LIU restructured under new president

Long Island University is restructuring its administration, two days after a new president has taken the helm, officials confirmed Wednesday.

Kimberly R. Cline officially took office as LIU's 10th president on Monday, succeeding David J. Steinberg, who retired after 28 years.

Cline has eliminated the position of provost at LIU Post in Brookville and LIU Brooklyn, streamlining the jobs into one chief of staff position to better unite the residential campuses, according to LIU Post Chancellor Theresa Mall Mullarkey.

The provosts -- Paul H. Fore-stell at LIU Post and Gale Stevens Haynes at LIU Brooklyn -- were in charge of day-to-day operations at those campuses. Forestell and Haynes are now expected to assume other duties, Mullarkey said.

University officials Wednesday declined to say if any job cuts were part of the administrative reorganization that is under way.

Professors and other employees who spoke on condition of anonymity said 25 to 30 jobs have been eliminated on the Post campus. Two professors said 15 administrative support staffers took early-retirement packages and 12 were laid off.

University spokeswoman Rita Langdon declined to provide any specifics about the reorganization, saying "university policy precludes discussing personnel matters in any detail."

"Some restructuring has taken place," she said in an email Wednesday. "These recent developments are the culmination of months of planning with an eye toward increasing efficiencies to make it possible for our campuses to truly function as one university, optimizing resources to best serve our students."

Mullarkey said she didn't know any other details about staffing changes.

Harvey Kushner, president of the faculty union on the Post campus and chairman of the criminal justice department, said no full-time faculty or union positions have been eliminated.

Kushner said he heard that about two dozen positions universitywide were undergoing changes but could not confirm an exact number. There are 621 full-time faculty members at the LIU campuses.

Joan Digby, director of the Honors Program and a faculty member for 45 years on the Post campus, said job cuts seemed inevitable under a new president.

"She's inherited a very challenging situation," said Digby, citing budget problems that many tuition-dependent universities face. "Management has to be pruned down for the university to succeed."

Cline, 54, comes to LIU from Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry. She was also a former SUNY vice chancellor.

LIU has an enrollment of about 24,000 across six campuses and online. The university also has sites in Brentwood and Riverhead, and in Westchester and Rockland counties.