Last month, John Swallow, the president of Carthage College, proposed a plan that would restructure the school, closing several departments, including philosophy. He has now decided on which parts of the plan to follow through on.

The final plan eliminates the Philosophy department and the philosophy major and minor.

Swallow writes:

Beginning this fall:

• The departments of Classics and Philosophy & Great Ideas will be discontinued as stand-alone departments.
• Carthage will teach out the classics, philosophy, and Great Ideas majors and minors over the coming years. All current students who have declared these majors and minors will be able to complete their degrees at Carthage, but future students will not be able to major or minor in these subjects. Philosophy courses will continue to be offered through another humanities department.
• All other departments and programs of study at Carthage are unaffected by this reorganization. This includes the eight other departments originally considered for restructuring: Biology, English, Modern Languages, Music, Physics & Astronomy, Political Science, Religion, and Sociology & Criminal Justice. These will continue as stand alone departments; majors, minors, and courses in these areas will not change.

Additionally 15 tenured professors in the aforementioned areas are leaving “voluntarily as a result of a generous separation package” and eight non-tenured faculty positions have been eliminated “through resignations, expiring contracts, and contracts that the College has chosen not to renew.”