UTM suspends English program for international students

MARTIN, Tenn. — A local university has announced the suspension of an English program for international students.

The University of Tennessee at Martin has announced that the Tennessee Intensive English Program at the university will suspend the program after the spring semester.

The program, known as TIEP, helps international students with language and cultural adjustment, according to a news release.

The program started in 1974 and has been a part of UT Martin’s Office of International Programs and International Admissions, the release says.

The release says university provost and vice chancellor Dr. Philip Acree Cavalier said in an email Tuesday that the program had experienced a financial deficit for three years.

Part of that decline, according to the release, is a decline in student numbers in TIEP over the last five years.

According to the release, the program will be suspended on May 31, 2020.