Closures and Mergers: Page 2


  • College students climb up the stairs to a campus building.
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    Vladimir Vladimirov via Getty Images
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    Column // Merger Watch

    How can college leaders navigate mergers and closures in 2025?

    A consolidation expert urges officials to face the facts, explore their strategic options and be willing to accept external help. 

    By Ricardo Azziz • Feb. 20, 2025
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    University of the Arts unloads 2 buildings for $10.3M in auctions

    The nonprofit Curtis Institute of Music beat out a local real estate developer and Temple University for one of the shuttered arts college’s iconic buildings.

    By Jan. 16, 2025
  • University of the Arts sign on campus in brass lettering.
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    Pennsylvania AG argues Temple should win bid for UArts building

    Attorney General Michelle Henry said Temple University's bid should take priority over a $6.5 million offer from a Philadelphia real estate developer.

    By Jan. 15, 2025
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    University of the Arts lands $8.3M in bids for 2 buildings

    A Philadelphia real estate player and area theater nonprofit are among the first buyers to step up for the closed arts college’s iconic properties.

    By Jan. 10, 2025
  • A mural reading "Ursuline College" surrounded by painted people.
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    The image by SilentMatt Psychedelic is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
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    Gannon University and Ursuline College announce official merger deal

    The nonprofit institutions will combine to form "the largest Catholic system of higher education along Lake Erie" by December 2026.

    By Jan. 3, 2025
  • View of red brick Keystone College building in the evening
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    Courtesy of Keystone College
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    Keystone College staves off accreditation loss for now

    The financially troubled Pennsylvania nonprofit will retain its status as its accreditor hears its appeal.

    By Jan. 2, 2025
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    Dusan Stankovic / Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Column // Merger Watch

    Declining K-12 enrollment spells trouble for higher education’s future

    Given demographic trends, the sector will likely become more competitive and experience more closures, one consolidation expert argues. 

    By Ricardo Azziz • Dec. 19, 2024
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    The image by Joe Mabel is licensed under CC BY 3.0
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    Seattle University plans to acquire arts college

    Cornish College of the Arts, in Washington, would retain its campus and be renamed under the Catholic university's banner, the institutions announced.

    By Dec. 6, 2024
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    EvgeniiAnd/Getty Images Plus via Getty Images
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    College closures could increase sharply in the face of the demographic cliff

    A new model for predicting financial failures from the Philadelphia Fed aimed to produce the most accurate forecasting to date of at-risk colleges.

    By Dec. 5, 2024
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    Courtesy of Keystone College
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    Keystone College could lose accreditation after MSCHE vote

    Middle States Commission on Higher Education found that the Pennsylvania institution failed to show it can sustain itself.

    By Nov. 27, 2024
  • The Norton Campus Center at Birmingham-Southern College
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    The image by Jwrandolph is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    Birmingham-Southern College campus sale falls through

    Miles College asked to extend a purchase agreement for the property, but trustees of the shuttered college said they must sell the campus quickly. 

    By Nov. 27, 2024
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    The image by SAUFalconsWiki is licensed under CC BY 4.0
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    Saint Augustine’s University cuts its workforce in half to shore up finances

    The North Carolina institution is on probation with its accreditor as it tries to stabilize its operations.

    By Nov. 25, 2024
  • California Maritime Academy sign under a model sail.
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    The image by Bill Williams is licensed under CC BY 2.0
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    Cal Maritime and Cal Poly set to merge

    A new report from California State University leaders said the nautical college faces a "dire, binary choice": Partner with another university, or close.

    By Nov. 22, 2024
  • A snow covered landscape, with a sign at the far right of the frame advertising for Webster University.
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    The image by Webster University is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    Webster University to close its military campuses

    A decade ago, the nonprofit based in Missouri had over 40 locations on bases. Now, it is shuttering its last nine.

    By Nov. 1, 2024
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    The fallout: A two-part look at the University of the Arts’ closure and legacy

    Higher Ed Dive traveled to Philadelphia to chronicle the lasting impact of a beloved arts education institution’s sudden demise.

    By Oct. 14, 2024
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    The image by Morgan Riley is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    3 Virginia universities face some viability risk

    Radford University, University of Mary Washington and Virginia State University have struggled with enrollment or pricing challenges, or both. 

    By Oct. 10, 2024
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    Permission granted by Temple University
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    Deep Dive

    The fallout: The University of the Arts saga lives on — will its legacy?

    Temple University and others have absorbed former UArts students. But can they replace the unique urban arts institution after its demise?

    By Oct. 9, 2024
  • A flyer showing a headshot of a person in suit and tie and red and white text saying “He closed the University of the Arts and laid off hundreds of staff and faculty with one week notice!”
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    Deep Dive

    The fallout: University of the Arts haunted by unanswered questions months after sudden closure

    Students and employees were left in the lurch after the nearly 150-year-old institution shuttered with just a week's notice.

    By Oct. 8, 2024
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    LaylaBird via Getty Images
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    Column

    To understand the future of higher education, look to the past of healthcare

    A college consolidation expert breaks down similarities between the two sectors — and what institutions can learn from them.

    By Ricardo Azziz • Oct. 1, 2024
  • The Harbert Building at Birmingham-Southern College
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    The image by Jwrandolph is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    Miles College to buy shuttered Birmingham-Southern’s campus

    Just miles apart, both institutions struggled with declining enrollment in recent years. But Birmingham-Southern couldn’t rebound financially.

    By Sept. 26, 2024
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    dszc via Getty Images
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    Arizona State to add tuition surcharge, close 1 campus after state funding cuts

    With a $24 million reduction in public funds, the Arizona university warned of impacts to students.

    By Sept. 24, 2024
  • A mural reading "Ursuline College" surrounded by painted people.
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    The image by SilentMatt Psychedelic is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
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    Gannon University and Ursuline College eye a combination

    The two private Catholic institutions signed a letter of intent that would bring the Ohio-based Ursuline under the umbrella of Gannon, in Pennsylvania.

    By Sept. 17, 2024
  • University of the Arts sign on campus in brass lettering.
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    University of the Arts files for bankruptcy

    The Philadelphia institution’s Chapter 7 comes after it abruptly closed this summer and its merger talks with Temple University fell through.

    By Sept. 16, 2024
  • Front view of a brick hall of Knoxville College.
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    The image by Brian Stansberry, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons is licensed under CC BY 3.0
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    Knoxville College takes a step toward accreditation nearly 30 years in the making

    The historically Black institution, which lost accreditation in 1997, filed an application with Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools.

    By Aug. 30, 2024
  • University of the Arts sign on campus in brass lettering.
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    Ben Unglesbee/Higher Ed Dive
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    University of the Arts faces full repayment demand from bondholders

    A bank notified the university just two weeks after its closure that the full amount was due. Meanwhile, employees are seeking lost wages.

    By Aug. 29, 2024