Dell’Omo announces non-faculty cuts, gives enrollment update during webinar

By Jake Tiger

Rider’s administration made some “difficult decisions” this summer in order to adapt to the financially treacherous higher education landscape, resulting in 31 eliminated positions and revised projections for the turbulent fall 2024 enrollment cycle, according to the university president in a July 30 webinar.

“The financial pressures facing colleges and universities are multifaceted,” said Rider President Gregory Dell’Omo during the pre-recorded webinar. “I will be straightforward and say that more change is on the horizon, because it has to be. Structural change is a critical component of creating a stable future.”

Position cuts

After an analysis of Rider’s costs, the administration shaved off 31 non-faculty positions, saving the university approximately $2.04 million in fiscal 2025. The reduction accounted for 10% of the non-faculty workforce across all administrative divisions, the president said.

At the time of elimination, 17 of the 31 positions were vacant and 14 were not. Three of the 14 employees affected by the changes were offered new roles at Rider, according to Dell’Omo, who did not specify which positions were cut.

The eliminations, along with about $1.5 million in other, unspecified cost reductions and $1.09 million in revenue enhancements, are projected to save Rider just over $4.63 million in fiscal 2025, according to the webinar, as the institution continues to chip away at its operating deficit.

“Every effort was made to reduce vacancies as opposed to currently filled positions, and to consider student and other impacts on the university,” Dell’Omo said. “The accelerated pace of change [in higher education] is unprecedented in our history, and will undoubtedly force us to continue to make difficult decisions to ensure Rider’s sustainable future.”

Dell’Omo said Rider’s operating budget for fiscal 2025 was still being finalized, but that the cost-cutting eliminations were a “difficult and painful decision.”

The recent cuts follow a similar consolidation effort in 2023 where the university reassessed the academic viability of its programs, along with changes at administrative level. Vice president of student affairs was one of the axed roles after it had been held by Leanna Fenneberg since 2017.

Enrollment projections drop

Along with workforce reductions, Dell’Omo offered an update on Rider’s fall 2024 enrollment outlook amid nationwide issues with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, also called the FAFSA.

Nearly all of Rider’s fall enrollment projections were reduced to better reflect the university’s current reality. Namely, the goal for freshmen deposits dropped from 868 to 750, but Rider has already eclipsed its new mark with 759 deposits, per July 22 enrollment data shared during the webinar.

According to the president, Rider’s total FAFSA award letters were down 6% compared to July 22 last year as a result of a nationwide, 7% decline in FAFSA filings, adding that these dips will “significantly impact” fall enrollment.

“No matter how the numbers finally shake out, we know that, overall, less students will be going to college this year than in previous years,” said Dell’Omo. “At a time when institutions like Rider and so many other colleges are reliant on tuition revenue, the FAFSA situation could not have come at a worse time.”

Projections were also reduced for transfer deposits, returning students, housing assignments and more. Housing saw a particularly large drop with its fall 2024 goal falling from 1,780 assignments to 1,680. Rider had 1,670 assignments as of July 22, compared to the fall 2023 total of 1,702, the data showed.

The only field that saw an increased goal was undergraduate, non-traditional credits, which increased from 646 to 769, sitting at 727 as of July 22, according to the data.

“We are still at a place where we are working toward a more balanced budget, and with a lot of hard work, I hope this next fiscal year puts us in a better place,” Dell’Omo said.

More details regarding the university’s fall enrollment and not-yet-finalized fiscal 2025 operating budget will be discussed during Rider’s convocation on Aug. 29, the president said.