Dive Brief:
- Salem State University and the Montserrat College of Art will not merge, as academic gains ultimately did not outweigh financial considerations.
- A merger would have fulfilled key desires of both schools, but it would have meant absorbing operating losses and shuffling development priorities that Salem State couldn’t justify.
- It took the two institutions hundreds of hours of study and negotiations to realize the merger wouldn’t work — an investment they couldn’t have shortened, in many ways, because of the need for detailed planning to adequately consider the true outcomes of a merger.
Dive Insight:
Some in higher ed predict an increase in the number of mergers as institutions get creative to stay alive. New England colleges and universities are facing a sharper demographic shift than other areas, leading to fewer prospective students. Montserrat’s president estimated for Inside Higher Ed that 10 merger conversations are in the works within 100 miles of the Beverly, MA, campus.
One thing Montserrat did correctly before entering into serious conversations about a merger was shore up its finances. Administrators must plan ahead and keep mergers from being a last resort to ensure the deal has the potential to bring benefits to both sides.