Penn State trustees schedule public meeting on recommended campus closures

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (WTAJ) — The Penn State Board of Trustees held its executive session Thursday to discuss the campus closure recommendation by university President Neeli Bendapudi.

Following the session, the board set a special meeting for Thursday, May 22, at 5 p.m. While the agenda hasn’t been made available, the administration sent an email to students and faculty saying it’s likely that decisions about the closures will be shared. The meeting will be open to the public and will be livestreamed. They haven’t released any additional details.

“We know that many of you are understandably concerned about the possibility of campus closures, and it is likely that decisions about closures will be shared during this meeting. We will follow up with additional information immediately after the meeting,” the university said in a statement to students and faculty.

Penn State added that no campus closures will happen before the end of the spring 2027 semester.

With Penn State DuBois on the chopping block, uncertainty continues to ripple through the community. Dan Kohlhepp, a Penn State alum, local business owner and a donor to the Penn State DuBois campus, is one of many frustrated and uncertain about the future of the campus. Kohlhepp is now trying to figure out where his money will go.

“I’m making payments to it, my obligation and my pledge to Penn State. For five years, I had no idea that their pledge to me was shut it down. So I have one more pledge to, one more year of, giving. And, I’m not going to give it to the Pause Center for a gymnasium. They’re going to close down in a year. I’ll give it to run the scholarship and continue to invest in local students,” Kohlhepp said.

Kohlhepp gave the commencement speech at the DuBois campus graduation. He, like many others, wonders what’s next.

“My commencement speech last Friday emphasized the importance of having the plan B contingency plan, but sometimes the plans don’t work. So what’s your contingency plan? And that’s what I feel here. What are they going to do if they close the DuBois campus? Then what,” Kohlhepp said.

Penn State University officially released the list of recommended campus closures Tuesday. In the 140-page document, the board cites a decline in enrollment and an aging population as the reasons for closing the DuBois campus.

Although enrollment increased slightly last year, their data shows a sharp decline over the last decade. If approved, the plan calls for the shutdowns to begin after the 2027 spring semester.

The Board of Trustees still needs to vote before the decision is finalized. A link to watch the livestream of the special public meeting on Thursday, May 22, can be found on the Penn State Board of Trustees website.