ASMSU is MSU’s undergraduate student government.

Wilcox said he did not expect to begin the process of closing programs until late spring, but he expects it will take several years to phase out the programs.

“The programs we’re talking about now will be here while you’re still in school,” he said. “That’s partly why we have this moratorium process. We need to make sure we have time for everybody to plan about this.”

Part of that planning could involve moving faculty from discontinued programs to other related departments to support other programs, he said.

“After we have effectively helped students through the continuation of their program we will be better positioned … to use those dollars we saved and put (faculty) in different places,” Wilcox said. “(The Department of) Geology is a good example. We’ve had conversations about what faculty could do in other departments or in support of other programs.”

Although Wilcox spent at least half an hour fielding questions about pending program cuts, some assembly members said they still feel like they’re in the dark.

Mandy Griffin, who represents the College of Natural Science, said she feels as if the process is being rushed.

“It’s not fair to the students to rush to discontinue their programs,” Griffin said. “I know he said they eliminate some programs every year, but this year there are a lot lined up for consideration.”

She said students typically have to get information through backdoor channels of communication instead of directly from the administration.

“They have so much happening that they just slip and forget to tell the students,” Griffin said. “Any way they can let us know would be nice, instead of, ‘Oh, we put up a poster in the basement of the administration building.’”

Arts and Letters representative Justin Lippi said he believes there were contradictions in what Wilcox told members at the meeting.

“Wilcox is saying (the university) has enough evidence to put a halt to enrollment and then look at the program in-depth later,” Lippi said. “On the other hand, these also are programs he said he intends to cut.”