More than a dozen schools in Massachusetts have either closed or merged in recent years. Will Hampshire College in Amherst find the strategic partner it's looking for? Or will it be New England’s next failed small private school?
On this month's On Campus Radio, WGBH News' higher education correspondent Kirk Carapezza takes us to Hampshire, where administrators recently announced the financially-strapped liberal arts college is seeking a merger partner and is not admitting a full new class this fall. Instead, it will only enroll about 70 early decision students and gap-year students who enrolled for the fall semester. Students have occupied the president’s office, and staff layoffs have begun with faculty cuts expected this spring.
Then, host Aaron Schachter sits down with Hampshire President Miriam Nelson and asks her about the financial and enrollment challenges facing the college and whether new proposed state regulations played a factor in her decision to seek a partner.
We also speak with Chris Gabrieli, chair of the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education, about the new financial benchmarks the board wants to use to determine whether the state should step in when a college is struggling financially; and Simmons University President Helen Drinan explains how her school found success in launching continuing education programs with the help of an outside partner.
Finally, WGBH News Senior Editor Ken Cooper provides his analysis.
Every month on On Campus Radio, WGBH News hears from students, parents, educators and policymakers about issues shaping the future of higher education. It’s an hour-long, deeper dive into recent stories we’ve covered — and that we pick apart from multiple angles.
On Campus Radio airs the last Sunday of each month at 8 p.m., only on 89.7 WGBH.
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Tune in Sunday, Feb. 24 at 8 p.m.
