What does it mean when a university markets itself as a global, experiential institution while quietly gutting the programs which make this possible? Northeastern has been doing just that, cutting the College of Social Sciences and Humanities, or CSSH, discretionary funding by up to 75-80% while offering negligible explanations to staff and students.  

Budgetary plans are usually announced in the spring of the academic year prior. Last spring, staff and faculty in CSSH were left waiting for months to receive the budget for the upcoming year. The administration did not share the planned budgetary cuts until August 2025, Huntington News reporting showed.

These targeted cuts are detrimental to the daily functions and experiential learning promised by the institution. 

Students can no longer count on CSSH to provide opportunities and support as they used to.  

Faith McAdam, a third-year philosophy major with a concentration in law and ethics, told me that the sudden nature of the budget cuts “naturally leaves both teachers and students in the department to feel like they’re drowning and that the university is not a helping hand to pull us out of the water.” I couldn’t agree more; not only are they not helping us, they are turning a blind eye to our struggle. 

Through conversations with peers and professors, I’ve heard firsthand that teaching  assistants aren’t being paid for their work in CSSH, and faculty and clubs are struggling to organize events and invite guest lecturers. CSSH used to be a space for community, learning and connection — now it’s no longer that.

McAdam is currently working as a teaching assistant, or TA, in the CSSH department. She not only is unpaid for her role as a TA but is paying to do the work. The university is knowingly taking advantage of student labor and passion by allowing this to happen. McAdam said, “I never assumed that I would have to pay for those credits. I’m essentially paying to do this job and getting directed study credits.”

The administration is fundamentally harming CSSH students’ experience at the university. Its lack of transparency is disreputable and unfair to students who pay increasingly high tuition while their education is being defunded. This should seem unsavory and suspiciously secretive because it is.

As a first-year journalism and political science major at Northeastern, I applied and committed to the university with the promise of a robust journalism and humanities department. I was marketed a college with extensive opportunities for outside-of-class learning, guest lecturers and a space to connect with my peers. I feel misled. I came to Northeastern with the image of what CSSH had been; then, the administration made choices which have altered my experience from what I expected.

I agree with McAdam’s sentiment when she said, “This is kind of a statement from the university that we are not as important of a department as others.”

I want my passions and goals to feel appreciated and supported by the university I attend. I want to be actively involved on campus, I want to attend lectures and I want to eventually become a TA and optimize my learning, grabbing every opportunity I can. But the administration has made me, and many students, feel that it doesn’t value what we care about and aspire to.

Right now, it feels like there isn’t much room for movement, let alone growth.

These budgetary decisions would be an issue even with communication. However, these cuts, coupled with the administration’s intentional silence and lack of transparency, have left students and faculty wondering what has happened. Furthermore, and more importantly, why it has happened.

What intention are we meant to presume when the administration makes no effort to elucidate their decisions? The Board of Trustees, made up of 33 members with the responsibility of university-wide budget decisions, has made no comment on the budget. What we do know is that five of these members have donated more than $1.1 million to Republican candidates and right-leaning organizations in the last couple years. I do not see these facts as unrelated.

We should not be content with going unheard. Professors feel threatened by the administration and do not have the means to publicly express discontent. This means it’s on us to show the administration we care about CSSH and we notice what they’re doing.

Although our voices are important, and we should use them, the opinions the administration really values aren’t ours. It’s those who pay tuition: namely, the parents of Northeastern students.

Encourage your parents to complain and demand that the university, at the very least, recognizes the impact of its decisions. We must make this administration understand the consequences of its actions. Incoming CSSH students should know what they may be getting themselves into and be equipped with the knowledge to make informed decisions.

One way your parents or guardians can make their voices heard is through Facebook groups. Two prominent groups, each with over 11,000 members, are the Northeastern University (NU) Parent Group and Northeastern University Parents. These groups can be used to express frustration with the administration in a manner that will likely be noticed. 

As a first-year, I don’t have much to compare my experience this year to. However, what I have seen is how passionate and lively this college is. Despite the budget cuts, I have felt the commitment to community and learning by students and staff alike. This gives me hope that we will push for the change we need. We will fight to be acknowledged as a vital department worthy of time, attention and money.

McAdam told me, “Even despite the budget cuts, everyone is working through it and trying to figure out a way to make sure the students still feel valued, still feel heard and still have the resources that they need to succeed academically.”

Let this serve as a reminder to give CSSH staff and faculty a little extra appreciation. Recognize their hard work and dedication to us and our education, despite desertion from the administration. 

Francesca Siciliano is a first-year journalism and political science major. Francesca can be reached at [email protected].

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