The New School’s AAUP chapter condemned the private university’s recently announced layoffs as a “major gutting” of full-time faculty. The union alleged the cuts disproportionately affect humanities and social sciences faculty and include a significant share of people of color. The New School said the layoffs—19 faculty and 68 staff—were intended to manage a fiscal deficit, shrinking the fiscal 2027 budget by 15% and targeting budget balance by fiscal 2028. Provost Richard Kessler and university leadership described the actions as aligning faculty and staff levels with enrollment and budget realities as The New School consolidates four colleges into two. AAUP called for reinstatement or phased retirement and framed the layoffs as “actively dismantling” the university’s intellectual community, amid a reported 20% enrollment decline since fall 2021. The dispute underscores how governance and workforce cuts are becoming a central flashpoint for trust in private nonprofit universities.