Endicott College Appears to Thrive during a Stressful Year

Interesting reporting by Emma Whitford of Inside Higher Ed, "A Pandemic Financial Success Story? Endicott College’s strength during the pandemic highlights the importance of diverse revenue streams. What might it teach other small private colleges?" 

We will hopefully see additional reporting on other institutions that have managed to take make needed changes and strengthen operations.

Whitford notes that an institutional press release indicates that the, "...endowment has grown to $119 million, no employees were laid off or furloughed during the pandemic, enrollment hasn’t wavered and the college maintained its study abroad program this academic year." 

Endicott College is located in Beverly, MA. It was founded by Dr. Eleanor Tupper and her husband, the Reverend Dr. George O. Bierkoe in 1939 to educate young women. Accreditation was granted in 1952 and the first baccalaureate class graduated in 1990. Endicott was coeducational after 1994 and the first graduate programs were introduced in 1996.

Successfully Navigating the Pandemic at Emmanuel College

Interesting article from the Global Sisters Report focusing on the response of Emmanuel College during the pandemic, "How a longtime Catholic college president is navigating the pandemic."

Sr. Janet Eisner, President of Emmanuel College in Boston "...credits the school's handling of the pandemic to faculty, staff and students — everyone but herself. Yet her colleagues say her ability to listen to every viewpoint then act decisively has allowed the school to weather the crisis so far."

I also found it interesting that "Eisner...has been at the helm of Emmanuel since taking office in 1979, 41 years ago, making her both the longest currently serving female college president and the longest serving current president of a Catholic college or university.

Emmanuel College is located in Boston, MA and celebrated the centennial of its founding in 1919 by the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur as the first Catholic college for women in New England.

Curriculum of Connection...Tools for Talking Across Differences

Dr. Paula Johnson, president of Wellesley, authored an interesting and important article for the Boston Globe on September 6, 2019, "Speaking with the enemy 101."  

Johnson writes about the need for a Curriculum of Connection and describes higher education's role in providing students "...with the tools they need to talk across difference — politics, race, economic class, and the myriad other fault lines of 21st century life. To prepare them to “talk to people back home” — as well as far beyond."

Nichols College is Featured for Steps Taken to Thrive in Competitive Environment

WGBH in Boston recently posted a five-minute segment produced in cooperation with The Hechinger Report, "As Small Private Colleges Keep Closing, Some Are Fighting Back," featuring interviews with students and faculty of Nichols College in Dudley, MA.

The text of the post offers additional information including specific recommendations offered by Nichols president, Susan Engelkemeyer.

You can also access a post on The Hechinger Report website, "As small private colleges keep closing, some are fighting back. The first step to a survival strategy: acknowledging that there’s a problem."

Nichols traced its roots to Nichols Academy founded in 1815. It closed in 1909 and later was reorganized as Nichols Junior College in 1931. The name changed to Nichols College of Business Administration in 1958 and then to Nichols College in 1971.

Emphasis on the Sciences at Assumption College

The Worcester (MA) Business Journal published a very good article on Assumption College and its renewed focus on science, "Assumption, the science university."  Reporter Grant Welker provides details for several new majors and how the institution is working to respond to changing student needs and interests.

Assumption College was founded in 1904 Augustinians of the Assumption. It is located in Worcester, MA and enrolls just over 2,000 undergraduate students.

Successful Small Higher Education Institutions Featured in Future U Podcasts

Future U, Jeff Selingo's and Michael Horn's podcast, offers several interesting episodes for those who follow smaller institutions: #11 features Paul Quinn College president Michael Sorrell; #17 is an interview with Pat McGuire, president of Trinity Washington University; and they feature Helen Drinan, president of Simmons University in episode #28. 

A Student Perspective on College Life in a "Tiny, Secluded Town"

The Amherst Student published and interesting post, "Why the Grass is Truly Greener on Our Own Side at Amherst," written by Esther Song, Class of '21, and a contributing writer.  Song offers reflections summarizing what it is like to be a student at Amherst College in Amherst, MA.

