Pennsylvania state schools are considering mergers and even closures

Several universities in Pennsylvania’s state system could potentially be closing or merging.

Campus closings in state university systems are uncommon, but Pennsylvania may be forced to take such measures due to decreases in funding and dropping enrollment, according to Philly.com.

In the past six years, the Pennsylvania state school system has shrunk by 15,000 students as the number of in-state high school graduates declined.  System Chancellor Frank Brogan speculated to CBS Local that this decline may be due to the "baby boom echo" — there are just fewer college-age individuals. 

Philly.com reported that one school, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, lost 661 students, or 4.8 percent of its student body, from 2016 to 2017.  

Funding, too, has reportedly been a problem since the 2008 financial crisis. Funds remain $60 million below what they were the year before the recession. Funds remain $60 million below what they were the year before the crisis.

Additionally, smaller and more rural schools have found it difficult to compete with urban universities like Temple University, the University of Pittsburgh and Penn State University Park, according to The Morning Call.  

That could lead to the closing or merging of the smaller state universities such as Mansfield, Edinboro and Clarion, or even Cheyney, the nation's first historically black college.

The discussion of closing or merging these universities has caused some backlash in surrounding communities that revolve around these school's campuses, such as at Clarion University.

Brogan said to CBS Local that he has started to gather information for a review of the universities to better understand how to fix the system and said he hopes to get answers this year, since legislative approval could be required if a school were merged or closed.