If you follow the podcasting world, you are aware that almost all podcast efforts never get to a 10 episode.  I know why.  It ain’t easy to put together 20-30 minutes of interesting and entertaining content every week.  Luckily, I stumbled on Google Alerts when I started the show – and of course thanks to those many, many colleges who post content worthy of use on the show.

I am at the point now, where I reject more content for the show than I use.  I have developed my own internal judgement for what content is worthy for my listeners.  

So with that, this week we have: 

+ Colorado cuts state aid to private college students.  Very strange.

+ “pretty despicable’ is a student description of Hampshire College.

+ Some New Hampshire spin on enrollment

+ South Carolina doesn’t have any calculators that work.  They need an emergency $25M.

+ Wrap:  Moving the podcast toward more student and family content.  I will tell you why.

Show notes and links:

Newly released:  The College Viability Inspection Report.  Available here.

Portland State to cut two legacy programs, lay off 52 staffers in budget balancing effort

Declining enrollment is driving a $12 million budget deficit at the University of Vermont

OCU to stay open for now, employees still waiting to be paid  (Oakland City University)

Colorado lawmakers pass bill to cut state financial aid for students at private universities

‘An urgent operational reality’: Southern Oregon University faces looming cash shortfall

‘Pretty despicable’: Hampshire College closure leaves students and parents scrambling to figure out next steps

Bucking national projections, some N.H. colleges are reporting strong fall 2026 enrollment figures

SC higher ed agency needs $25M more to pay for scholarships already awarded

Here are the top stories and commentary for this week.

+ Are higher education podcasters moving the needle.
+ Playing taps at Dallas Baptist University
+ Accreditors form leadership roundtable to figure things out

+ Cutting majors, majors, and more majors. Which ones survive?

+ The Hampshire ‘train wreck’ that didn’t have to happen

+ Stocker quote: “Hope is a subset of delusion.”

Show notes and links:

Dallas Baptist University plays Taps at 7:00 p.m. for each home game.

UTA (Arlington) to cut, merge some academic programs to 'maintain fiscal responsibility'

Bowie State University (MD) to Eliminate 79 Positions Amid $18 Million Budget Shortfall

Ryan Hofer's  Substack Debt by Natural Causes   Cost v. Income report

Statement from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA)

Council for Higher Education Accreditation announced they are forming an "Accreditor Leadership Roundtable."

‘A train wreck’: Hampshire faculty, staff left with no jobs, no severance as college prepares for closure

2026 College Majors Completion app for Academic Leaders  ($199)

A routine game. A swarm of honeybees. And a moment that turned into one of those unforgettable college experiences that gets shared, liked, and remembered.

Here’s the clip from Lindenwood University softball—and at first glance, it’s everything families think college is supposed to be.
(https://x.com/lindenwoodsb/status/2050360836225482921?s=58&t=RRp3EfLfsCOV4T1DFy_2zw)

Fun. Memorable. A little unpredictable.

But as we move from that moment into the rest of this week’s stories, the tone shifts.

Because while everyone can see the honeybees on the field,  almost no one sees the financial pressures behind the scenes.

This week, we’re digging into:

• Saint Augustine’s University declaring bankruptcy—but insisting it won’t close 
• Hampshire College looking to sell land to cover a $25 million debt 
•  A looming 32% drop in high school graduates in Illinois—while lawmakers still push for more funding 
•  A “shot-in-the-dark” strategy unfolding at Naropa University
•  And a blunt critique from inside Hampshire: Cowardice and the Closing of Hampshire College

Show Notes and links:

UNT approves buyouts for professors, faculty as it tackles budget shortfalls

Saint Augustine’s Declares Bankruptcy but Won’t Close

Hampshire College to sell campus, land to pay $25 million debt

Illinois’ number of high school grads to plunge 32%. Lawmakers still want more college money.

Missouri S&T applications drop due to AI, international shifts

Confusing financial aid offers can leave families deeper in debt. Student groups say a new fix doesn’t go far enough

Deloitte just dropped its 2026 Higher Education Trends report

Boulder’s Naropa University to reduce tuition to attract enrollment growth

Cowardice and the Closing of Hampshire College

Wanna Bee Best Friends (X video)

+ We have a 2nd college closure announcement in Mass.

+ More cuts for majors and programs.  The list gets longer each week.  There are few better signs of an industry in contraction than this.

+ Students at a closed college (Martin University) sue the leadership.

+ Sports programs at the big-brand name colleges continue to be sliced away.

+ And much more.

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

Show notes:

Get the College Viability Transparency tool.

Get the 2026 College Majors Completion App for students and families.

Anna Maria College (MASS) announces abrupt closure, citing financial and enrollment woes

Accepted and enrolled students say they were blindsided by Anna Maria College closing in Paxton, Massachusetts

Iowa regents approve 10 program cuts at 2 universities

State universities (Iowa) gain initial approval to eliminate low-enrollment programs

Michigan State, University of Michigan face over 60% cut under state funding bill

Students, Staff, Alumni Sue Martin (University) Over Closure

Temple has lost average of $200 million annually as enrollment slides, and retention rates are a major issue, internal report says

Arkansas to drop men's and women's tennis for financial reasons

Students ‘devastated' as Hampshire College becomes latest small school to close

Flag Football Teams Are a New Pitch for Small Colleges to Lure Students

Drexel’s new president must tackle a deficit and declining enrollment. He sees it as a ‘moment of reinvention.’

The college crisis that Ohio leaders and governor candidates are too scared of to solve

This week:

+ Half off at Hopkins: Carey Business School offers steep discounts to Maryland grads

+ Maine puts the screws to private colleges with a free and permanent college scholarship program.

+ Small private colleges are dying in a winner-take-all university marketplace.  In football, I would get a piling on penalty . . . but I am going to talk about it anyway.

+ TDR continues to increase – to the benefit of students.  Not so much to colleges in need of more revenue. 

Show notes:

2026 College Majors Completion app for Academic Leaders

2026 College Majors Completion app for students and families.

Earlham ends some majors to cut costs

BGSU to suspend 6 degree programs, 'reconfigure' 20 more in 2027 ( Partial list of programs below.) *

Half off at Hopkins: Carey Business School offers steep discounts to Maryland grads

(Maine) Governor Mills Signs Supplemental Budget at EMCC, Making Free College Scholarship Permanent

Matt Hisrich post on college net price decreases

The small private colleges dying in a winner-take-all university marketplace

Dan Silverburg post on tuition discount rates.

*BGSU says six programs will be suspended entirely without alternative options:

• Bachelor of Arts in Geography
• Bachelor of Musical Arts and one in Musical Composition
• Bachelor of Science in Physics

The following programs will be reconfigured and offered through alternative or related academic pathways, according to the university:

• Bachelor of Arts in Communication – Theatre
• Bachelor of Arts in Economics
• Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies
• Bachelor of Science in Gerontology with a specialization in long term care administration
• Bachelor of Science in Nutrition Sciences
• Bachelor of Science in Public Health
• Bachelor of Science in Statistics

There are four additional programs BGSU is seeking permission from the Ohio Department of Higher Education to consolidate into alternative offerings:

• Bachelor of Arts in American Culture Studies
• Bachelor of Arts in Ethnic Studies
• Bachelor of Arts in Popular Culture
• Bachelor of Arts in Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies

+ Academic Purges Continue As More Colleges Close Their Degree Programs

+ Indiana lifts the lid on college program costs

+ Illinois wants to be like Missouri;  Bill introduced in Illinois House to study higher education funding

+ A CC is adding football.

+ Wrap this week with a more detailed look a how we should inspect colleges similar to how we inspect houses before we purchase them.

Show notes and links

2026 College Majors Completion app for students & families

2026 College Majors Completion app for academic leaders

Keene State College will undergo reorganization to mitigate budget deficit and declining enrollment

Unprofitable majors could be on chopping block at SC’s public colleges. Here’s why

Indiana lifts the lid on college program costs — but the numbers aren’t easy to compare

Academic Purges Continue As More Colleges Close Their Degree Programs

Metro East community college bets on football to grow enrollment and campus pride

Bill introduced in Illinois House to study higher education funding

College Viability Transparency Tool

+ Layoffs and cutbacks including cancellation of a December graduation event at an Ohio college

+ Bill would let Kentucky universities lay off tenured faculty during financial crisis

+ Missouri wants to subsidize public colleges based on their enrollment.  You can imagine the protests coming from colleges.

+ED Plans to ease merger pathways.  I have some notes on that.

Here are the show notes and links

College Majors Completion App

College Viability Transparency Tool - (Complimentary trial)

Syracuse University to axe nine majors as cost-cutting at the school continues

Walla Walla Community College eyes 43 layoffs, closing a branch campus

Baldwin Wallace University cancels December 2026 commencement amid financial concerns

Central Ohio (Old Dominican) university misses debt payment following years of financial, enrollment losses

Bill would let Kentucky universities lay off tenured faculty during financial crisis

Plan to defund some Missouri colleges and universities hits wall in Senate

ED Plans to Ease Merger Pathways

So this week: 

+ Layoffs and cutbacks continue across higher ed.

+ Iowa can’t decide on bachelors for CC’s

+ Of course, college faculty want the feds to give them more money

+ You can’t count enrollment growth twice.

+ Students & parents need a housing (college) inspector

Show notes:
Get the 2026 College Majors Completion App

University of North Texas Cuts 70+ Programs to Close $45 Million Deficit — Linguistics, Women's Studies and 25 Minors Among the Casualties

UMaine to lay off staff as it slashes $5.6M from budget

Plan for 4-year degrees from Iowa community colleges hits Senate snag

Hundreds of Colleges and Professors Implore Ed. Dept. to Reverse ‘Dangerous’ Changes for Grad Students

What’s Behind the 2025 College Enrollment Surge?

