However that all changed last year.

This year we were told money would be tight and there would be no raises. However we also had a low enrollment year, so budgets are more than tight again. So the cuts once have turned into cuts again. This time more faculty must be cut. Estimates vary on how many and the reasoning given for cutting faculty in particular is specious. Instead of making the cuts when we normally receive contract decisions for the next year in December, all untenured faculty received notice that contract decisions wouldn't be made until later with mid-March being the latest possible. Contract decisions were received in mid-February.

So it goes without saying that a number of untenured faculty including me went on the job market, albeit a little late, since we only heard mid-December about the new cuts. While I withdrew most of my applications after receiving my contract, there are a number of people who will be heading to new jobs voluntarily and not all of them are among the untenured. Faculty morale in general is quite low.

The strange thing is that I still like it here, I wouldn't mind staying, provided that the financial stuff goes away eventually and the administration treats us with more dignity in the future.