When Fontbonne University administrators announced last week that the school would close, the decision stunned students, alumni and others in the St. Louis region.
Many wondered how the 101-year-old Catholic institution had lost its way, how Fontbonne would manage the closure, how it would affect the region and those who depended on the university.
Here’s how the school and its students will move forward during the school’s final months.
What happened?
Fontbonne had been losing students and their tuition money for several years. According to school officials, enrollment for 2023 was around 900 undergraduates and graduate students combined, down around 70% compared with 15 years ago.
Fontbonne officials had tried strategies to save the school. For example, late last year they cut social work, fine arts and more than a dozen other academic programs and laid off employees. Fontbonne had sought to move forward as a partner with another university, but on March 10, Fontbonne's board decided to shut down.
Where will the students go?
Where students end up depends on how far along on their degrees they are. Fontbonne will stay open until the end of summer 2025. That means many upperclassmen will be able to finish their degrees before the school closes for good. Fontbonne is using what’s left of its endowment — about $9 million— to provide scholarships for students and let them take loaded-up summer schedules free of charge.
School administrators are helping students transfer or take part in special agreements designed to slot them into other schools with minimal disruption. For the most part, students who take advantage of these agreements will be automatically enrolled in a partner school, and their credits will transfer.
As of mid-March, Fontbonne has announced agreements with Quincy University, Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Missouri, the University of Olivet in Michigan and Buena Vista University in Iowa — all small, Christian colleges like Fontbonne.
What does this mean for the degrees of alumni?
Fontbonne is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, and higher education degrees remain legitimate if they were conferred by an accredited institution. If a person received a degree from Fontbonne, it will not “expire” or otherwise be invalidated once the school closes.
St. Louis University has agreed to be the custodian of student records after Fontbonne shuts its doors. Students will be able to get a copy of their transcripts or other information from SLU’s office of the registrar.
What will happen to the school’s property and land?
Fontbonne’s campus at Big Bend and Wydown boulevards abuts the south part of the Washington University campus. Wash U agreed to buy the 16-acre property, and Fontbonne President Nancy Blattner said that will help pay off the rest of the school’s debt.
Wash U has not announced plans for the property, though. And the bigger school hasn’t indicated that it would enter into an agreement that it would accept students from Fontbonne.
The school’s campus is old and needs a lot of upkeep, Blattner said earlier this month. The aging buildings contributed to financial shortfalls.
“This is a 100-year-old campus, this building that we're in, and the two that flank it, are 100 years old, and they have 100-year-old problems,” she said. “If any of you have ever lived in older homes that you've renovated, the upkeep can be significant.”
What will happen to university archives, property and memorabilia?
Fontbonne officials said they’re trying to find a partner to accept the university’s archives.
“I'm going to stay and make sure that there's an orderly closure,” Blattner said. “And I kind of envision going around to every spot on the campus, which if you can imagine that and finding all of those plaques and all of the religious memorabilia, crucifixes and things like that, and ensuring that they're handled appropriately.”
The school has updated its policies regarding school property. If someone wants to remove books, furniture or other school equipment, they’ll need written permission from the dean of students.
Are other small schools in danger of closing?
Administrators at Fontbonne and other schools have referred to an upcoming “enrollment cliff.” That means they’re looking at birth rates and anticipating the number of prospective students applying to schools to drop.
Blattner said other potential students are deterred by the cost of tuition and think that a college education won’t pay off in the job market. According to the Pew Research Center, more than 1 million fewer 18- to 24-year-olds are going to college now than did in 2011.
That means administrators at many smaller liberal arts or faith-based colleges are worried. There are several such schools in the region.
Lindenwood University in St. Charles has cut several varsity sports and laid off staff. In 2020, it shut down its Belleville campus.
Webster University has been dealing with well-publicized financial struggles recently — a judge earlier this year allowed the school to use previously restricted endowment funds to pay off loans — a decision some former donors didn’t like.
