By: Aisha Marilyn Abdulbary-Knotts | Staff Writer
Michael Tock and Lane Payne; Photo via Christopher Otwell
Over the past year, the university has implemented significant budget cuts that have led to the decision to phase out its theater program. While administrators have framed the move as a financial necessity, students and alumni say the process has been abrupt, poorly communicated and deeply damaging to both education and campus culture.
For many current theater majors, the announcement felt sudden and personal. Junior Michael Tock ’27 described the decision as more than a financial adjustment.
“It’s a flat out betrayal from the school,” Tock said. “When I was considering going here I was given so many promises revolving around my future education that have been made lies.”
Tock emphasized that the impact extended beyond coursework. “I’ve seen friends and professors forced to leave before they were ready,” he said, adding that “the biggest shock isn’t even that it happened, it’s the fact that we got cut with no warning and have had to fight for our program ever since.”
Incoming students were not spared from the fallout. Some learned their chosen major was already being phased out before they even arrived on campus. Kaizer Gutierrez-Wood ’28 committed to the university through early decision in fall 2023, only to receive unexpected news months later.
“Being someone who committed to the University of Lynchburg the fall of 2023, with early decision, it sucked to be told in the summer of 2024 that I would immediately have to be on teach out as a freshman,” Gutierrez-Wood said.
They added, “no one should have to lose their major before they can even start it,” noting that “the people who chose to switch majors are likely dealing with almost their entire major faculty leaving within 1-2 years.”
Production of Forum. From left, Elizabeth Hibel Martin, Michael Tock, Josiah Randles; Photo via Christopher Otwell
Alumni who experienced the program before the cuts say the current students’ experience is markedly different. Elizabeth Martin Hibel ’21, a double major in English and Theater, pointed to disparities in academic opportunities.
“The obvious is that current theatre students have been shorted on their education,” Hibel said. “The students I’m working with right now are not receiving the same class offerings that I was when I went through the program.”
According to Hibel, “cutting the program has created an inequitable experience for current theatre majors who will now be entering the professional scene with fewer courses than they were promised upon joining.”
She also stressed that the theater department served far more students than enrollment numbers suggested.
“The less obvious is that more than just theatre majors benefit from the program,” Hibel said. “There are art majors, biology majors, criminology majors, English majors, ex phys majors, etc. that rely on the department’s productions to scratch their creative itch and be a part of something.”
Hibel explained that while “on paper, there were fewer than 10 theatre majors,” she believes “in reality, there were significantly more than 10 students impacted by the department closure.”
Beyond academics, alumni have noticed a shift in student morale since the announcement. “The change I’ve seen the most since the announcement has been a significant drop in attitude and in a general love for the university,” Hibel said.
Recalling her time working with students before and after the cuts, she noted, “I remember pointing out to the students that their energy and love for theatre was inspiring.” However, “a few months later, I directed the fall show and found that those same students, while they hadn’t lost their passion for theatre, had changed their tune entirely on their desire to continue with the university.”
Hibel added, “if you take away a student’s main drive to be on campus, they are no longer interested in the experience.” She also highlighted faculty losses, saying, “the department was filled with the brightest and most creative faculty in the area. Cutting these employees was devastating.”
For some students, transferring was not an option. Za’lexia Bogan ’26 said that when the news broke, many peers left, but she felt stuck.
“Well when the news was announced about the program. I’ve seen so many people up and leave but for me I couldn’t since I was already a junior at the time,” Bogan said.
She explained that although students were told the program would be taught out, many professors ended up leaving on their own accord. Bogan also noted that the cuts went beyond theater, saying, “I was in everything Theatre, Spanish, and Music and all the programs shut down abruptly without warning to us.”
While the university has cited financial constraints in its decision-making, members of the campus community say the effects of the cuts are already visible in course availability, faculty retention, and student experience. As the teach-out process continues, students and alumni alike are watching closely to see how the university supports those completing the program and how these changes will shape the broader academic and cultural landscape at Lynchburg.
For more information about Lynchburg’s theatre department, visit https://www.facebook.com/lctheatre/
