Washington State University and Portland State University are pushing through multi-million-dollar cuts as both campuses face lower enrollment, shrinking public support, and high operating costs. The moves could mean dozens of faculty layoffs and disruptions for thousands of students.
At WSU, the Vancouver campus is facing unusually deep reductions. Professor and tenured faculty member Galia Peabody, who has taught there since 1996, said the school has already absorbed cuts, including a 10% budget reduction last year, but had so far avoided layoffs. This time, she said, the university is seeking such steep reductions that “there is no way to meet 15% without firing employees.” WSU is the state’s second-largest public university system, with more than 25,000 students enrolled in 2025, and its Vancouver campus is the system’s second-largest physical campus with about 2,700 students. Administrators said the campus is being cut more heavily because it receives about $2,500 more in state funding per student than the Vancouver, Tri-Cities and Everett campuses.
WSU leaders said the cuts are meant to minimize harm to students, jobs and research, and stressed they do not intend to rely on a “do more with less” approach in the coming fiscal year. Still, staff anxiety is rising, and one long-serving Vancouver faculty member, Heglars, said she plans to retire this fall partly to shield colleagues from layoffs.
Meanwhile, Portland State University’s board approved an initial operating budget on Tuesday as the school works to erase a projected $35 million deficit by 2028. PSU has proposed cutting two programs and shrinking seven departments, a move that would lead to more than 50 layoffs and save $16 million. Faculty, union leaders and supporters gathered outside the board meeting to oppose the cuts and urge university leaders to reconsider. PSU said the budget is only an early step toward long-term stability and does not yet reflect the impact of any layoffs that may follow the ongoing reduction process.
