Northland College Extends Deadline for Decision on Closure Again

Northland College has once again extended its self-imposed deadline to decide whether the school will remain open or not.

Last week, school officials announced they would postpone their final decision regarding the future of the school until this week. The postponement came as a new proposal to save the school gained traction, which would make changes to the academic programs offered by the school and eliminate some others.

Northland College is facing a well-documented budget shortfall, mainly as a result of declining enrollment. The school was forced to use their endowment to cover the operational costs of running the college beginning in 2020, and the endowment is essentially empty now.

School officials put out a call for donations, hoping to raise $12 million to remain operational. After nearly a month, they had only raised about $1.5 million.

Despite coming up short on fundraising, officials continued to search for another way forward. According to a Northern News Now report, a new plan approved by the Faculty Council and several major donations over the past few days have changed the landscape for what the school can do to remain open.

In light of the new possibilities that have opened up over the last week, Northland College officials announced they’re hoping to have a final decision made by the end of next week. Until then, the school will continue trying to raise the money they need to operate and work through plans to address both the short and long term budget issues it faces.