Dive Brief:

• Facing a $15 million budget gap for the 2015-16 school year, the University of Southern Maine is planning a series of changes to make it more attractive to students and more financially sound.
• Included on the list are selective increases to scholarships and financial aid, along with an appeal to donors to fund the increases, according to David Flanagan, the university’s interim president.
• The university will also develop a plan for online education and a so-called blended approach, where courses combine online and in-classroom teaching.

Dive Insight:

In addition to the planned changes, Southern Maine will have to cut staff and faculty and make changes to academic programs to close the gap. Other planned changes include making it easier to transfer to the university, because 60% of the school’s students transfer in; providing a career center to connect students with internships and jobs; and engaging more with the community, becoming a “metropolitan” university instead of an ivory-tower institution.