Six state-owned universities in Pennsylvania will merge into two new institutions, reports CBS Philly, following a unanimous vote by the State System of Higher Education’s governing board.
Lock Haven UniversityPennsylvania’s Bloomsburg, Mansfield and Lock Haven universities will form one institution. Western Pennsylvania’s California, Clarion and Edinboro universities will form the other.
The university system hopes to raise enrollment, which has fallen by more than 20% since 2010, and cut student costs by 25% by helping students “graduate more quickly, enrolling high school students, raising more money from donors and grants and expanding federal work study offerings,” CBS Philly reported.
New names for the two institutions have yet to be selected, and those enrolled in the current universities will be able to finish their degrees.
