Colleges in Dire Financial Straits

[TreadingLife]

Yet, I don't see reports of 3000 undergrad schools going under or even under extreme pressure, though maybe some are. Anyone have anything specific?

By the way, of course money changes everything. 3000 students and a billion dollar endowment probably keeps you safe. But 3000 and 500 million endowment is nice, but not safe enough.

My super unscientific intuition is the same. I would say that 2000 students seems to be a tipping point for small LACs. It is hard not to be in the danger zone if you have anything close to 1000 students, regardless of your endowment. And anything between 1000-2000 is still "white knuckle territory."   We've been in white knuckle territory since 2009 when arrived, and let me tell you, it is getting exhausting.

[dismalist]

Yet, I don't see reports of 3000 undergrad schools going under or even under extreme pressure, though maybe some are. Anyone have anything specific?

PASSHE?

Yeah. Two schools with close to 5000 undergrads will not remain stand alone. One with over 3000 will also be consolidated.

https://www.passhe.edu/SystemData/Documents/Enrollment%20Trends%20Fall%202019%20-%20PRELIMINARY.pdf

https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/04/27/pennsylvania-higher-ed-system-releases-consolidation-plans

[Ruralguy]

I guess a lot of this depends on funding sources, but yeah, I guess now that under 5000, especially if endowments gifts and grants aren't important, can be trouble, and then any step of about 1000 lower than that probably means even more trouble, and basically death spiral without major funding sources besides tuition/fees.  But it does seems that most of the current pressure is on 1000 and lower, at least in terms of closing. It would be interesting if anyone has made some robust predictions based on enrollment, endowment, etc. Anyway, even without that, we can see what the trend is. Bigger is "better" in that it means survival as a school, but also probably have to sustain that size with huge budget cuts.

[apl68]

Judson College in Alabama is closing. WBRC: Judson College board of trustees vote to close school.
https://www.wbrc.com/2021/05/06/report-judson-college-board-trustees-vote-close-school/

That is a tiny, tiny school, and it fits an unusual and fading niche in being a women's college.  Remarkable that it has kept going as long as it has, really.  I wish the world still had a place for a diversity of such distinctive schools.

What a sad day for students, faculty, and alumnae.

[spork]

Iona will buy Concordia New York's campus: https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2021/05/12/iona-finalizes-purchase-concordia-campus.

[Ruralguy]

Not too surprising. To my recollection from having once lived near there, Concordia is about 5-ish miles from Iona, in a somewhat swankier part of the New Rochelle/Eastchester/Scarsdale region. 

[apl68]

Not too surprising. To my recollection from having once lived near there, Concordia is about 5-ish miles from Iona, in a somewhat swankier part of the New Rochelle/Eastchester/Scarsdale region.

A merger might have made sense.  I suppose confessional differences kept that off the table.  Wonder whether Iona will keep many of Concordia's staff members employed on the campus they're acquiring?

[Wahoo Redux]

Not too surprising. To my recollection from having once lived near there, Concordia is about 5-ish miles from Iona, in a somewhat swankier part of the New Rochelle/Eastchester/Scarsdale region.

A merger might have made sense.  I suppose confessional differences kept that off the table.  Wonder whether Iona will keep many of Concordia's staff members employed on the campus they're acquiring?

How many of these Concordia campuses have closed? 

Is the whole consortium crashing? 

Does it have something to do with declining Catholic demographics?

[spork]

Concordia is Lutheran.

[Ruralguy]

I don't think this has all that much to do with the various other Concordias, although I suppose some others could have pressures.

This mainly comes from southern Westchester County, NY just having too many darn tiny colleges (remember that College of New Rochelle, also just a few miles from Concordia and Iona merged with Mercy College, and essentially got absorbed by them).

[apl68]

I don't think this has all that much to do with the various other Concordias, although I suppose some others could have pressures.

This mainly comes from southern Westchester County, NY just having too many darn tiny colleges (remember that College of New Rochelle, also just a few miles from Concordia and Iona merged with Mercy College, and essentially got absorbed by them).

And, apparently, declining Lutheran demographics.  Like I said, confessional differences--the lack of other Lutheran-tradition schools in the region to merge with--probably kept them from seeking a merger with a neighboring school.  Had they been one of those colleges that dropped its specific denominational identity a long time ago, they might have been more prepared to merge.  Then again, maybe not.  Every situation is different.

[jimbogumbo]

I don't think this has all that much to do with the various other Concordias, although I suppose some others could have pressures.

This mainly comes from southern Westchester County, NY just having too many darn tiny colleges (remember that College of New Rochelle, also just a few miles from Concordia and Iona merged with Mercy College, and essentially got absorbed by them).

Not just Lutheran, but specifically Missouri Synod. They don't play well with anyone ecumenically speaking.


And, apparently, declining Lutheran demographics.  Like I said, confessional differences--the lack of other Lutheran-tradition schools in the region to merge with--probably kept them from seeking a merger with a neighboring school.  Had they been one of those colleges that dropped its specific denominational identity a long time ago, they might have been more prepared to merge.  Then again, maybe not.  Every situation is different.

[TreadingLife]

University of Redlands is down 1000 students from Fall 2019 to Fall 2021. Endowment is $215 million. Current deficit is $13 million.

https://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/2021/06/04/enrollment-declines-at-university-of-redlands-prompt-layoffs-reorganization/

[apl68]

University of Redlands is down 1000 students from Fall 2019 to Fall 2021. Endowment is $215 million. Current deficit is $13 million.

https://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/2021/06/04/enrollment-declines-at-university-of-redlands-prompt-layoffs-reorganization/

Down something like 20% in two years!  Looks like they were showing signs of growth only a couple of years ago.  COVID really pulled the rug out from under them.  Now they're facing 16 layoffs and 18 other positions are being eliminated.  No mention of any of the layoffs being faculty.

[spork]

Form 990s show U. of Redlands with adequate if not healthy margins in previous years. Was a big chunk of its enrollment coming from international students?