Birmingham-南部 College Announces Closure; Operations to Cease on May 31, 2024
Birmingham-南部 College Announces Closure; Operations to Cease on May 31, 2024
立即发布
Mar. 26, 2024
伯明翰南方学院将于2024年5月31日停止运营， following an 18-month effort to obtain bridge funding from a $30 million state loan program conceived and enacted to save the 168-year-old, 全国排名的文理学院. The College Board of Trustees voted unanimously today to close the College after a 2024 bill designed to amend the 2023 legislation that established the loan program failed to win sufficient support in the Alabama House of Representatives.
澳门新葡京官网社区-学生，教师，员工，家长，校友和朋友-在下午1点得到通知.m. today.
“这是学院悲惨的一天, 我们的学生, 我们的员工, 还有我们的校友,董事会主席Rev. Keith D. 汤普森83. “但对伯明翰来说，这也是糟糕的一天, 为了那些在我们校园周围生活了100多年的社区, 阿拉巴马州. “在这充满挑战的一年半里, 我们已经谈了很多关于澳门新葡京官网对阿拉巴马州每年超过9000万美元的经济影响, 其中的六千八百万就在我们的城市里,”
汤普森补充说. “But beyond that loss – which is enormous -- the loss of a nationally ranked liberal arts college that has contributed so much to this state and to the world – and still had so much to give – is incalculable.”
Daniel B. Coleman, 澳门新葡京官网第16任主席, said the College has exhausted every option to obtain the loan through the Distressed Institutions of Higher Learning Revolving Loan Fund, 由阿拉巴马州立法机关设立，并由州长签署成为法律. 凯·艾维，2023年6月. 最初的法案规定由州财政部长负责该计划, 澳门新葡京官网符合法定资格. 经过几个月的拖延，财政部长在2023年10月拒绝了这笔贷款.
2月6日，学院的立法冠军-参议员. 60年的杰博·瓦格纳和参议员. 罗杰·史密瑟曼(roger Smitherman)提出了一项修改2023年法案的法案. 比尔, 将贷款项目的管理移交给阿拉巴马州高等教育委员会, 增加了一层审查，以确保国家的立场, 设定贷款条款, 并规定了批准或拒绝的时间框架, 于3月5日在阿拉巴马州参议院通过.
3月20日，通过众议员的努力. 大卫·福克纳，众议院议员 & Means Education Committee approved a substitute bill that further strengthened the State’s position. 即便如此, subsequent conversations with House leadership confirmed that the bill did not have enough support to move forward.
在得到确认后，董事会会议定于今天举行. 而持有
学院春假期间的会议并不理想, doing so allowed time for trustees to review all options and for those who live outside of Alabama to arrange to be present. 2023年为贷款计划预留的3000万美元仍未使用.
Students First 澳门新葡京官网 has already begun planning for students who will be forced to transfer to other 机构. 他们的澳门新葡京官网奖学金不会跟随他们, and with housing in short supply at many colleges and universities both in-state and outside Alabama, 许多公司将面临后勤和财务方面的挑战.
“我们把学生放在第一位，我们将尽一切努力帮助他们找到最好的
继续他们的毕业之路，”教务长博士说. Laura K. Stultz说，他在学院的理学院工作了27年. “We are working with other 机构 – including those in the Associated Colleges of the South as well as some in-state colleges and universities -- on agreements that will help maximize the transfer of credits to keep them on track.”
信息已经分发给本周放春假的学生
计划确认后更新. 当学生下周返回校园时，将安排个别会议.
A small group of seniors who plan to complete their 澳门新葡京官网 degrees in summer 2024 will be able to complete their course requirements online and/or through agreements with other
机构.
平衡计分卡也将为员工提供尽可能多的帮助, 几乎所有人都将在5月31日之前流离失所, 其余的将在夏天陆续完成. Information has also been distributed to them and meetings will be scheduled in the coming days to provide individualized consultation.
“如果你是一所大学在寻找优秀的学生和教师，或者是一个雇主在寻找
他们是非常忠诚的员工，你找不到比这个校园里的人更好的了。”
汤普森说. “每当你引进新员工时，他们就是你所希望的.“给校友的额外信息, 在校生和准学生, 家庭, 教师, staff, 和学院的朋友将通过会议和平衡计分卡网站提供.
伯明翰南方学院背景
伯明翰南方学院成立于1918年，由两所卫理公会学校合并而成
南方大学，1856年在阿拉巴马州格林斯博罗特许成立.伯明翰学院(Birmingham College)于1898年在这座新兴的工业城市成立. 到1910年，伯明翰学院已经培养出了澳门新葡京官网的六位罗德澳门新葡京官网中的第一位.
在20世纪的最后25年里, 在任职时间最长的总裁的领导下，澳门新葡京官网保持了稳定的增长速度, Dr. Neal大褂. As he approached retirement in 2004, the 澳门新葡京官网 endowment stood at $122 million – adequate for its time. 他的继任者. 阿福雷克, 相信他可以将学院的入学人数增加50%到1%,800名学生通过重大资本投资. 波利克监督了一项激进的建筑计划, 增加leed认证的宿舍, 体育设施, 招生欢迎中心, 还有一个人工湖, 在其他项目中.
The implementation of these ambitious capital projects – and the assumption of large debt to fund them – coincided with two factors that led to a decade-plus-long financial struggle:
- 2009年金融市场的崩溃, 澳门新葡京官网遭受了2500万美元的捐赠损失.
- 2010年发现联邦学生财政援助预算存在重大错误, 每年的预算是4900万美元，而预算是500万美元.
这些因素导致数百万美元的预算削减，取消了5个专业和29个专业
教职员工的职位，与暂停教职员工的慷慨退休相匹配. The crisis triggered an additional $12 million draw on the endowment by the end of the 2009-2010 fiscal year. 波利克于2010年8月辞职.
