Rising expenses and fixed endowments force institutions to make tough choice

By Dan Boylan, The Washington Times

January 23, 2019

Small private colleges across the country are increasingly finding themselves trapped between ever-rising expenses and unchanging endowments, forcing administrators into hard decisions such as canceling courses, merging with other colleges and even closing schools.

“The college meltdown across America has been occurring for at least eight years, and there are few signs that it will slow down in 2019,” said Dahn Shaulis, whose College Meltdown blog monitors concerns in higher education.

Michael B. Horn, a co-author of “Disrupting Class: How Disruptive Innovation Will Change the Way the World Learns,” noted such discounts as key factors in colleges’ failing business models.

Discounts typically are delivered via financial aid packages and school grants. Discounts above 35 percent, Mr. Horn said, place colleges “in a danger zone, particularly when they are heavily dependent on tuition.”

“Essentially, the system is now destroying itself,” Mr. Horn said.