If you're a parent of a current or future college student, check out the tool we have prepared that will help you navigate the financial health and viability of colleges you are considering.  Click here for a courtesy spin of the College Viability Transparency Tool.

+ Lots of layoffs and cutbacks.  This is a pattern folks.  For those in denial or trying to cover up the financial challenges colleges face.  This is a pattern.

+ Swarthmore College wants to change accreditors.  The reasons are interesting.

+ If you can’t consistently generate positive cash from operation, sell something.  That’s what Rider University (NJ) did.

+ How about a new ‘no confidence vote’  This one at Old Dominion University.  Spoiler alert:  Their 4 YGR is only at 50% in 2024.

+ The HLC takes some poetic license with the social media post on recent enrollment increases.  I am here to fill in the details they left out in the post.

+ and more

Show notes:

Rutgers Says It May Lay Off 37 Faculty Members

With fewer students and higher costs, many Massachusetts districts weigh school closures and mergers

CT university (New Haven U) tells faculty contract non-renewals coming. Why academic programs also face ax

New Jersey City University–Kean Merger Triggers 151 Layoffs & Buyouts

University of Providence in Great Falls declares financial exigency

The New School Will Reduce Faculty and Staff by 15% Amid a Financial Reorganization

Swarthmore Applies to Switch its Accreditation Agency to New England Commission

Rider University Sells Part of Campus to County in $10M Deal

Old Dominion Faculty Vote No Confidence in Leaders Over Plan to Compress Online Courses

Hint:  higher education has become an industry of spin and hiding bad data.

This week’s top stories and commentary:

+ The uncomfortable question about direct admissions

+ Keystone College accreditation reaffirmed by Middle States Commission

+ In Illinois, they Punish the winners and subsidize the loser public colleges

+ There is a faculty protest at DePaul University.  Well faculty protests are not news, they are as common as the sun rising.  This one has some interesting spin.

Show Notes:

Major restructuring will merge two Boise State schools, and close a college

SEMO Spin -  University enrollment grows.  Officials report 167 more students for Spring 2026.

8 Education Trends That Are Changing College Admissions

Financial viability of women’s sports at heart of Women’s Collegiate Sports Protection Act

Illinois boosts universities losing students, punishes gainers

Keystone College accreditation reaffirmed by Middle States Commission

Members of DePaul faculty publish open letter opposing the closure of art museum

Direct Admissions- Cutting Out the Application

+ Without nationwide rules, South Carolina lawmakers move to keep college athlete payments secret

+ U.S. Plans to Stop Funding Low-Earning Degrees. Indiana May Just End Them.
 + Editorial: New England colleges urged to disclose financial risks

+ ‘A Gray Area’: Students Say Harvard’s ‘Typical Assets’ Rule Leaves Financial Aid Gaps

+ And much more . . . .

Show notes:
 
Eastern Illinois University on-campus enrollment drops 9.5% in spring

Wittenberg Offers Transfer Pathway for Lourdes University students

Without nationwide rules, South Carolina lawmakers move to keep college athlete payments secret

U.S. Plans to Stop Funding Low-Earning Degrees. Indiana May Just End Them

Editorial: New England colleges urged to disclose financial risks    (Behind paywall.)

Don't Rush Students Into Debt Before New Loan Limits Hit

‘A Gray Area’: Students Say Harvard’s ‘Typical Assets’ Rule Leaves Financial Aid Gaps

Additional links:

Purchase the 2026 Majors Completion App (Academic leaders version.

Purchase the 2026 Majors Completion App (Student & Family version

More Links: 

Sign up for college financial transparency updates

Other College Viability Shows

Beyond the College Brochure

The College Financial Health Show with Matt Hendricks and Gary Stocker

Kitchen Table College Chats with Gary Stocker and Marc Deboer

+ After mass resignation, Lourdes appointed new trustees who voted to close school

+ How California’s capital is getting FBS football: Economics expert weighs in on Sac State's move to the MAC 

+ ASU plans to add tens of thousands to online student enrollment. Be careful of your Mom and Pop online enrollment programs.

+ UCLA CFO blows whistle on university finances

+ Education Department Moves to Eliminate "Regional Accreditor" Label in Major Higher Ed Shake-Up

+ Plus:  What is 'fit'?

Show notes and links:
Yale College has laid off some employees as it reduces staff, Lewis says

UNT faces $45 million budget shortfall amid state funding cuts and drop in international students

WSU to close Yakima College of Nursing, sending students to Tri-Cities and Spokane

Central State University lays off faculty as financial woes, SB 1 hit

After mass resignation, Lourdes appointed new trustees who voted to close school

How ASU plans to add tens of thousands to online student enrollment

Christian education: Multnomah gave up its campus in a failed takeover. Alums want it back

California’s capital is getting FBS football: Economics expert weighs in on Sac State's move to the MAC

UCLA CFO blows whistle on university finances

Education Department Moves to Eliminate "Regional Accreditor" Label in Major Higher Ed Shake-Up

Plus:  The College Viability Transparency Tool.  

News and commentary this week:

+ A Small University Bet Big on Enrolling Athletes. Now It Will Close.

+ Marshall University cuts women’s swimming team

+ (In the ‘I can’t believe it’s a story’ category and probably not a Pulitzer Journalism Award story:    University of Connecticut, looking to save $1.57M, removes trash cans from many of its offices (Not making this up.)

+ Report from New America: 41 Institutions Steered Low-Income Families to Loans

+ And some more doozy stories that I just didn’t put in today’s headline teaser.

Show notes and links:

A Small University Bet Big on Enrolling Athletes. Now It Will Close

Curry College acquires Labouré, which will shut its doors this summer

Pasadena’s Providence Christian College to Close, After Two Decades

Marshall Sports:  Herd swimming and diving on chopping block, per SI report   

SwimSwam.com story on Marshall swimming team

University of Denver braces for up to a $30 million budget shortfall next year

Students and faculty express concern about layoffs at The College of Wooster

University of New Haven loses thousands of international students due to visa restrictions

University of Connecticut, looking to save $1.57M, removes trash cans from many of its offices

Fitch report on Marshall University

Fitch report on Agnes Scott College

Report: 41 Institutions Steered Low-Income Families to Loans

State approval affirms Rider’s progress under March to Sustainability Plan

+ Southern Oregon University warns of financial crisis by early 2027.  Some interesting mea cuplas.

+ Buffalo State program cuts spark strong reactions from students

+ Oklahoma Governor Nixes Tenure At Most Of The State’s Public Colleges

+  Inside the collapse of California College of the Arts: School gambled on a major campus expansion and lost.  There may be more to it than that.

+ And much, much, more.

Show notes:

If you want to get the weekly College Financial Transparency update, click here.

Southern Oregon University warns of financial crisis, payroll risk by early 2027

5 layoffs as Idaho Statue U. axes College of Education, splits biology department in mass restructuring

Santa Monica College to eliminate more than 70 jobs despite pushback from staff, students

Buffalo State program cuts spark strong reactions from students

UA Little Rock Continues Enrollment Growth for Spring 2026

Niagara University Reports 73% Surge in Spring Transfer Enrollment

Fitch Downgrades Manhattan University (NY) to 'BBB-'; Outlook Negative

International Graduate Enrollment Is Falling Off a Cliff

More Colleges Are Using Direct Admissions. They’re Still Discovering What Makes It Successful

Inside the collapse of California College of the Arts: School gambled on a major campus expansion and lost

Oklahoma Governor Nixes Tenure At Most Of The State’s Public Colleges

The Campaign to Make Professors Teach More

+ Wintertime spin on enrollment number for an IL public college

+ Averett College (VA) Sells Athletic Facilities

+ Be careful letting your sons and daughters consider Naturopathic medicine

Show Notes and Links:

Iowa universities reviewing low-enrollment majors, could close or merge programs

Oregon State University faces uncertain financial future amid enrollment decline, budget cuts

SIUE plugs Spring Enrollment.  Ignores 4-year graduation rates

Men are opting out of college. New England’s campuses are missing them.

Averett Sells Athletic Facilities

Are Naturopathic medicine colleges in trouble.  Ryan Hofer Substack post.

A perspective on the enrollment cliff, or slope or downturn, or plummet

Interested in the weekly College Financial Health Report Newsletter?  Click here.

+ Taking a look at Acupuncture and Naturopathy colleges
+ Iowa joins the ‘cut low enrollment majors club

+ Iowa private colleges promise closures if community colleges start offering bachelor degrees

+ Whistleblower: OU dental school prioritizing high-tuition foreign students as some Oklahomans get squeezed out

Show notes and links.

Wichita State budget deficit now expected to be 7%.

Ryan Hofer at Substack:  “Debt by Natural Causes”

University of Iowa considers cutting low-enrollment majors

Governor Murphy Signs Law Advancing Kean–NJCU Merger, Transforming Higher Education in New Jersey

Morningside University, St. Luke’s College complete first stage of acquisition

Quarter of US colleges could close in the coming years, university president warns of major transformation

Iowa private colleges promise closures if community colleges start offering bachelor degrees

Whistleblower: OU dental school prioritizing high-tuition foreign students as some Oklahomans get squeezed out

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

This week:

+ California College of the Arts, Will Close in 2027

+ Hampshire College warned of potential closure by auditors

+ After Protests Over Cuts, Mary Baldwin U.'s President Resigns and Some Minors Are Restored

+ A company helping colleges avoid reinventing the wheel.