战时总统
当创. Charles Krulak于2011年3月被任命为澳门新葡京官网第13任总裁, 他带来了在美国35年的职业生涯中磨练出来的技能.S. 在海军陆战队，包括在参谋长联席会议担任海军陆战队司令四年. That experience – which included two tours of duty in Vietnam and numerous commanding roles during times of international conflict – served him well as he tackled the crisis on the Hilltop. 到那时，澳门新葡京官网已经受到认证机构的制裁，并且负债累累.
在他的四年里，克鲁拉克专注于筹集足够的运营资金来维持学院
afloat. 他与幕僚长琳达·弗莱厄蒂-戈德史密斯(Linda Flaherty-Goldsmith)一起，重新制定了预算，以防止
进一步削减教职员工. 他于2015年退休, 他招募了自2010年以来最大的一批新生, 成功地使学院摆脱了其认证组织的制裁, and, 在很多人眼里, 拯救了学院.
但到克鲁拉克到来时，捐赠额已降至5300万美元, 在他任职期间，筹款工作主要集中在可支出的资金上. 在他到来之前, 许多捐助者被要求清算他们的捐赠，以便学院能够继续运作. 大多数人都同意，并期望澳门新葡京官网在可能的情况下恢复这些资金.
The College continued to draw too heavily on the endowment without successfully rebuilding what was lost in the financial crash or repaying what was borrowed from the endowment’s corpus. 克鲁拉克的继任者. 埃德伦纳德, 2016年6月，在任职一年后辞职, 第二天，琳达·弗莱厄蒂-戈德史密斯被宣布为总统.
在她近三年的总统任期内, Flaherty-Goldsmith successfully sought out a group of lenders who would buy 澳门新葡京官网’s debt from Regions at a deep-enough discount to reduce the overall college debt by $12 million, 这使每年的债务偿还减少了近100万美元. ServisFirst率先成为学院强有力的合作伙伴.
韧性计划
当丹尼尔·B. 科尔曼于2018年12月就任澳门新葡京官网第16任总裁，他看到了
通过30多年的金融行业经验来看待金融问题. Too-high draws on the College endowment to cover operating losses depleted what should be the institution’s most stable resource.
Coleman’s plan called for raising a new endowment large enough to fund at least 20 percent of annual operating costs. 留出时间来筹集资金, 澳门新葡京官网呼吁州议员利用每2美元的一小部分设立一个贷款基金.教育信托基金盈余80亿元.
阿拉巴马州立法机关通过了SB278 -高等教育陷入困境的机构
《澳门新葡京官网》得到了两党压倒性的支持. 尽管她
反对该计划的州长. Kay Ivey submitted executive amendments that were accepted by the Legislature with unanimous support in the Senate and a supermajority in the House. 艾维于2023年6月16日签署了这项法案.
该法案的构思和撰写是为了给学院提供3000万美元的生命线, providing operating funds for three years during which it could raise an endowment of up to $200 million to ensure its long-term financial stability. 2023年春天, 澳门新葡京官网’s Board of Trustees received assurances from legislative leaders supporting a measure to provide bridge funding that, 如果法案通过, the College would be positioned to borrow the $30 million in bridge funding required to keep it open.
学院根据这一保证作出承诺，包括招收学生和
填补关键教职员工岗位. 有超过4500万美元的承诺
私人捐助者对新的捐赠，将提供长期稳定，澳门新葡京官网公开
10月9日星期六，它启动了筹款活动. 14.
否认
虽然澳门新葡京官网符合贷款条件, provided two proposals in which the State of Alabama would have had first-security position on collateral more than sufficient to back the loan, a detailed plan under which it could achieve financial stability for the long-term and repay the state loan in a timely manner, 州财政部长在10月13日的一封信中拒绝了澳门新葡京官网的贷款, 邮戳日期为十月十六日，于十月十八日送达.
同一天，该学院向蒙哥马利县巡回法院提起诉讼，要求强制执行这一行动. The case was dismissed on October 25 due to the Alabama Constitution’s provision of sovereign immunity to state officials.
在伯明翰市的支持下，美国北阿拉巴马会议
卫理公会教堂和一些私人捐助者，学院避免了年中关闭. 然而，未来取决于从国家获得过桥贷款.
11月30日, representatives from the College’s Board of Trustees met with the Treasurer to try to move the process forward. 在那次会议上，第一安全职位再次由平衡计分卡提供. 同一天, two members of the Alabama Legislature met with the Treasurer and reiterated the first-security position on collateral valued at more than the requested loan amount. The offer was extended in writing in a letter from Coleman to the Treasurer dated December 8; a letter from the College’s primary creditor, ServisFirst银行, 是连接, attesting to the bank’s willingness to surrender its lien on the campus in exchange for adequate substitute collateral.
在12月13日的一封信中，财务主管再次拒绝贷款.
2月6日，学院的立法冠军-参议员. 60年的杰博·瓦格纳和参议员. 罗杰·史密瑟曼(roger Smitherman)提出了一项修改2023年法案的法案. 那个法案，它移动了
负责阿拉巴马州高等教育委员会贷款项目的管理, 增加了一层审查，以确保国家的立场, 设定贷款条款, 并规定了批准或拒绝的时间框架, 于3月5日在阿拉巴马州参议院通过.
3月20日，通过众议员的努力. 大卫·福克纳，众议院议员 & Means Education Committee approved a substitute bill that further strengthened the State’s position. 即便如此, subsequent conversations with House leadership confirmed that the bill did not have enough support to move forward.
3月26日, 学院董事会一致投票决定于5月31日停止运作, 2024, 168年后.