Dive Brief:
- Officials from Grace University in Omaha, NE, announced the institution will be closing permanently at the end of the current school year, according to the Omaha World-Herald. The school had hoped to boost its enrollment and was planning to move its campus to a new location, but the chairman of the school's Board of Trustees said enrollment efforts were ultimately unsuccessful.
- Grace's total enrollment this year is fewer than 300 students in total, with a freshman class of 33 students, while the previous year's enrollment was "a bit more than 400 students," including more than 100 graduating seniors.
- Chief Executive Officer Bill Bauhard said the college would assist students in completing their degrees through "specific arrangements" with other colleges or regular transfers.
Dive Insight:
Small private, regional universities like Grace are predictably most endangered by the changing economic realities facing higher ed. Already, some private colleges and universities are considering consolidation, at least of administrative functions if not of the schools themselves. Other universities are finding ways to situate administrative staff and offices at spots conducive to multiple campuses, but as institutions consider consolidation, they must be cautious to do so in a way that will not garner scrutiny and controversy.
But many institutions are taking advantage of opportunities to collaborate with other institutions and re-examine their missions to better serve a changing student population. Colleges and universities must also commit to initiatives and support campus innovators who want to develop alternative programs that might appeal to non-traditional and adult learners. Many private colleges and universities, such as Smith College, are endeavoring to appeal to adult learners and offer financial incentives for them to begin and complete a college education, but these attempts must be scaled industry-wide to meet the growing demand.