Dive Brief:

• Northern Kentucky University will lay off as many as 20 staff and faculty members to help balance next year’s budget.
• The university reports that it is in “solid financial position” in spite of a $739,100 cut in state funding and a higher pension contribution.
• Overall, the university is cutting 14 faculty positions — but only three occupied positions — and 35 staff positions, of which about half are occupied.

Dive Insight:

The university’s budget is calculated assuming that enrollment is flat, but administrators are optimistic that enrollment will rise. No tenure-track faculty will lose their jobs, although the other faculty and staff members who will be laid off have not been identified yet. All Kentucky state colleges, including NKU, have had their state funding cut by 1.5%.