class-action status. The union on Wednesday also filed an unfair labor practices claim with the National Labor Relations Board over the school’s failure to negotiate over closure terms.

“The cruelty around this ongoing lack of communication from their employer remains disturbing, and the university instead communicates in the media rather than with their community,” union leaders said in a statement. “Workers at the University of the Arts deserve answers, pay for work completed, and clarity on severance and benefits.”

Aaron, in his note, said he understood the closure announcement was “devastating for every member of this community.”

Officials are at work, Aaron said, “developing a teach-out plan to enable our students to seamlessly continue their degrees at other high-quality institutions. We also remain committed to taking whatever actions are feasible to support our incredible faculty and staff through this challenging time.”

The board, he said, “is dedicated to do all we can to support our beloved UArts community as we move forward. We recognize that you have many questions, and we will share more information as this process continues.”

Temple University’s board chair, Mitchell Morgan, said this week he has entered talks with University of the Arts to possibly save it with a merger. Officials have said that Mayor Cherelle L. Parker’s administration is also involved in helping to broker the possible deal; a spokesperson for Gov. Josh Shapiro confirmed the governor’s involvement.

Union officials also raised questions about the possible merger, saying they have reminded university administration of their plan to enforce their contract, which contains language “requiring any successor employer to bargain with our existing unions in any sale, transfer or merger of the University of the Arts with any other institution.”

Union leaders, in the statement, said they “question the good faith of UArts Board Chair Jud Aaron and Mitchell Morgan, and remain concerned about the impact of any discussions between two individuals who have demonstrated throughout their recent behavior that trust in them may be misplaced.”

University of the Arts, the union officials said, is more than its buildings.

“The vibrant UArts community has been kept in the dark,” the union leaders said. “Any conversations around a potential merger must include all those impacted, and any solution to this crisis must be one in which student, faculty, staff, and the Philadelphia arts community can thrive together.”

Staff and students said Wednesday that they had little faith in the university’s actions, given the sudden closure announcement and how little information had been shared by officials.

“We need at the very least accountability and transparency so we can get what we really need, which is safety and security for all staff and students,” said Daniel J. Pieczkolon, president of the union that represents University of the Arts faculty.

A separate student-sit in on the steps of Hamilton Hall, the university’s main administrative building, has continued since Monday.

Wednesday’s protest was lively, with some people toting instruments and a staffer wheeling a bicycle carrying a unicorn head — the unicorn is the university’s mascot — bringing up the rear. The group marched from Hamilton Hall to Aaron’s former law office at 15th and Market.

One speaker, a recent graduate of University of the Arts, said she felt particularly angry that her May 16 graduation ceremony was dominated by inauguration proceedings for Walk, who led the school for less than a year before her recent resignation.

“I hope you see us in every piece of art you consume,” the recent graduate said, addressing Aaron and Walk.

“We did our job, now do yours,” the crowd yelled.

One University of the Arts program director said that news reports citing declining enrollment as a cause of the closure made his head spin. It directly contradicted everything he’d heard about the enrollment outlook.

”I had been in the process of hiring additional instructors because our incoming class was so large we actually had to create new sections for them,” the program director said, asking not to be named for fear it could affect his job search.

Internal university documents obtained by the Inquirer show that at least 435 new students had enrolled for fall 2024. The records indicated the university had expected at least 367 new freshmen and undergraduate transfer students.

While the university’s enrollment is down by more than 40% from a decade ago, and down about 25% from school’s pre-pandemic enrollment, internal records show that each of its six undergraduate schools met or exceeded its enrollment targets. The film school, for instance, had a target of 59 incoming students and a “stretch” goal of 66. It enrolled 108 new students.

”The story you’re hearing with a lot of these university closures in academia, they talk about this enrollment cliff,” the staffer said. “I feel like that’s an easier out than whatever financial mismanagement has led us to this place.”

Walk said Friday that the university had been struggling for a while, and like many colleges post-pandemic, had lost significant enrollment. This fall the school opened with 1,149 students, down from 2,038 in 2013, she had said. The freshman class this year was 250, a big increase from 182 the year before but still far less than the typical first-year enrollment of more than 400 in the years before the pandemic. She also acknowledged Friday that enrollment was up for fall 2024.

Absent information from higher-ups, some university departments filled their students in as best they could.

“We, like you, are heartbroken, angry and so sorry,” a message from the Ira Brind School of Theater Arts to its students read, telling students that “things are changing moment to moment.” Officials provided information on preserving projects, reaching out to loan providers, and more.

Affected staff and students reached out to elected officials, too. State Rep. Ben Waxman (D., Phila.), responding to one University of the Arts staffer, reiterated that he is calling for an independent investigation into what led to the closure.

“The manner in which this long-standing institution is closing and the lack of communication from the university administration is wholly unacceptable and will not stand,” Waxman wrote to the staffer. “This egregious dereliction of duty on the part of the administration is disrespectful.”

The Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the school’s accrediting agency, also issued sharp words about it Wednesday.

“Our commission does and can help institutions close well and with integrity; however, we cannot do it with a day’s or week’s notice,” Middle States President Heather Perfetti said in a statement. “It is critical that institutions and any attorneys and consultants working with them understand the expectations of this Commission. This is terribly frustrating for everyone involved but especially our students.”

Staff writers Jeremy Roebuck and Harold Brubaker contributed to this article.