Utah State University has laid off seven full-time staff researchers whose grants were terminated by the federal government
It is the first public university in the state to confirm employee cuts in response to President Donald Trump’s administration canceling many awards for advancing science.
An additional roughly 80 USU students and part-time staff have also had their positions impacted by the research grant terminations. Some have been laid off, said USU spokesperson Amanda DeRito, but many have been shifted into other positions on campus. The school hasn’t specifically tracked that, but it includes both graduate and undergraduate students.
The Salt Lake Tribune received a redacted copy of the “notification of reduction in force” sent to the seven USU employees through a public records request.
The reason for the cuts, the letter states, is a lack of funding largely centered on grants previously awarded by the National Science Foundation, which is USU’s biggest federal funder, DeRito said. Other cuts have also come to the National Institutes for Health and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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