Penn State’s president Neeli Bendapudi says declining enrollments, demographic shifts and financial pressures will require the school to close some of its 19 branch campuses

In many ways, Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi is staring at an abyss that is forcing drastic closings across the university’s commonwealth campuses. In an interview with PennLive on Tuesday, Bendapudi described a ‘demographic cliff’ that will cause the number of college-age students to plunge sharply beginning in 2026.