+ Another state talks public college consolidation

+ And, of course, much more.

Make sure to forward the podcast link to your Higher Education friends.  No sense in just you getting latest news and commentary on the whole industry

Want to start your own podcast, I use Riverside.fm.  Click here to get access to start your show.

Show notes:

San Francisco’s Last Remaining Private Art School, the California College of the Arts, Will Close in 2027

What We Will Lose When California College of the Arts Closes

UT-Arlington offers employee buyouts amid federal funding cuts, officials say

Hampshire College warned of potential closure by auditors

A College Missed Its Enrollment Goal by Nearly Half. What Happened?

After Protests Over Cuts, Mary Baldwin U.'s President Resigns and Some Minors Are Restored

5 Fall 2025 Enrollment Takeaways

How Oregon’s top higher ed board wants to solve university deficits

+ Closed college bails on faculty and students.  Don’t let this happen to you.

+ Universities cut over 9,000 jobs in 2025

+  How about a public college that graduated 6% of its students in 2023 getting public funds to build a multi-million dollar STEM building?

+ Is there a coordinated effort by some in higher education to write stories trying to deny that the industry is in decline?

INTRO:   Always add:  forward podcast link to your Higher Education friends.  No sense in just you getting latest news and commentary on the whole industry

Show notes and link:
Free MyCollegeViabilty.com financial health report on private colleges

Start your own podcast.  I use Riverside.fm.  Here is a link.

Now I have to start over' | Students left in dark after Martin University closes

Struggling Western Mass. college misses enrollment goal by half

Universities cut over 9,000 jobs in 2025 as Trump targets federal funding: report

Rider University Creates $2M ‘Hope’ Fund to Help Students Pay Tuition as it Faces Cuts, Layoffs

UC San Diego math weakness story has legs.

After No-Confidence Vote, University Of Nebraska Chancellor To Resign

The college backlash is a mirage

The curious disconnect between the data and the vibes of higher education

As ‘Your College Financial Quality Control Advocate’  This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.  I talk about delusional colleges, regurgitation reporting, 

And College Viability is Higher Education’s NORAD.  Our data radar tells you which incoming colleges are risky and which will safely deliver an education package.

Today:

+ Martin University terminates staff (without pay), encourages students to transfer

+ Rider University (NJ)  placed on probation

+ A potential college president foot-in-mouth story

+ Another college tries to spin bad news into a ‘Comeback kid’ kind of story

+ From Dow Jones Market Watch and Morningstar:  ‘They're in their 60s and still paying off student loans. College debt in America now lasts a lifetime.’

INTRO:   Always add:  forward podcast link to your Higher Education friends.  No sense in just you getting latest news and commentary on the whole industry

Want to use Riverside.fm for your podcast.  Click here to access.   BTW, I am a new affiliate with Riverside

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

This week's stories include: 

+  Lots of layoff and cutback stories today

+ A college without a library.  (Bloomberg News story I was quoted in) That is the position that Albright College since 2019

+ Merry Christmas from your friendly accreditor
 
+ College Bankruptcies Are Coming

+ The Higher education market is adjusting:  Case in point:  Colorado Gov. Jared Polis wants merger of higher education and labor departments

Show notes and links:

+ Oklahoma regents vote to cut 41 ‘low-producing’ academic programs

+ Enrollment declining at WIU campuses  (Western Illinois University)

+ Martin University’s abrupt closure disrupts student plans, angers alumni

+ Guilford College comes off accreditor probation after budget cuts

+ Christian Brothers University out of financial probation after 2 years

+ College of Idaho’s ‘shift’ of resources comes with layoffs

+ Why a College Fighting for Survival Is Slashing Econ and Physics Majors

+ The Price of Waiting Too Long to Close

+ College Bankruptcies Are Coming

+ Colorado Gov. Jared Polis wants merger of higher education and labor departments

+ The College Viability Manifesto

1. "Enrollment teams are obviously focused on hitting the numbers, often relying on GPA and test scores. In your experience, why are those metrics failing to predict a student’s actual readiness for the modern college environment?"

2. "If Enrollment focuses on 'getting them in' and Academics focuses on 'teaching them,' who is responsible for the transition? Where are students falling through the cracks during that hand-off?"

3. "Instructional capacity is often overlooked in the viability conversation. Are we asking faculty to do the impossible by putting modern learners into outdated academic infrastructures?"

4. "Headlines about program cuts are usually framed as 'Faculty vs. Administration.' What is the nuance that the media almost always misses

5. "If a college accepts a student, they are making a promise of viability. Do schools have a moral obligation to stop enrolling students they are not structurally prepared to graduate?"

6. What is the 'tuition mirage'?

7. There was a west coast faculty post today about AI becoming a better teacher than teachers.  That may or may not happen.  Talk us through a scenario what that does happen in higher education.

And on that happy note, this is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

This week:

+ Closures, cutbacks, and exigency requests

+ OSU to end 8 majors.  Continuing the recent trend that colleges cannot be everything to everybody

+ 6-year grad rates – are they the standard now?

+ Dysfunctional U (aka University of Tulsa) is exposed in an excellent piece by Megan Zahneis [Zay-knees] Dec 2 in the Chronicle of HE

+ First come closures.  Then come real-estate vultures.

+ 2 college employees (one faculty and one administrator) whine in social media.  That happens all the time.  These two just caught my attention.

+ And more . . .

Show notes and links:

University of Lynchburg offers faculty buyouts to address finances

Here’s what to know about Calvin University’s (MI) 12.5% faculty reduction, program cuts

University of Providence (MT) asks board to allow financial exigency

Ohio State likely to end eight majors, over 350 courses in Senate Bill 1 compliance

U.S. Six-Year College Graduation Rate Stays at 61%

The Ambition Trap How the U. of Tulsa chased enrollment and prestige — but chiefly grew its deficit instead.

The Opportunity in Bankrupt Colleges

LI POST Dr. Crystal E Garcia Associate Professor of Educational Administration at UN Lincoln

How about Whine story #2:  Another LI post

Further Negative Projections for Higher Ed in 2026

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

 + Rider President Says the University Will Survive (That’s a tough sell when I look at the data.)

+ A study of 44 private colleges in the northeast by Michael Horn and Steven Shulman.   More data to support my premise that higher education will continue to move through its consolidation era: closures today.  Mergers tomorrow.

+ Daniel Greenstein:  How Selectivity Shapes Financial Resilience in Private Higher Education

+NBC news jumps on the college bad news bandwagon.

+ and more. . . .

Make sure to forward podcast link to your Higher Education friends.  No sense in just you getting latest news and commentary on the whole industry

Show notes and links

Rider President Says the University Will Survive

The Financial Risk of Declining Enrollment to Midsize Colleges

The price of admission:  How Selectivity Shapes Financial Resilience in Private Higher Education

Poll: In a dramatic shift, Americans no longer see four-year college degrees as worth the cost

+ We are now ‘sunsetting’ programs and majors.

+ Columbia considers expanding undergraduate enrollment by up to 20 percent   (I wonder why?_

+ Rider U’s financial and accreditation troubles continue to make news.

+ In a dog bites man story:  University Of Nebraska Faculty Senate Votes No-Confidence Against its  Chancellor

+ When grades stop meaning anything (UC San Diego story from last week) Kelsey Piper on her Substack site

Show notes:

My email:  gary@collegeviability.com

Simmons University proposes sunsetting five undergraduate majors during Town Hall

UCF lays off more than 60 employees as federal research funding dries up

Columbia considers expanding undergraduate enrollment by up to 20 percent

A major N.J. university is on ‘probation.’ Here’s what that means for students

N.J. university plans to cut 25% of professors — but its union is pushing back

Dept of Ed changes ……LI Post

Colleges ease the dreaded admissions process as the supply of applicants declines

University Of Nebraska Senate Votes No-Confidence Against Chancellor

When grades stop meaning anything

2 weeks after Trinity Christian closure announcement, Palos Heights knows little about college sale plans

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

Where are we headed this week before Thanksgiving 2025?

+  It wouldn’t be a show without cutbacks and layoffs.  We had a closure announcement last week, but the college was so small, it did warrant big headlines.

+ Wittenberg U in Ohio:  On probation.  I will have the data for you.

+ Utica college president moves to get the college financially sound and it looks like he was chased out because of it.

+ Student protests at Mary Baldwin University (VA) because of cuts to minors.

+ I have a college president who, after the fact, says ‘we wanted to be smaller anyway’

+ Why Free Community College Is Missing The Mark In Massachusetts

+ and of course much more. . .

Show notes and links:

N.J. (Rider) university in financial crisis will lay off 40 professors, cut everyone’s pay

Keene State to lay off staff positions, asking faculty to retire after state cuts

Accreditor places Wittenberg on probation, citing ongoing financial problems

President of (Utica) university in Northeast steps down amid layoff threats, financial woes

Students protest Mary Baldwin University's decision to discontinue academic minors

Drexel’s first-year enrollment plummets by nearly twenty percent (corrected to 19.3%)

Change the Game and the Name of 'College Admissions'

Report finds UC San Diego freshmen not prepared for college-level math, writing classes

Why Free Community College Is Missing The Mark In Massachusetts

+ A college closure in Illinois.  How many more colleges are having that discussion?

+ IHE:  14 colleges with cutbacks and layoffs in October.

+ In Nebraska, faculty oppose academic program cuts

+ Accreditors move to control innovation

Show notes and links.

