Hampshire College in Amherst will permanently close in the fall

Hampshire College in Amherst announced Tuesday it will permanently close its doors at the end of this year, citing financial difficulties.

"Hampshire's board made this decision only after exploring every possible alternative," Jose Fuentes, chair of the school's board of trustees, said in a statement. "The financial realities we face: declining enrollment, the weight of long-standing debt, and stalled progress on land development left us no other responsible path."

Founded in 1965, and opening its doors to students five years later as a campus determined to "radically reimagine liberal arts education," the small liberal arts college started facing significant financial headwinds seven years ago. That's when it explored merging with another school.

In a message posted to the college's website Tuesday, Hampshire President Jennifer Chrisler said despite its "herculean effort," the school faced "increasingly complex" financial pressures.

She wrote that the college's failure to "substantially grow enrollment" meant it faced "extraordinary cuts" to its operating budgets.

"The College no longer has the resources to sustain full operations and meet our regulatory responsibilities," she said.

As of the fall of 2023, more than 700 students were enrolled at the college, which then employed 55 full-time and eight part-time faculty.

Current final-year students will be able to complete their degrees through the fall semester, while incoming students who paid deposits to enter the incoming 2026 class will receive refunds, the school's statement said.

Current students who are not graduating this year will receive "access to transfer pathways at partner institutions," including Amherst College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College and the University of Massachusetts Amherst, among other places, the release said.

News of Hampshire's closure comes during a precarious financial time for several other small schools, including Anna Maria College, a small Catholic institution in central Massachusetts. Other recent closures in New England include Bay State College in Boston's Back Bay three years ago and Pine Manor College's absorption into Boston College in 2020.

Enrollment at Hampshire has swung dramatically. In 2019, the school admitted just 19 new first-year students, according to federal data, or nearly 260 fewer students than the incoming freshman class a year prior. By mid-2023, it appeared the school was headed for an upturn, admitting 259 new students by fall.

But that wasn't enough to sustain long-term operations. Last month, the school's accreditor, New England Commission of Higher Education, said Hampshire needed to "show cause" by its June meeting as to why it should not be placed on probation or lose its accreditation. The commission cited four factors for that decision, including struggling enrollment, inability to refinance a $21 million bond debt, "declining unrestricted endowment" and failed sale of a land parcel.

The commission's president, Lawrence Schall, told WBUR Tuesday they have been in "close contact" with the school "for a number of years now."

"They've always acted responsibly, they've always been transparent with us and always sort of had, the serving [of] their students at the top of their sort of priority list," he said.

"I think they've chosen to continue to act responsibly by making the decision they made today," Schall added.

Hampshire College reported a $24 million endowment at the end of last fiscal year, according to its most recent financial report, which also reflects the school faced a $3.7 million deficit.

Tuition is slightly above $60,000 for the current school year with the average financial aid package per student slightly over $51,000 in the 2023-24 school year.

Several well-known alumni lamented the school's closing in statements on the value of the institution, which offered self-directed study and no traditional majors or grading.

Filmmaker Ken Burns, a 1971 graduate, said in a statement provided by the school his Hampshire education helped him find his "voice as a storyteller in a way that would have been inconceivable at a conventional institution."

"This is an incalculable loss," Burns said, "but at the same time I know that Hampshire's ethos and probing way of seeing the world doesn't disappear when a campus goes quiet."

Gary Hirshberg, a 1972 graduate and co-founder of Londonderry, New Hampshire-based yogurt producer Stonyfield Organic, in a statement attributed the school's financial challenges to a "still relatively young alumni cohort and resultant underdeveloped endowment."

"Hampshire will live on through the countless innovative business, artistic, and educational enterprises and careers that this wonderful school inspired," he said.

Massachusetts' Commissioner of Higher Education Noe Ortega said in a statement the school's closure will have a "lasting impact."

"We recognize how deeply impactful this closure is for the entire Hampshire community, especially for students who must now determine their path forward," Ortega said. "We urge students to make full use of the supports that Hampshire is offering to guide those decisions and find the best path to completing their academic journey.