The Ag department won’t close at the end of the school year as the department had feared earlier in the semester when the university announced the budget realignment plan.

Dr. Phil Schubert, president of the university; Dr. Greg Straughn, interim provost; and Dr. Charles Mattis, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; met with faculty and administration in the Department of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences Monday to discuss the latest decisions that the university had made regarding the future of the department.

The meeting outlined three dimensions of the potential changes the department faced. The university had planned to realign environmental and animal sciences under the Department of Biology, but after further evaluation the university decided to keep the department separate.

“The more we looked at it, the more sure we were that the department need to continue,” Schubert said.

The agribusiness degree, however, will be closed due to lack of student interest.

The third dimension of the meeting regarded the future location of the department. Despite rumors that the department will be leaving Zona Luce Building, no decision has been made yet on whether it will stay or leave.

“If another space proves to be more appropriate, we will provide that better place for the department,” Schubert said. “These potential changes have to do with what is most beneficial to the university.”

Schubert said though the university hasn’t made final decisions regarding the department’s future, he called the meeting with the department to keep those affected updated. “We wanted to tell them before they left for the winter break,” he said.