HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) -- Citing enrollment that has "declined significantly" at branch campuses around the state, Penn State Wednesday offered a year of salary and other benefits to branch campus employees willing to retire early.
But how significantly at each campus?
The figures -- compared to enrollment in fall 2019, almost five years ago -- vary widely among the 19 "Commonwealth campuses," according to an analysis of Penn State data.
Enrollment ranged from an increase of 3% at Penn State Schuylkill -- the only branch campus where enrollment increased, in a county without a community college presence -- to a drop of 37% at Penn State DuBois.
Here are the enrollment figures and the change vs. 2019 for all 19 branch campuses:
| Branch campus | Fall 2023 enrollment | Change vs. 2019 |
| Schuylkill | 650 | +3% |
| Lehigh Valley | 954 | -2% |
| Harrisburg | 4,651 | -5% |
| Brandywine | 1,223 | -8% |
| Scranton | 838 | -14% |
| York | 704 | -15% |
| Beaver | 504 | -16% |
| New Kensington | 456 | -16% |
| Wilkes-Barre | 353 | -17% |
| Abington | 3,095 | -17% |
| Shenango | 332 | -17% |
| Hazleton | 510 | -18% |
| Greater Allegheny | 361 | -18% |
| Erie | 3,323 | -19% |
| Mont Alto | 588 | -19% |
| Altoona | 2,421 | -21% |
| Berks | 1,944 | -22% |
| Fayette | 419 | -29% |
| DuBois | 353 | -37% |
Across all branch campuses, enrollment is down 14% compared to 2019. By contrast, enrollment at the main University Park campus in state college -- 49,135 as of fall 2023 -- is up 4% compared to fall 2019.
Nathan Benefield, senior vice-president of the Commonwealth Foundation, a libertarian-leaning think tank, said the buyouts are a good start but might not be enough for a university system that remains overstaffed.
"People don't want to see layoffs or involuntary retirements," Benefield said. "But the reality is, universities exist for the education of students, not for the employment of adults."
He said at some point, the university will have to consider closing underenrolled and underperforming campuses.
Might that happen?
"It is premature to forecast until we spend time deeply engaging with our campus communities and the leadership team to define a sustainable future for the commonwealth campuses," the university's term for branch campuses, a spokesperson said in a statement. "The possible impacts of this program and any subsequent actions to be taken will depend on many factors, including how many employees participate, impacts on a department or program and potential additional changes to Penn State’s financial health, among others."
The spokesperson said individual campus budgets and impacts of the cuts "have not yet been defined."