Mizzou cuts spending, freezes hiring

To close an estimated $32 million budget hole in its upcoming fiscal year, the University of Missouri-Columbia has halted merit-based pay increases, instituted a universitywide hiring freeze and called for spending to be cut by 5 percent.

Interim Chancellor Hank Foley said the funding gap was caused by an “unexpected sharp decline in first-year enrollments and student retention this coming fall.”

In the fall, the school is expecting 1,500 fewer students.

Read more from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.