The discontinuance of the retailing program is part of changes across campus because of university budget cuts.

A retailing degree aims to teach students the business of purchasing, marketing and e-commerce.

“The reorganizations of programs is continuing,” said Linda Stanford, associate provost for academic service and member of the committee, during Tuesday’s meeting. “These changes are one that reflect the ongoing work that makes sure the curriculum speaks to ongoing needs.”

The demand for retailers and the success of the program was surprising to some.

“It was a shock,” retail professor Pat Huddleston said. “The dean sent us an e-mail to notify us about that decision. We had just finished a conference — most of the papers presented were our students or students presenting (for) the program.”

Pamela Whitten, dean of the MSU College of Communication Arts and Sciences, was unavailable for comment Tuesday.

Administrators in the college worked to find a program within the college that could be cut.

“The goal was to focus on the values and the core strengths of your college,” said Steve Lacy, associate dean for graduate studies in the College of Communication Arts and Sciences. “We looked at all the units in our college — we tried to figure out which programs were less central to visions of the program.”

Financial savings, the size of the degree and its place in the college were factors in the decision, Lacy said.

But the financial savings of cutting the program are hard to calculate, he said.

“Once a program is cut in the college, we no longer have those faculty members — they move from our budget to the university (budget),” Lacy said. “The university savings from faculty in tenure don’t happen overnight.”

Students currently working to complete either a bachelor’s, master’s or doctorate in retailing will be allowed to finish their degree, but no new students are being accepted in the program, Huddleston said.

“I think it’s sad to see the program go,” said retailing and marketing senior Laura Hammer.
As opposed to majoring solely in marketing, she double-majored in retailing because it is a specialized degree that caters to her career goals.

“A lot of the other retailing students are looking at being buyers for retailing, choosing the merchandise that goes into the stores,” Hammer said. “It’s helped me differentiate (myself).”