Song begins by commenting on the human warmth and connections associated with a small student population where everyone on campus knows everyone else.  She then notes some key benefits in the small town environment where the "...town’s secluded location guarantee a noise-free, tourist-free and pretty much anything-new-or-distracting-free environment, it also means we have the pleasure of getting to know our town..."

Amherst enrolls roughly 1,800 students and the community of Amherst has a population of just under 37,000.

Small Colleges and Boutique Hotels

Several small colleges are mentioned in an interesting post written by Laura Powell, "Luxury Boutique Hotels Become Part of the College Experience," published on the Skift website in early December 2017.  Powell interviewed college administrators and representatives of The Olympia Companies that have developed are operating hotel properties for Oberlin, Swarthmore, and Rollins College.

The Alfond Inn in Winterpark, Florida is owned by Rollins College and is the largest of the featured hotels with 112 rooms.  Powell indicates the property is exceeding expectations with an occupancy rate of 90% and estimated $50 million in annual revenue.  She also notes that any net profits are used for scholarships.

The Hotel at Oberlin with 70 rooms was developed by Smart Hotels of Shaker Heights, OH,  It has been open just over a year and meets U.S. Green Building Council LEED Platinum requirements by incorporating solar, geothermal, and radiant heating and cooling.  

The Inn at Swarthmore opened in May 2016 and is the smallest of the three with 40 rooms.  

Powell also briefly mentions Colby College is finishing a boutique hotel as part of a broader downtown redevelopment effort in Waterville, Maine.  You can read more details in an article, "Colby College picks Portland firm to build boutique hotel in Waterville," on the Portland Press Herald website with reporting by Amy Calder.

The Williams Inn at Williams College in Williamstown, Massachusetts offers 116 rooms.  The property was initially built in 1974 and was acquired by the college in 2014.

Please leave a comment below if you know of other small colleges that are developing and operating hotels on their campuses or in the communities they serve.

Partnership offers Path to Degrees for Single Mothers

The Christian Science Monitor offers an excellent article by Josh Kenworthy, "First US 'microcollege' helps single moms become liberal arts graduates."  Kenworthy focuses on a partnership between Bard College and The Care Center of Holyoke, MA that provides a path toward a two-year liberal arts associates degree using a cohort model.

Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, NY has a rich tradition of working with other organizations to expand access to the liberal arts and humanities.  The college has affiliated programs in New York, Chicago, Massachusetts, Washington, Oregon, Texas, Washington D.C., Seattle, and Arizona.  In addition, Bard has assisted other colleges and universities in establishing neighborhood humanities courses through the support of a Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (F.I.P.S.E.) grant.

The Care Center strives to transform the lives of students and the community through a rigorous program that combines the arts, education, and culture.

Trevecca Nazarene University and Eastern Nazarene College Explore Possible Merger

The Tennessean reports in "Trevecca sets stage for merger with Massachusetts college," that trustees of Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville and Eastern Nazarene College in Quincy, MA signed a memorandum of understanding to explore a possible merger of the two institutions.  Trevecca's president and executive vice president for finance and administration will serve similar roles at Eastern Nazarene.  

Trevecca Nazarene was founded in 1901 and enrolls 3,221 students.  Eastern Nazarene traces its roots to 1900 and the founding of Pentecostal Collegiate Institute in Saratoga Springs, NY.  Eastern Nazarene enrolls 1,100 students.

Consortia Offer Variety of Successful Models for Colleges and Universities

Nina Berler authored a guest column for Forbes on February 1st, "College Consortia: A Cooperative Model that offers Students Greater Value."  Berler focuses on activities of the: Five College Consortium, The Claremont Colleges, Atlanta University Center Consortium, and Quaker Consortium.

Another article on consortia was posted by University Business last March, "Better together: Colleges form academic alliances," written by Sherrie Negrea.  In addition to Five Colleges, Negrea offers information on several other consortia, including the: Pennsylvania Consortium for the Liberal Arts, Southeastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education, and Colleges of the Fenway.

