We're talking about public universities, not private corporations.It's how private enterprises "trim the fat"...
Average to high performers? What's your criteria for determining 'high' performance? How do you get around that pesky thing in colleges and universities called 'tenure' ?The avg to high performers will be rehired.
Guess what? Universities have tenure specifically intended to protect faculty from the political whims of government boards hellbent on decided what's a 'merit-worthy' educational course to teach and which are not.