Suburban Trinity Chistian College to close at end of academic year due to financial challenges

October Brought Deep Cuts at Multiple Campuses

How Title IV Compliance Should Serve as Higher Education's New Strategic Planning

University of Nebraska-Lincoln committee opposes most academic program cuts

Pulling Back the Curtain on College Prices

Accreditors Launch Efforts to Endorse Short-Term Credential Providers

How college leaders can own the narrative about a major restructuring

Public college completion is heading in the wrong direction. One school is bucking the trend.

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

Today’s show:  

+ Layoffs and cutbacks

+ How Closing a University Changes You

+ The Fragility of Small Scale   2025  Daniel Greenstein

+ Higher Ed Is Sleepwalking Toward Obsolescence — And AI Won’t Be the Cause, Just the Accelerant

+ Colleges Face a Financial Reckoning. The University of Chicago Is Exhibit A.

Show notes:

GU Faces Projected Financial Loss, International Student Enrollment Drop

Emails show UW-Madison to lay off 31 employees, among other cuts

Simmons University sees credit rating slashed to junk by Moody’s

How Closing a University Changes You

The Power and promise of higher education

Higher Ed Is Sleepwalking Toward Obsolescence — And AI Won’t Be the Cause, Just the Accelerant

Colleges Face a Financial Reckoning. The University of Chicago Is Exhibit A

This is the podcast that talks about the financial health and viability of public and private colleges with data, details and perspectives offered nowhere else.

Call it your college education about colleges.

This week:

+ Central Washington University says ‘ flat is good.”  Get out your anti-spin pills for this one.

+ Wilberforce University Launches Feasibility Study to Revive Historic Football Program 

+ Why college direct admissions is growing nationally

+ Jeff Selingo:  “It’s the cost.” And outcomes

+ Is Freezing tuition a good idea?

Stay informed with our weekly news note.  https://mailchi.mp/collegeviability/college-viability-app-sign-up

Show notes:
Michigan State University lays off 99 employees

University of Northern Colorado plans to lay off 50 employees

FLAT IS GOOD: Officials see positive signs in fall enrollment numbers at Central Washington University

Wilberforce University Launches Feasibility Study to Revive Historic Football Program 

You’re in and didn’t even apply? Why college direct admissions is growing nationally

As Financial Woes Mount, More Universities Turn To Staff Layoffs

Trump Wants Colleges to Freeze Tuition. Is That a Good Idea?

Here are the show notes and links for stories in the Oct. 20th podcast

Higher ed layoff tracker: Mass. colleges cut more than 400 jobs over six months

UNC laying off approximately 50 staff to address budget deficit

Thomas Jefferson University to lay off about 650 employees

As its undergrad enrollment slid, UL’s hiring soared

Want to Know What You’ll Pay for College? There’s a Fast New Calculator for That.

Cosmetology Without Accountability: Failures of a Beauty School Accreditor

Americans’ Faith in Higher Ed Has Declined Even Further

For example, there was an Ohio private college president that posted this week that “ Just as culture eats strategy for breakfast, backbone beats brand”.  Now, I don’t know what that means.  He was trying to create a perception that his college was doing well.    After a review of the 4ygr and some financial indicators. I passed on this story.  Not that it shouldn’t be told, but there are other similar stories I can use.  BTW, this Ohio private has been increasing its endowment draw above the 4-5% target and has a 15% negative net income margin from 2016 -2024.    This college is not going to close, but they are prototypical of colleges engaging in chronic lack of transparency.   Almost an industry-wide genetic predisposition to spin half-stories.

But that is why I am here.  I am fully transparent. I am your higher education quality control resource.  Colleges spin.  I reverse the spin and get the true story out.

This week:

+  I continue to see an increasing number of layoffs and cutbacks.  I will have details.  Harvard is among those on my list this week.

+ Private Colleges Are Pitching Free Tuition for Middle-Class Students. Will It Make a Difference?

+ 2 N.J. universities just took a huge step toward a mega-merger

+ Ending Surprise Bills in Higher Education

+ Requiem For A College: At Forbes review  Jon Nichols.

Sign up for regular updates on the financial health of colleges here. 

Show notes and links

WWU enrollment drops, with smallest first-year class since 2020

Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Lays Off 25% of HUCTW Staff

NKU to eliminate some positions to address budget shortfall

CMU lays off 75 staffers in Software Engineering Institute, citing federal funding changes

Private Colleges Are Pitching Free Tuition for Middle-Class Students. Will It Make a Difference?

What happens to college towns after peak 18-year-old?

2 N.J. universities just took a huge step toward a mega-merger

Ending Surprise Bills in Higher Education

Requiem For A College: A Heartbreaking Tale, A Crucial Conversation

This week’s show includes:

+ Many layoff and cutback stories

+ More tuition resets that focus on access but not success

+ More Colleges Promise Graduates Employment, Grad School Placement.  

+ America’s Distorted Market for Higher Education

+ and much more.   . . .

Sign up for regular updates on the financial health of colleges here.

Show notes:

Layoffs, spending cuts hit Washington University in St. Louis

Berklee College of Music lays off 70 employees, no faculty

At least 55 more employees let go, USC reports 692 total layoffs as deficit reductions continue

DePaul University to cut spending after 30% drop in international students

Emory & Henry University Lowers Tuition by 50% for Upcoming Year

Bluffton University announces new affordability initiatives for incoming students

Local university launches new program offering minimum of $30K; here's what to know

More Colleges Promise Graduates Employment, Grad School Placement

‘A perfect storm’ — more colleges at risk as enrollment falls and financial pressures mount

America’s Distorted Market for Higher Education

As I watch the NIL and transfer portal news, I have been pondering the medium and longer-term fate of the youth sports industry. 

Steve Dittmore caught my attention recently with his 'Glory Days' Substack site.  I reached out to him and what resulted is a novel look at college sports and some informed speculation on its impact on the youth sports industry.

Here are some of the questions I asked Steve.

1. When we first chatted, you shared that the US has an education-based model for training Olympics athletes.   Your point was that colleges subsidize Olympic athletes.  As you have also shared, other nations have dedicated Olympics sports organizations.  How reasonable is it that dedicated sports organizations end up replacing the education-based model in our country?

2.  You have suggested that a college with a student-athlete rate of 44% or higher is financially risky.  What is the story behind that 44% number?

3.  Talk about your Substack site.  What are your reasons for posting and hosting that site?

4.   One of the many interesting thoughts that came out of our first discussion was about a scenario where the Power 4 football leaves the NCAA.  Share your thoughts on what could happen to non-Power 4 sports and the Olympic sports at Power 4 conferences.

5.  My fascination with all of the NIL and House settlement changes is their down-the-road impact on youth sports.  I have been intimately involved in youth sports for decades - as a coach, basketball referee, and baseball umpire.  I watched many parents invest considerable sums in youth sports teams.  In almost all cases, my perception was this was in investment that would be returned with a college scholarship.  As you and I know, that scenario is successful for only a few.

   There is a massive market for youth sports that includes coaching, training, and community investments in youth sports (defined as 10–18-year-olds) facilities.  If colleges end up cutting back on sports for financial reasons, speculate for us what impact that might have on the youth sports industry.

6. Finally, I want to talk about a model of single-sport conferences.  We talked previously about some of the ugly travel for college sports teams.  A single-sport conference would be more geographically concise.  Talk us through the benefits and drawbacks of that model.

Sign up for regular updates on the financial health of colleges here.

This week:

+ A college leader at Bethel U (MN) reached out with clarifying information from a recent story I had on his college. I was both impressed and touched.

+ E-town (PA) doing well but tuition and fees per student keeps shrinking

+ The Ed Department Hasn’t Even Begun to Fight

+ Vanderbilt Eyes National Expansion

Show notes and links:

Brown University to lay off 48 employees and eliminate 55 vacant roles

Southern Oregon University to cut 23 programs and lay off 18 employees

Champlain College closing Ireland and Montreal campuses in 2026

Bradley University continues to see decline in freshman enrollment.

Bethel University (MN) responds (No link.)

Elizabethtown College Ranks Amongst the Nation’s Best in 2026 U.S. News & World Report Lists

The Ed Department Hasn’t Even Begun to Fight

Vanderbilt Eyes National Expansion

I have a set of colleges on today’s show that would like us to believe that they are winning the higher education enrollment game.  Yet, in every case their enrollment data is selective and short-term. 

They ignore mostly pathetic graduation rates and don’t even begin to share their troublesome financial picture.  All the while trying to paint a rosy picture that their college is not like all of the other colleges in dire financial straights. 

Financial truths are more valuable than spin and other narratives. Each of these colleges have substantive financial challenges that they are hiding from their students, their faculty, their communities and probably more.

Show notes:  (links to stories in this podcast+

Budget cuts: What schools have announced them—and who may be next

Overall enrollment up at Missouri Southern State University

University of Illinois announces plans for new 400-bed residence hall

McNeese State University (LA) sees largest enrollment increase in two decades

UNO enrollment is down again. What does that mean for the university?

Bethel University (MN) LI post

YSU digs into fall enrollment numbers (Youngstown State)

One of the ways I unwind during the last part of each day is to watch YouTube videos.  I like to watch talented entertainers and comedy clips from TV shows. 

One of them that came across my feed over the weekend was the UMich Band and Students recently performing a medley of songs from the musical Wicked.  It was just stunningly good.

I bring this up as an opportunity to again say that college is good.  Go if you can. Not all colleges are going to get you where you want to be.

Watching those students in the band and the few dozen student singers was just plain mesmerizing.  

These students exemplified an important part of the college experience.  It was a quality experience at a Power 4 Big Boy college.  While I mostly talk about colleges with troubled colleges and poor outcomes (graduation rates), the college experience for millions of students is positive and will continue.