If you are interested in learning more about the possibilities for consortial relationships, consider contacting the Association for Collaborative Leadership (ACL).  ACL is dedicated to developing leadership capabilities and advancing collaboration in higher education.

ACL offers a listserv and links to a wealth of useful resources, tools, or events.

Women's Colleges Featured in Vanity Fair

Lisa Birnbach's article in the May issue of Vanity Fair, "How Sweet Briar Came Back from Financial Ruin and Proved Women's Colleges Are Still Relevant," focuses on nine of the 42 women's colleges.  Her article includes brief sketches of the selected institutions and highlights strengths and unique characteristics.  The institutions with their locations are included in the table below.  Birnbach concludes by noting that the institutions are increasingly attractive alternatives for many young women.

Institution Name	City, State	2015-2016 Enrollment
Barnard College	New York, New York	2,536
Bryn Mawr College	Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania	1,346
Hollins University	Roanoke, Virginia	750
Mills College	Oakland, California	867
Mount Holyoke College	South Hadley, Massachusetts	2,215
Smith College	Northhampton, Massachusetts	2,500
Stephens College	Columbia, Missouri	667
Sweet Briar College	Sweet Briar, Virginia	250
Wellesley College	Wellesley, Massachusetts	2,344

Olin College of Engineering's Approach to Engineering Education is Featured

Sarah Sloat authored an interesting article on Olin College of Engineering that was published on January 7, 2016 by Inverse.  Olin is a non-profit institution in Needham, MA with enrollment of 350 students.  It is also a young institution with the inaugural freshman class starting in the fall of 2002.

Olin was founded to offer an innovative approach to engineering education and to also serve as a resource for other colleges and universities across the world seeking to broaden and rethink their educational approaches and learning environments.  Sloat starts by noting the success of Olin in terms of rankings and references A Whole New Engineer, written by David Goldberg, Mark Somerville, and Catherine Whitney.

Community Colleges Play Large Role in Towns they Serve

Tom Snyder, President of Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana, explores the multi-faceted roles of community colleges in "Contributions of Community Colleges to Cities and Towns."  The post in Huff Post College was published September 18, 2015.  In addition to mentioning recent initiatives at Ivy Tech, Snyder also highlights programs at Cape Cod Community College, Yakima Valley Community College, and Lewis and Clark Community College.

Small Colleges Sharing IT

Lasell College in Newton, MA is featured in an article for Campus Technology on August 27, 2015.  David Raths reports in "Extending IT Collaboration Beyond Traditional Higher Ed Borders," on Lasell's sharing of IT resources with an area nursing home and with Pine Manor College.

Successful Initiatives at Becker College Featured

Recent changes at Becker College in Worchester, MA are highlighted in "Becker College Reverses its Course," an article by Catherine Morris at Diverse Issues in Higher Education.  Morris focuses on the leadership of President Robert E. Johnson and successful campus initiatives designed to increase efficiency and grow enrollment.

Can small struggling colleges benefit from greater recognition of their religious identity?

Adam Wilson addresses the issue of Catholic identity and the closing of Marian Court College in a June 25, 2015 post for the National Catholic Register.

Wilson includes a link to a more extensive report he also authored for The Cardinal Newman Society  where he contrasts the emphasis on Catholic identity evident at Marian Court College with the approaches of two other small institutions, Christendom College in Front Royal, VA and Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, CA.  Marian Court enrolled 266 and decided to close.  In contrast, Thomas Aquinas with 366 students and Christendom with 433 appear comfortable articulating missions that depend in part on their small size.  

Lauren Baker Recognized for Service at Marian Court College

Lauren Baker, First Lady of Massachusetts, is featured in an article on Itemlive.com for her service on the Marian Court College board of trustees and her volunteer work for the institution.  Baker also emphasized the important role of the institution for the students it serves and the broader community in her comments for the reporter, Steve Krause.

Marian Court College is located in Swampscott, MA and was founded in 1964 by the Sisters of Mercy as Marian Court Secretarial School for Women.  Marian Court College now offers baccalaureate degrees and enrolls just under 300 students.