YOUNGSTOWN - Dozens of people gathered on Youngstown State University's campus Tuesday afternoon to protest the recent announcement of program and faculty cuts.

More specifically, the Northeast Ohio Masters of Fine Arts group is the one fighting to keep its program alive.

The group says they have 60 students enrolled in over four universities, nine of them at YSU.

They say all they're asking is for those student's programs to be taken off the sunset list.

Cassandra Lawton, an AMBASSADOR for the NEO MFA pROGRAM "THE PROBLEM WITH SOMETHING LIKE THIS IS THAT WHEN I GET A DEGREE FROM THE NEO MFA PROGRAM AT YSU, IF THAT PROGRAM DOESN'T EXIST ANYMORE, THE DEGREE IS NOT AS VIABLE."

The group says their program has made tremendous progress over the years to the benefit of students and the university.

A memo from Provost & Vice President for Academic Affairs, Brien Smith, was sent to the campus community Tuesday morning.

In the memo, Smith wanted to clarify the restructuring process saying, "The decision to begin the process of retrenchment was made following a deep examination with extensive consultation and assessment of the 145 academic programs on campus."

"Faculty worked with chairs and deans, starting in October 2020, to consider the data, ask hard questions, consider tough decisions, and reflect on how each program is aligned with our mission and vision," said Smith 

Brien says when a program is designated to be sunset, that means no new students will be accepted into the program, but students currently in the programs will be able to complete a degree.

"While it is never easy to enact these types of changes, this type of self-analysis of YSU is healthy and necessary as we continue to make deliberate, datainformed decisions to support a sustainable future for Youngstown State University," said Smith