It is those colleges, public and private, that clearly don’t have the financial resources to provide a comprehensive, quality college experience that need to be called out.  Those are the ones that I point out – and will continue to do so.

Here are the news stories and commentary for this week.

+ Fall 2025’s Unexpected Enrollment Successes

+ Colleges as commodities from the Education Alliance Groun and Dr. Chet Haskell

+ My first-ever public college ‘not worthy of consideration’ call for WIU

+ Wrap with Selling Dreams, Not Reality

+ and a couple of individual college stories as well.

The second edition expands on the original work by including updated insights on the increasing rate of college closures and their profound impact on communities across the nation. It's an essential read for anyone involved in higher education. It validates the experiences of those who have faced the loss of a beloved institution while also serving as a compelling analysis and warning for others. 

Sign up for regular updates on the financial health of colleges here.

Other stories include:
+ Higher ed spending up as enrollment plummets at Illinois universities
+ Impact of Federal Policy Shifts: Higher Education Enrollment Cliff or Moderate Decline?
+ SB 1 is forcing Ohio universities to cut dozens of degree programs
+ Hundreds Of U.S. Colleges Poised To Close In Next Decade, Expert Says
+ The Great Inadvertent American Shakedown

Larry Bomback has been the interim CFO since late 2024.  Albright College has been in the news about its financial plight for many months.

In this special podcast episode, Larry addresses the challenges and adds details of the recovery plan put in place by the new leadership team at Albright.

Some will question the logic and likelihood of the recovery plan, but Larry addresses the challenges head-on and without apology.

His approach is rare in today's higher education market.

Dr. Paula Langteau will discuss 3 key metrics for college closure and than add more on why colleges don't announce their closures sooner.

Dr. Ricardo Azziz discusses 3 topics on mergers and acquisistions.

The first clip will be the reasons why college leaders need to start the merger discussions early.

The second shares some perspective on why this is the consolidation era for higher education.

Finally, Dr. Azziz shares his logic behind the philosophy of starting M&A discussions in a 1:1 format inside of organizations.

You will be interested to see how many of these greate enrollment announcements were carefully qualified announcements and how many were clearly legitimate.   I had 4 brave colleges that announced decreased enrollment last week

Stories and commentary for August 25th:

+  What does it mean when a college announces a ‘record enrollment’?  We will use the College Viability 7-second check to find out.

+ Strange happenings at Our Lady of the Lake University in TX

+ An IU professor whines about cutbacks on low enrollment majors

+ How about yet another college getting HLC accreditation while graduating less than 30% of its students in 4 years.

+ In this week’s wrap, an update on the FREE college viability report at MyCollegeViability.com   (Here is the link to get the FREE report for the private college of your choice.

Show Notes and today's story links:

Bennington College announces layoffs of 15 staff members

At DePaul, we major in you  

As Fall Semester Opens, Several Major Universities Tout Record Enrollments

Our Lady of the Lake students say OLLU gave them no viable options to complete their degree

University of Oregon faculty speak out against looming layoffs next month

Indiana's attack on IU is gutting academic programs | Opinion

Some Emerson faculty have lost trust in their college president

Gen Z men with college degrees now have the same unemployment rate as non-grads—a sign that the higher education payoff is dead

ATU (Arkansas Tech) Passes HLC Assurance Review With Flying Colors

 1. You are in the middle of a research project to determine the seating capacity of the entire higher education market.  Talk about that project.

2.  When we look at higher education, it is clear that there are too many colleges and too many colleges seats.  How did we get to this point?

3.  Is it fair to say that higher educationis is in a consolidation era?

4.  You have two books on mergers in higher education.  The second one is coming out soon.  Talk about a few of the themes you cover in your books.

5.  I have heard you talk about colleges waiting too long to look at merger options. What do you mean by that?

6.  Let's address this from a faculty perspective.  What signs should college faculty look for to determine if their college is in financial distress.

7.  You have been a college president a few times.  Make me a college president for a day.  Give me guidance on what my first steps should be if I need to introduce the possibility of a merger with my board.

8.  Let's talk about students and families and their college decision process.  As they listen to this podcast, what guidance would you give them as they create their college list?

Contact SPH Consulting Group

I had a higher ed friend send me a story on Sunday about an Iowa private college.  The spin was silly and obvious.  A look at their financials suggests this college is a likely closure candidate when the Higher Education tipping point hits.   I could have pulled a half-dozen of these type of stories in just the past week.

This is an industry living on spin.  They couch their press releases in carefully worded avoidance of hardly any details.  Graduation rates are hidden.  Reinforcing my view that too many colleges are all about enrollment and not outcomes.

This will not end well for individual colleges, this nation, or hundreds of thousands of students that have been or will be negatively impacted by the abysmal financial health of hundreds of public and private colleges.

Top news and commentary this week:

+  Lots of closures and cutbacks

+ It is spin season as colleges take data for a fictional ride from reality

+ A college hid a June layoff announcement

+ St. Augustine won an temporary injunction against its accreditor.

+ Goodbye, $165,000 Tech Jobs. Student Coders Seek Work at Chipotle.

Show notes:

UConn closes 7 academic programs after low-enrollment review

University of Utah details course cuts

Monmouth College phasing out ten majors, enhancing other programs following academic prioritization process

Avila University Announces Leadership Transition

Local colleges navigate uncertain times with international students

Aquinas College is growing, but still provides the ‘sanctuary’ of a smaller school

Suffolk University laid off 35 people earlier this summer

Saint Augustine's University announces Sept. 2 start for fall semester, new board chair appointed

New Illinois law set to shake college admissions

A Better Model for College Accreditation

Goodbye, $165,000 Tech Jobs. Student Coders Seek Work at Chipotle.

Her son graduated from Harvard in the spring of 2016 debt free! Her daughter attended the University of Alabama and completed the Nursing program at CBU, also debt free! 

Her passion is helping students all over the world get into the best possible college for them. 

Shellee has traveled around the world helping students plan for their “perfect match” college. She believes that no two students are the same and that each student must have their own strategy and plan to be successful. Each student has gifts and talents that will set him or her apart from their competition. 

Shellee has appeared on television and is frequently interviewed by newspapers and magazines. She has spoken on the topic of successful college admissions to audiences all over the world.

Recommended Podcast Audience

• Professional Moms: Busy mothers with demanding careers—doctors, lawyers, engineers, CPAs—who are juggling work and parenting. They value education deeply, want their kids to succeed, and are seeking expert guidance to avoid costly college mistakes without spending hours on research.
• Families with Teens: Parents navigating the middle and high school years, especially those with blended families or multiple children. They want to plan early and make strategic choices that optimize college outcomes and minimize debt.
• Parents of Scholar-Athletes: Families investing heavily in private coaching and sports programs, hoping for athletic scholarships. They need clarity on the actual odds, how to balance academics with athletics, and where to redirect their resources effectively.
• Personal Finance–Savvy Parents : Financially literate or financially curious parents looking for ROI on college education. They may already follow finance podcasts or work with advisors and are eager to understand scholarships, aid strategies, and how college fits into their bigger financial picture.
• Faith-Guided Families Seeking Purposeful Education: Parents who value faith, service, and purpose-driven paths. They resonate with values like community impact, giving back, and raising resilient, intentional young adults. This audience is open to stories that blend personal conviction with educational success.

Here are some of the questions Shelle answered during our podcast.

• You helped your son get into Harvard—and graduate debt-free. What was the very first step you took when he said he wanted to go Ivy League?
• What are the biggest misconceptions high-earning parents have about financial aid—and how can they avoid missing out on money they do qualify for?
• You often say that getting into college is about “standing out”—but what does that actually look like on an application?
• When is the right time to start planning for college—and what should parents do if they feel like they’re already behind?
• What role does storytelling play in a strong college application—and how do you help students uncover theirs?
• What’s the Student Aid Index—and why should every parent of a teen know theirs?
• What do you wish every professional mom knew about navigating the college journey with her teen—before senior year hits?

This week:

+ Bellwether warns of school closures, consolidations ahead.  You will be surprised when I share what part of the market this headline addresses.

+  Peter Khoury:  The Manufactured Crisis: College Closures Are Not Abrupt. They're Allowed.

+  Why Elite Colleges Are Still Accepting Students From Their Waitlists

+ A day late and a dollar short story on a public college in Illinois.
+  And more . . . . . .

Show Notes:
Private College Advanced Financial Compass
2025 College Viability App for Executive Analysis
2025 College Majors Completion App  (Retails at $799.  Now at $199 through August 29th)

Students & Families:  FREE College Viability report on the college of your choice.

News story links:

Academic Program Cuts Looming At University Of Nebraska

Stanford University to eliminate 363 workers as federal funding cuts, tax hikes hit home

UNH to lay off 23 employees, cut 13 unfilled positions, school president says

The Manufactured Crisis: College Closures Are Not Abrupt. They're Allowed.

Clarks Summit University One Year Later

Bellwether warns of school closures, consolidations ahead

Why Elite Colleges Are Still Accepting Students From Their Waitlists

Duke reopens waitlist, enrolls roughly 50 more students to Class of 2029

SIU Carbondale enhances efforts to recruit and support international students

This was a big weekend here at College Viability.  We released our first fully automated College Viability report for student and families

The free and paid versions are similar to the Kelly Blue Book for cars.  KBB kicks the tires on cares.  Our apps kick the financial health of colleges.

The app for students & families also serves as a 'REVERSE FAFSA".  Since families submit their financial data to FAFSA, it is only fair that there is a resource for students & families to see a colleges financial data.  Of course, we have explanations and comparisons in our apps.
 

