A somber day on one local college campus. Citing enormous financial challenges “exacerbated by a global pandemic, a shrinking pool of undergraduate students nationwide, inflationary pressures, and an overall negative sentiment towards higher education” Wells College has announced it will close at the end of the spring semester.
Aurora Mayor Jim Orman spoke to Finger Lakes Daily News on Monday saying it’s a sad day for the college and community.
“I feel bad for the administration, for the President for having to have to go through this, and for the students, and the alumni of Wells, in addition to the village. It’s sad and it is such a big thing. Wells is such a huge part of our village.”
Orman said they are still assessing what the closure will mean to the Cayuga County village.
“Obviously it will take a while to process all of that,” said Orman. “They’re such a part of the community. They provide us with a medical center, they provide us with employees who contribute or live in the village. All of this is being accessed right now and there will be some unattended consequences that we don’t even know about yet.”
The Board of Trustees said Wells College has entered into an agreement with Manhattanville University where it will become its preferred teach-out partner. This partnership will help ensure that Wells’ current students matriculate and its institutional mission and legacy continue. Manhattanville is developing dedicated housing for Wells students and will be partners in supporting our students with transfer plans. Manhattanville has also expressed interest in developing a legacy agreement that would integrate the Wells College name and history into the Manhattanville community. We have developed additional teach-out agreements with these other teach-out partners: Excelsior University, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Keuka College, Le Moyne College, Mercy University, and SUNY Brockport.
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