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Dive Brief:
- Hampshire College might have to close earlier than planned if it can’t raise the funds necessary to support operations through December, according to a community message from the institution’s leader published by a local ABC affiliate.
- Succumbing to enrollment and debt pressures, the private Massachusetts institution announced in April that it would shutter at the end of its fall semester.
- But on Saturday, Hampshire President Jennifer Chrisler said that institutional projections now show “the college does not have enough available funds to cover the expected expenses for the teach-out.” She added the college is exploring ways to secure the necessary funding.
Dive Insight:
In her announcement, Chrisler acknowledged that “this update comes at an already difficult time.”
Indeed, many students and faculty were already scrambling to make plans for a future without Hampshire while also coming to terms with the college’s closure after years of turnaround efforts with once-promising prospects.
“Nonetheless, I believe sharing this information now is the responsible course of action,” Chrisler said. “I remain committed to stating plainly that which is hard to hear, and so I want you to understand the planned teach-out is contingent on the College obtaining sufficient financial resources.”
The announcement came two days before many colleges’ June 1 transfer deadline, Chrisler noted, acknowledging that it could affect whether students decide to plan for another semester at Hampshire or move on. “We believe it is important to share this information now so that members of our community can make informed decisions about their future.”
Along with a mismatch between expected revenue and expenses, Chrisler cited demands for up-front payment from several vendors “whose services are necessary to maintain College operations.”
It’s common for vendors to ask organizations in financial distress for full payment up front rather than agreeing to delayed payment terms. Such demands can exacerbate existing liquidity and financial challenges.
With the planned fall semester contingent on sufficient funds, Chrisler said that Hampshire is “actively exploring options to secure the necessary financial resources in time for the teach-out, and we remain optimistic.”
Hampshire’s closure announcement this spring took many by surprise and followed a high-profile turnaround effort that initially seemed successful. However, the college struggled to maintain enrollment growth, refinance its debt and monetize some property holdings. Its accreditor also said Hampshire could face probation or lose accreditation entirely over its financial travails.
Board Chair Jose Fuentes said in April of the announced closure, “Hampshire’s board made this decision only after exploring every possible alternative.”
Since then, there have been at least two efforts to save the college from closing.
One effort, Hampshire Next, has brought together alumni, students, staff and other stakeholders to “secure a future where a new expression of Hampshire’s mission can be nurtured under the direct guidance of its community,” according to its website.
Hampshire Next has so far received pledges for $1.7 million on an initial goal of $2.5 million, which the organization says will get it “a seat at the table.” Ultimately it looks to raise upward of $20 million to secure the college’s future.
Activist and philosopher Jerome Segal has led another effort. Segal, a retired University of Maryland professor, has recently incorporated an organization called the Peace and Plain Living Institute as a vehicle for acquiring the college’s property in Amherst and Hadley, Massachusetts.
Segal’s plan calls for merging Hampshire with the institute, and he has asked the college to refrain from mass layoffs.
“We’re going to go to the bank and get a loan for the future Hampshire University, asking them to lend to us, and then to Hampshire,” he told the Greenfield Recorder in May. “We want to be open for business in the fall.”
Segal wrote to the board last week saying his group was prepared to refinance Hampshire’s $21 million in debt if the college stopped the liquidation process of its assets and agreed to reconstitute its board, among other conditions.
Neither Hampshire Next nor Segal’s efforts have stopped the college’s leadership from moving forward with closure and teach-out plans.
Along with struggles to save the entire college, a group of employees launched an emergency relief fund in April to assist some 250 Hampshire faculty and staff members “facing sudden job loss without severance pay.” So far, the fund has raised nearly half a million dollars.
“This effort came together quickly because it had to,” Lorenzo Conte, Hampshire’s gallery director, said of the fund in an April statement. “People are losing their jobs with very little notice and no safety net. Our goal is to get support to colleagues as quickly as possible.”