Shortly, we will have a custom pdf that students can use to ask specific questions about the financial health of the colleges they are considering.  Similar products will also be out soon for High School counselors, and then college faculty and staff.

News stories and commentary this week:

+ Too many closure and cutback announcements.  I have never seen this many in the 3 plus years I have been doing this podcast.

+  The American Bar Association Needn’t Accredit Law Schools – I will share how this applies to college accreditors

+  Forbes warns:  International College Students Could Drop By 150,000 This Fall, Report Warns

+  Students in neighboring states can get the Iowa tuition rate at UNI this fall

+  The Enemy Within: Former College Presidents Offer Warnings

Show notes:

Northwestern, Barnard announce staff layoffs linked to federal funding cuts, debt

Moody Bible Institute lays off roughly 9% of staff, as small religious schools nationwide struggle with enrollment

Meredith College laying off 6% of workforce: 'A gut punch'

Elon University announces pause on hiring vacant faculty, staff positions for 2025-26

SOU President: ‘Today we are declaring exigency,’ ‘building’ to a $60 million university, 15% off current budget

University of Houston language programs shrink as students choose other fields

International College Students Could Drop By 150,000 This Fall, Report Warns

Students in neighboring states can get the Iowa tuition rate at UNI this fall

The Enemy Within: Former College Presidents Offer Warnings

The American Bar Association Needn’t Accredit Law Schools

+ A college president who must be dizzy with the spin she is trying to impart on a very difficult financial situation.

+ Technical and trade schools are not sitting waiting for students.  They are marketing to them aggressively.  I have a story and a point to make on that.

+ College business officers are still a generally delusional group.  This is my observation from an IHD story on its annual survey,

+ And I have another college ambulance chaser story from Michigan

Story links:
Accreditation Agency Flags Wheeling University For Financial Concerns

With UNO enrollment in decline, officials plan to cut courses and adjunct professors

Duke Announces Layoffs Amid Federal Funding Uncertainty

Spring Hill College president discusses school's future, debunks rumors

Growing enrollment at trade schools in Minnesota

Risk and Resilience (from college chief business officers)

These Michigan colleges are lining up to take students after university closure

+ Vague layoffs and a merger

+ Maine university system approves accelerated degree programs to address workforce gaps

+ Are  there really positive perceptions developing around higher education.

+ More layoffs and cutbacks.

+ Look at 2 colleges with accreditation updates.

+ Pennsylvania’s 14-campus higher education system is piloting plans to allow students to access courses beyond their home institution

+ TUITION DISCOUNT RATE hits another high.

+ Ryan Craig at Achieve Partners talks about the bad day that graduate programs had earlier this month.

Make sure to share the podcast link with others.  No sense in keeping this news and perspective commentary all to yourself.

Show notes / links

St. John’s College reduces staffing by 5% amid enrollment decline ( behind paywall)

Utica University Will Cut $5 Million From Annual Faculty Budget

Defiance College says Higher Learning Commission has placed it on Standard Pathway in accreditation cycle

Houghton University’s accreditation reaffirmed by Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Gonzaga U makes adjustments in light of unusually small freshman class

Pacific in strong financial shape

To Avoid Program Closures, PASSHE Explores Course Sharing

Stop Confusing a Zip Code with a Quality Education

Tuition Discounting Hits Another High

She joins me on this special podcast episode of 'This Week' to share guidance for college leaders, students, their families and others.

If you are unfamiliar with the phrase 'college teach-outs', here are some basic points.

Ensuring Student Completion: A teach-out is a structured plan implemented when a college is closing, designed to allow current students to complete their programs of study or transfer their credits to another institution.

Accreditation Oversight: These plans are typically required and overseen by the institution's accrediting agency, ensuring that student interests are protected and educational quality is maintained during the closure process.

Formal Agreements: Teach-outs often involve formal agreements with other accredited colleges or universities to accept the closing institution's students and their credits, sometimes at a comparable tuition rate.

Continuation of Services: During a teach-out, the closing institution is generally expected to continue providing necessary academic and support services for students until they have completed their studies or successfully transferred.

For those looking for data on the financial health and viability of private colleges, get a free report on a college of your choice at MyCollegeViability.com

+ Siena Heights University announces closure

+ Indiana colleges cut hundreds of low-enrollment degree programs ahead of state mandate

+ Southwestern Seminary placed on 12-month probation, keeps accreditation

+ La Salle University warned accreditation could be in jeopardy

+ A set of public universities in IL focus on enrollment and not graduation.  My words, not theirs.

Show notes and links:

Siena Heights University announces closure

Students, families weigh options as news of Michigan university closing ‘came out of nowhere’

Indiana colleges cut hundreds of low-enrollment degree programs ahead of state mandate

Southwestern Seminary placed on 12-month probation, keeps accreditation

La Salle warned accreditation could be in jeopardy

Guilford College raises $5M to meet accreditation demand

Students in Illinois will be automatically admitted to colleges under a new law. Eastern Illinois University is already trying the strategy out

+ Many layoff and cutback announcements last week.  

+ Cornell College (IA) steers away from financial health toward marketing hail mary.

+ My alma mater: typical of the plight of public And private colleges.

+ Tuition discount rate continues to move upward.  Good for the students.  Not so much for the colleges.

+ Seth O’dell:  it’s the trends that matter.  Enrollment is still down from pre-pandemic.

+ A newsletter story from Anand Sanwal that suggests colleges get some skin in the game – just like every other industry has had to do over time.

Show Note Story Links:

San Francisco State to cut 3 athletic programs

Stanford University To Lay Off Staff, Cut $140 Million From Its Budget

Sonoma State slashed programs, athletics. Now, it's getting $45M from state budget

USC plans to order significant budget cuts

Birmingham-Southern College remains closed as neighbors hope for new life on campus

Cornell College’s Early Financial Aid Promise Could Be A Trend-Setter

Eastern’s (IL) 20-year enrollment decrease is part of statewide trend

Tuition Discounting Hits Another High

Persistence and retention rates hit some of their highest levels in nearly a decade

Skin in the game: Fixing higher education’s student debt problem from Nov 16, 2024 newsletter

If you would, make sure to share the podcast link with your colleagues.  We don’t want them to miss out on the perspectives we offer here at College Viability.

This week we have layoffs, cutbacks, and lots of tuition increases.  

It is also silly season for college enrollment announcements, and I have one of those.  

More indicators that the public colleges are ahead of privates in recognizing the need for mergers.

And more evidence that colleges focus more on enrollment than graduation rates.

This and much more on the June 23rd 2025 TWICV podcast.

Show notes:

Columbia College lays off 20 faculty members amid budget cuts

Vanderbilt U. Medical Center Planning to Lay Off Hundreds Before End of Fiscal Year

Minnesota State’s tuition increase will be the most in nearly two decades

KY Colleges and Universities increase enrollment and graduation rates

Michigan State University hikes tuition 4.5% as part of $3.69B budget with cuts

Westminster earns full 10-year reaccreditation from the Higher Learning Commission

Washington & Jefferson College seeing large spike in enrollment

Lawmakers want bigger say in NJ college mergers

The Great Reset: Why Your College or University's Survival Depends on Planning for Complete Reinvention by 2030

WSU Tri-Cities bucks national trend with strong enrollment growth despite college struggles

Jeff Selingo newsletter on big beautiful bill.

+ ‘Lives will be impacted’: TSU proposes staffing, scholarship cuts to stay open

+ Shuttered Michigan House GOP's higher ed budget includes huge cuts for UM, MSU

+ NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future (Wells College)  shows emotional and maybe irrational attachment to our colleges

+ Inside Silicon Valley's anti-college movement

Show notes:

Shuttered NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future

Michigan House GOP's higher ed budget includes huge cuts for UM, MSU

North Carolina’s Guilford College scrambles for cash to keep its accreditation

Here's how much tuition and fees are going up at Kansas universities — and why

‘Lives will be impacted’: TSU proposes staffing, scholarship cuts to stay open

Why Did Syracuse Offer $200,000 Deals to Teens Who Had Turned It Down?

Inside Silicon Valley's anti-college movement

The Wreck Of The Class Of 2025

If you want access to the higher education tools we use in preparing for this podcast, click on the links below.

2025 College Viability App for Executive Analysis
2025 College Majors Completion App for Academic Leaders
PDS Private College Advanced Financial Compass.

It has been more than 8 years since St. Joseph College (IN) closed. In the interim, scores of additional collleges have closed their doors.  Public college closures are now joining the list of private 4-year college closures on a regular basis.

Here is the Amazon description of the book.  Click here to pre-order.

Heralded as “A crucial, compelling, and cautionary read for higher education in the 2020s and beyond,” Requiem for a College offers a riveting and heartbreaking insider’s view of the troubling trend of college closures in the United States.

There are two kinds of institutions that we rarely question when it comes to their long-term viability: Banks and colleges. We assume that our money, our collegiate memories, and our children’s academic futures are safe and sound — that such time-honored institutions will outlast us. But when it comes to colleges and universities, the future is not promised.

On February 3, 2017, Saint Joseph’s College in Rensselaer, Indiana, announced it would “suspend operations,” ending its 128-year history as a residential four-year college and leaving a painful void in the lives of students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the surrounding community. Requiem for a College, now in its 2nd edition, is their story.

Deeply personal and replete with the powerful voices of the people who were there, this book by English professor Jonathan Nichols transports us back in time to the College’s final days, where we join him on a quest to find out what went wrong, how long the school had been suffering in silence, and who was at fault for destroying so many dreams and crushing so many careers.

