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Lindenwood University in Missouri will cut 10 sports teams as part of a larger effort to “rebalance” its staffing investments, the institution announced last week.
“After a comprehensive evaluation, we have made the difficult decision to discontinue 10 athletic teams at the conclusion of their respective seasons this academic year,” President John Porter said in the statement. “This decision is a result of a thorough assessment of our athletic department’s sustainability, aligning with our commitment to upholding the high-quality academic and athletic experiences that define our university.”
The 10 teams are men’s lacrosse, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and field, and wrestling, and women’s field hockey, gymnastics, swimming and diving, and men’s and women’s cycling.
“As an athletics director, this is not a decision you ever want to have to make,” the university’s vice president for intercollegiate athletics, Jason Coomer, said in a news release. “Unfortunately, it is critical for the long-term sustainability of the department. I understand there will be considerable hurt felt by the ten teams impacted as well as by our staff and coaches.”
Porter also said that Lindenwood had eliminated nine staff positions outside of athletics so far to rebalance staffing “across various university divisions.” No filled faculty positions have been eliminated, the statement said, to focus on supporting “robust academic programming.”