“To be a Puma is to be part of a family,” Nichols tells us. In his book, he invites us into that family, to experience the pride, the comfort, and the eventual devastating collapse of what had become a “home away from home” for thousands of people. Requiem for a College is a memoir that reads like a mystery — full of suspense, shock, and appalling behavior. It serves as a cautionary tale, a timely analysis, and a warm embrace of validation and support for educators and learners alike — across the USA and around the world — who have faced (or will face) the demise of a beloved college.

Fiction writer and essayist William Gibson once said, “When you want to know how things really work, study them when they’re coming apart.” And that’s exactly what Jonathan Nichols has done. During the crisis, Nichols coped by investigating; he researched, and he wrote, and he talked to absolutely everyone who was willing to speak “on the record.” What he found and witnessed will frustrate you, shock you, and anger you — it will bring you to tears and will make you question everything you thought you knew about governing Boards and the business of higher education.

Jonathan Nichols, for all his years as an English professor and fiction writer, has proven himself a formidable investigative journalist, researcher, and historian. He “kept the receipts” of the crisis, and they will astound you.

There is, sadly, a larger story that extends beyond the confines of Indiana. Saint Joseph’s College is just one of thousands of academic institutions on the brink. College closures have been happening at such a rapid pace —a closure per week in the first half of 2024 — that it’s almost impossible to live in the United States and not have a connection to a shuttered academic institution. In the past 15 years, more than 300 degree-granting institutions have closed and nearly 1,000 post-secondary education providers in total have disappeared. And whether you think the trend is deeply troubling or just inevitable, the consequences are far-reaching. Requiem for a College should be required reading for everyone who works in, around, and on behalf of higher education.

Harrisburg University to Close Philadelphia Campus

Guilford College Considers Formal Step Toward Possible Faculty Layoffs

Facing declining enrollment, Clark University to reduce faculty by as much as 30 percent over next three years

As UConn enrollment spikes, a housing squeeze tightens. What’s being done across state to address it

University of Oregon braces for deeper cuts as deficit balloons to $25.7 million

Hastings College earns reaffirmation of accreditation from Higher Learning Commission

Middle States to approve Keystone College’s request to merge with nonprofit

US Education Department threatens Columbia University’s accreditation over campus antisemitism concerns

Ithaca College to lower discount rate by 2028 as part of plan to decrease deficit

Why Trump’s $3 billion wake-up call to higher ed is exactly what America needs

Budget would expand state oversight following college closures (OH)

American Students Squeezed Out As Colleges Chase Foreign Funds

+ Can you really ‘grow’ out of financial challenges?
+  Notre Dame College (closed) is sued by Bank of America.  The reason is a big deal.
+  Education news reporters have a really tough job.

Show notes and links:
 
Peninsula College closing Fort Worden campus

Ivy Tech CC (IN) will be laying off 202 employees. What that means for Indy campus

Multiple Saint Michael’s College (VT) employees laid off

USI president says tuition increase inevitable after state budget cuts

Notre Dame College (OH) sued by Bank of America for $20M debt, accused of improper use of endowment funds by Ohio AG Dave Yost

College enrollment is declining. How is Johnson & Wales preparing for the ‘demographic cliff’?

But back to my role as Your College Financial Quality Control Advocate

This week on 'This Week'

+ Buffalo State University to cut some programs, staff to help balance its budget

+ State university systems in MD and OR also announced cutbacks or potential cutbacks.

+ Let the colleges fail by Richard Vedder, Opinion on The Hill

+ Penn State Faculty Alliance Calls on University to Stop Campus Closure Process

+ Much more.

Show notes:

Canisius University (NY) to lay off all public safety department employees

Buffalo State University to cut some programs, staff to help balance its budget

Let the Colleges Fail

Penn State Faculty Alliance Calls on University to Stop Campus Closure Process

Kasia Lundy LI post on risky colleges

Kean University and New Jersey City University Sign Letter of Intent in Next Step Toward Historic Merger

America’s College Towns Go From Boom to Bust

+ 7 public colleges in PA proposed to close.

+ KS is fretting over tuition increases, but the real issues is they can’t graduate students in 4 years.

+ A college closure prediction story from 2019

+ Regulators remove Antioch College's financial distress designation

+ States Are Taking Up Higher-Ed Reform

App links:
Private College Advanced Financial Compass
College Viability app for Executive Analysis

Show notes:

Christian Brothers University and Lewis University Sign Letter of Intent to Explore Transformative Partnership

State University leadership recommends closing 7 branch campuses

Union College falls short on enrollment with big loss of international students

Salem College (NC) sees surge in enrollment after national recruitment push

Five of six state universities in Kansas seek tuition hikes to grapple with financial obstacles

Regulators remove Antioch College's financial distress designation

States Are Taking Up Higher-Ed Reform

Here are the top stories beyond cutbacks and layoffs
 

+ Arkansas Baptist College employees go weeks without pay
+ Not All Colleges Are Worth Saving

+ Averett University is suing its former CFO and endowment fund investment manager

+ WSJ:  The End of the Free College Lunch

Show Notes:

Schedule a 1:1 Demo of the Private College Advanced Financial Compass with me.

Hood College (MD) faces budget deficit, increases draw from endowment

Johnson & Wales to cut 91 jobs amid $34m deficit, decreased enrollment

Arkansas Baptist College employees go weeks without pay

Applications drop to five-year low -   as acceptance rate increases on May 8th

Linfield students, faculty push back on proposed university budget cuts

Averett University is suing its former CFO and endowment fund investment manager

The End of the Free College Lunch (Behind WSJ Paywall)

1.      Limestone University holds graduation after faculty votes to ban President, VP, Board of Trustees.  As you might guess, I have some thoughts on that.

2.      Closed college students” Be wary the college ambulance chasers

3.      Education Dept. Moves to Make It Easier for Colleges to Switch Accreditors

4.      Trump's Accreditation Guidance Sidesteps Core Higher Ed Safeguards.  No, they have already been sidestepped.  I will tell you how.

Do you have stories you want covered.  Drop me a note at gary@collegeviability.com

Show Notes and Story Links:

LIVE: Limestone University holds graduation after faculty votes to ban President, VP, Board of Trustees

Limestone faculty asks president, trustees not to attend graduation; colleges reach out

Education Dept. Moves to Make It Easier for Colleges to Switch Accreditors

2025 College Athletics Compliance Report: A Look at the Continued (R)evolution

Trump's Accreditation Guidance Sidesteps Core Higher Ed Safeguards

An ugly fight brews

College Viability Web Site

Show notes:

Trump’s Executive Order Bashes Accreditors, Blames DEI for Low Standards and Poor Outcomes

St. Andrews University to Close on May 5

UToledo announces plans to cut multiple undergrad programs

Statement on Executive Order Regarding Accreditation (from the Middle States Commission on Higher Education)

Where Is Congress?

Increase in administrative positions prompts report from faculty

How an Accreditation War Could Start

Changing the focus on financial transparency

Yes, the College Bubble Will Deflate

Our podcast topic is based on Eric's March 2025 article entitled:  

‘We Have More Athletes Than We Have Fans’

Many small colleges have invested in sports to boost enrollment. What happens when it doesn’t work?

Eric adds some depth to the developing concerns that adding college sports programs is a solution to enrollment and financial challenges.

+ Limestone College (S C) nears what may be its final days of existence.

+ Jacksonville University faculty issues ‘no confidence’ vote in President Cost after decision on cuts

+  Ryan Craig:  An Unexpected Consequence Of The Push For Student Loan Forgiveness

+ Fewer students earned college degrees for 3rd straight year

Shownotes:

College Viability Web Site

College Viability YouTube channel

Penn State branch campus closure announcement now expected after commencement, final exams

Ithaca College to lay off sign language professors

'We Will Have No Choice'  Buried in Debt, This Small College Says It May Be Headed for Closure

Students, school officials react as Limestone University faces closure amid financial uncertainty

With tight deadline, Utah universities scramble to cut 10% of budget for courses

JU cuts nearly half of undergraduate degrees, focuses on high-demand fields

Jacksonville University faculty issues ‘no confidence’ vote in President Cost after decision on cuts

Harvard has an endowment of over $50 billion. So why do federal cuts of a few billion matter?

Fewer students earned college degrees for 3rd straight year

‘Abandoning Our Soul Should Not Be an Option.’ Closing Campuses Isn’t the Only Answer to Meeting Penn State’s Challenges

Highlights include: 

+ Two Mass. colleges in financial ‘danger,’ accreditation agency finds – Belatedly so.

+ Our College Closed: Advice for Navigating Professional Deaths and Rebirths

+ The reason dozens of Mass. colleges could close within a decade (hint: it’s not Trump)

+ Shock:  A politician speaks out on a public college closure.

+ Yet another accreditation for an undeserving college.   When will accreditors wake up and make colleges graduate more than 50% of their students.

+ Much more.

Show Notes and Links

Georgia's public university system combines two schools

Two Mass. colleges in financial ‘danger,’ accreditation agency finds

Concordia University to layoff 41 staffers, including in Ann Arbor, amid restructuring

Our College Closed: Advice for Navigating Professional Deaths and Rebirths

Universities Are Seeking Billions In Bonds As Protection Against Trump’s Assault

The reason dozens of Mass. colleges could close within a decade (hint: it’s not Trump)

Universities face ‘daunting’ facilities needs, report says

Sen. Baker on potential closure of PSU Wilkes-Barre: ‘This is not a done deal’

Faced with a perfect storm, small local colleges try to navigate the future

ESU accreditation reaffirmed by Higher Learning Commission, next reaccreditation in 10 years

Sonoma State officials outline recovery plan amid massive budget deficit and cuts

Purchase the 2025 College Viabiltiy App for Executive Analysis

Purchase the 2025 College Viabiltiy App for Students & Families (also for faculty and staff)

Here is the Amazon description of the book from 2022.

On February 3rd, 2017, Saint Joseph’s College, a small college in Rensselaer, Indiana, announced it would “suspend operations,” effectively ending an over 100 year history as a four-year college. While most of the world may not have taken notice, the day left a painful void in the lives of the College’s students, faculty, employees, alumni, and the surrounding community.

Requiem for a College is their story. Many books have examined the trend of small college closings. This one looks at what happens to the people involved.

Jonathan Nichols has drawn upon hundreds of hours of interviews conducted over five years as well as piles of documentation to determine exactly what happened at the college and in what ways the loss transformed so many lives. Not only that, but as Saint Joseph’s College is part of the ongoing wave of small college closures in America, Requiem for a College links Saint Joe to other colleges that have closed, showing commonalities as well as lessons for other institutions to heed.

Great tragedies often provoke conspiracy theories. In its reconstructed, definitive account of this institutional collapse, Requiem for a College demonstrates that causes of said tragedies are often more human and mundane than shadowy conspiracies, but are thus in their own way, much sadder.

The continuing pattern of college closures, layoffs and cutbacks that have occurred since 2017 inspired Jon to publish a second edition of the book.  This second edition adds more stories about the personal and higher education impacts.

In the coming months, I will host additional episodes of the podcast to delve deeper into the stories of college closures for both the individuals involved and the colleges that have closed.

The second edition of Requiem for a College is scheduled for release in late 2025.

+ Free-Falls: Stocks and Colleges

+ Do strategic alliances yield significant financial results?

+ 2 colleges cut ALL NCAA sports programs

+ ‘Requiem for a College’ 2nd edition is out in 2025

+ Lower stock market returns to impact college endowments.

For private demos of the College Viability App, the College Majors Completion App or the PDS Private College Advanced Financial Compass, email:  gary@collegeviability.com

Show notes and links

Spring Hill College Announces Strategic Alliance with Rockhurst University for Academic Collaboration

Rosemont College to merge with Villanova University in multi-year transition, schools say

Bryn Athyn College (PA) Axes All Sports Programs Citing Budget Constraints

Academy of Art University (CA – SF) Announces Discontinuation of Intercollegiate Sports Programs

Georgia Tech sets new record with nearly 67,000 applications for fall enrollment

Over 100 employees to be laid off as college in northern Wisconsin closes in May, citing lack of attendance and high costs

Stanislaus State University faculty members decry layoffs amid budget shortfall

City Council to investigate state of higher education following string of mergers and closures

College guide raises questions on BGCT-related colleges

They had the chance to shake hands and learn how to be good at meet and greets.  

Why do I open today’s podcast with this?  Today’s podcast continues to chronicle the financial, cultural, and operational challenges many colleges face.  But the college experience is so good for so many. 

Show Notes and links

2025 College Viability App for Executive Analysis

2025 College Viability App for Students & Families

College Majors Completion App - for College Leaders

College Majors Completion App - Students & Families 

From Today's podcast:

EIU spring on-campus enrollment down 9.77%

Financial stewardship during uncertain times (Kansas University)

‘You can’t create 18-year-olds’: What can colleges do amid demographic upheaval?

Chico State unveils new webpage dedicated to the university’s budget

Chico State budget web page

An ugly weather weekend in the eastern half of the country.  It looks like a tornado might have hit within a mile of our St. Louis suburban home Friday night.

An economic tornado continues in Higher Education.  Here are today’s news and commentary stories.

+Lots of layoffs and cutback stories today.

+ Albright College tries to spin mid-year financial growth.  Just plain silly.

+ A story about a bid public growing, but students are concerned.  It fits my belief that we are witnessing a substantial student movement toward big publics.

+ NJCU Votes to Merge With Kean University, Awaits OK from Middle States

+ A story on what could happen if the DOE loses its ability to collect college data.  Hint:  college will have a license to lie.

Link to the Private College Financial Compass

Show notes/links

USU (UT) announces $17.3 million in budget cuts, which includes voluntary buyouts, possible layoffs

Lakeland Community College to lay off faculty as enrollment drops

WWU announces more layoffs to chip away at $18M deficit

Franklin & Marshall College (PA) to cut staff in April

Fitch Downgrades La Salle University (PA) to 'BB-'; Outlook Negative

Albright College Exceeds Expectations with Strong Mid-Year Financial and Academic Growth

Wittenberg placed in financial distress status by college accreditation group

UConn’s expected enrollment growth puts stress on students and local community

NJCU Votes to Merge With Kean University, Awaits OK from Middle States

Student Loan Borrowers Are Reporting Huge Spikes In Monthly Payments As Repayment System Buckles

Chaos and confusion as the statistics arm of the Education Department is reduced to a skeletal staff of 3

Other news and commentary stories on: 

+ University of Dayton cutting 65 faculty and staff positions.

+ An interesting public college merger in New Jersey

+ St. Augustine’s (NC) on its last appeal to maintain accreditation.

+ A PA politician wants to make it harder to close public colleges.   

Show Notes / Links

University of Dayton Not Renewing Contracts of 45 Faculty Members, 20 Staff in Wave of Cutbacks

New Jersey City University, with declining enrollment, to merge with Kean University

Saint Augustine’s University loses appeal, pursues arbitration in fight to keep accreditation

Pa. representative fights to make it more difficult for colleges to close regional branches

Forbes 2025 College Financial Health Grades  (behind paywall)

Middle States says Keystone College remains accredited

It started with announced program cutbacks at the University of Tulsa in 2018.  It has evolved into a technology-based marvel that captures, analyzes and displays some 1 million data points for about 1,300 private colleges from 2016-2024.

The PDS Advanced Compass compares a private college with different sets of peer groups across more than 40 reports from audited financial statements, IRS 990's and IPEDS data.

The Strategic Compass drills down even deeper on an indivdual college and a variety of peer groups. Contact me at gary@collegeviability.com to schedule a 1:1 demonstration on how the Strategic Compass could help your college.
 

Let’s do our own spring training and look at these stories.

+ 2 public colleges TSU and Penn State are in the college cutback news.  TSU with staffing cuts, and Penn State will soon be looking at closing some regional public colleges.

+ Middle States hosted a webinar:  How to close a college.  I will look at the possible motivations.

+ College Closures Are a Blessing in Disguise

+ A merger that won’t happen.  What that may mean for future college mergers.

+  And much more.

Show notes:

'Lives will be impacted': TSU proposes staffing, scholarship cuts to stay open

Chancellor calls for layoffs, cuts at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville

Penn State Beaver among list of possible closures as college faces declining enrollment

Gutted courses, fewer majors, faculty layoffs: Who will feel Cal State’s 8% budget cut?

California legislators demand “comeback” plan from Sonoma State administration during forum on campus

College Closures Are a Blessing in Disguise

University of Findlay not proceeding with Bluffton University merger

Why Is It So Hard to Merge Colleges?

Raleigh college jumps on free tuition bandwagon

SEMO Sees Strong Growth in Key Enrollment Areas for Spring 2025

Spring Hill College dropping majors due to ‘under-enrollment’

Selling Yesterday's Solutions: Why Higher Ed Vendors Face Extinction

The two authors of 'No Confidence - When College Faculty Turn Against Their Presidents', Chuck Ambrose and Mike Nietzel were gracious enough to join me for a special edition of 'This Week in College Viability'.  While the book won't be released for many months, the points made are worthy of consideration today.

Here are the question Mike and Chuck addressed during the podcast interview.

1. What are the factors you believe make this a timely book?

2. From the book:  "In the past two decades, but especially in the post-pandemic era, one of the most common reasons behind no-confidence votes has been faculty objections to presidents’ management of their institution’s finances, particularly when those decisions have involved eliminating academic programs, streamlining the institution’s organization, and reducing the number of faculty and staff."      Question:  How many of these no-confidence votes are the result of cultural intransigence on the part of faculty and how many are based on real financial concerns?
   
   
3. From the host:  The data on financial struggles is clear.  There are resources out there that will let stakeholders, including faculty, see how their college compares to other colleges.  College faculty are data-trained folks.  Why do you think there is a focus on data in their respective academic disciplines and borderline ignorance or maybe indifference of financial data?
   
   
4. From the book:  "One of the more cynical allegations was that presidents had exaggerated the seriousness of the budget problems, using them as a pretext to get rid of faculty troublemakers or disfavored programs.  Faculty also charged that administrators were often relying on faulty data and trampling on shared governance norms in the process."  Are faculty generally informed about the difference between a budget - which is basically a hoped-for prediction - and an audited financial statement - which is a rule-based documentation of actual financial performance?
   
   
5. From the book:  " “You know anytime in higher education that a president advocates for major changes at an institution, it’s going to lead to a faculty outcry. It’s why no-confidence votes are becoming more common. The need for change is running head on into an entitlement mentality that change is unnecessary."  WVU President Gordon Gee.  Is Dr. Gee right or wrong?
   
   
6. From the book: Governing boards are far too willing to defer to presidential assurances that the financial house is in good order; or that if it’s not, enrollment will pick up, an upcoming fund-raising campaign will bring financial security, or the state will answer the call for increased appropriations. The alternative scenarios -- where enrollments keep dropping, revenue continues plunging, expenses are mounting, the state is still cutting appropriations, and where once loyal donors are finding other good causes to support with their gifts -- are not taken seriously until it’s too late."     How can governing boards be more proactive in assessing the true financial health of their institutions, rather than relying solely on presidential assurances?