There have been many Catholic colleges that have closed recently. These include St. Benedict’s College in Atchison, Kan., which closed in 1971; St. Joseph College for Women in Kenosha, Wis., which closed in 2018 because of declining enrollment; Notre Dame College in Manchester, N.H., which closed in the spring of 2018; Mount St. Clare College in Clinton, Iowa; Notre Dame of Elmira College became a university in 2016 and no longer is considered a Catholic institution; St. Michael’s College closed its doors on May 31, 2004; Lourdes University became a nonprofit independent college in 2009 and is no longer considered a Catholic institution.” Marian Court College stopped offering classes to new students after the spring 2016 semester and will close by 2020.”
Catholic Colleges That Have Closed
St. Benedict’s College in Atchison, Kan., closed in 1971.
St. Benedict’s College in Atchison, Kansas, was founded in 1858 and closed in 1971. It was a college for men and was located in Atchison, Kansas
St. Joseph College for Women in Kenosha, Wis., closed in 2018 because of declining enrollment
St. Joseph College for Women in Kenosha, Wis., closed in 2018 because of declining enrollment and financial difficulties. The college was founded in 1869 as a women’s college affiliated with the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Francis, who had operated an academy for women in Kenosha since 1853. It became a four-year institution in 1957 and gained university status in 1971 when it joined what is now known as the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, which includes 28 institutions located throughout North America. In 1993 it became one of only two Catholic women’s colleges remaining in Wisconsin; the other closed two years later due to falling enrollment and was later acquired by another Catholic institution that continues to operate there today under its original name (St Scholastica).
Notre Dame College in Manchester, N.H., closed in the spring of 2018
Notre Dame College, a Catholic college in Manchester, New Hampshire, closed in the spring of 2018. The school had operated for nearly 165 years. In its final year, Notre Dame had just under 1,000 students enrolled and offered bachelor’s degree programs in business administration and business management to undergraduates. The college also offered graduate degrees in education with specializations including teaching English as a foreign language; teaching Spanish as a foreign language; teaching English as all other languages (ESL); and teaching gifted and talented learners.
The reasons for Notre Dame College’s closure are varied but can be summed up by two main factors: financial troubles due to low enrollment numbers and declining student interest stemming from poor academic rankings over several years.
Mount St. Clare College in Clinton, Iowa, closed in 1974 and was taken over by Ashford University
Mount St. Clare College in Clinton, Iowa, closed in 1974 and was taken over by Ashford University.
Ashford University is a for-profit university that was founded in 1932 as an extension of the College of St. Teresa (now the College of Saint Benedict). In 1970, it became an independent institution known as Mount St. Clare College when it moved to Clinton, Iowa. The college closed in 1974 and its assets were transferred to Ashford University when it took control of the school’s curriculum and campus facilities under an agreement with the Sisters of Charity of Cincinnati who founded Mount St. Clare College in 1852 as a Catholic women’s college at which students could earn bachelor’s degrees while living on campus
Notre Dame of Elmira College in Elmira, N.Y., closed on June 30, 2008.
Notre Dame of Elmira College was founded in 1868, and it closed on June 30, 2008. It was a women’s college affiliated with the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, who still operate the neighboring Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica. The college was located in Elmira, New York
St. Mary-of-the-Woods College became a university in 2016 and no longer is considered a Catholic institution.
St. Mary-of-the-Woods College was founded in 1840 as a women’s college that would prepare students for careers in religious vocations. It became a university in 2016 and no longer is considered a Catholic institution.
In the year 2000, St. Mary’s College of Indiana merged with St. Meinrad Seminary and School of Theology (which had been founded in 1854) to form Saint Mary’s University, still located on its original campus near Terre Haute, Indiana.
St. Michael’s College in Colchester, Vt., closed its doors on May 31, 2004.
In 2004, St. Michael’s College in Colchester, Vt., closed its doors for good as a result of financial difficulties. The Roman Catholic college was founded by the Congregation of the Mission in 1802 and relocated to Northfield, Mass., before settling in Vermont.
St. Michael’s College boasted an illustrious history that included an original enrollment of 19 students who boarded on campus and worked off their tuition through manual labor—a practice that continued until the early 20th century.
Lourdes University became a nonprofit independent college in 2009 and is no longer considered a Catholic institution.
Lourdes University in Sylvania, Ohio, was founded in 1856 as a Franciscan college. It became a nonprofit independent college in 2009 and is no longer considered a Catholic institution.
In addition to its undergraduate programs, Lourdes offers a Master of Science in Nursing (MSN), MBA program and RN-BSN completion. As of fall 2015, the university had 1,749 total undergraduate students enrolled across its campuses in Sylvania; Toledo; Perrysburg; Cincinnati; Cleveland; Columbus and Lima, Ohio.
Marian Court College in Swampscott, Mass., closed on May 12, 2014 after enrollment dropped 25 percent in three years.
Marian Court College was founded in 1885 by the Sisters of Mercy and closed after a drop in enrollment reduced revenues.
The college was located in Swampscott, Massachusetts. It was a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Atlantic East Conference (AEC).
Trinity Mother Frances Rose Heights School of Ministry stopped offering classes to new students after the spring 2016 semester and will close by 2020.
If you’re interested in a Catholic education, the following list of colleges that have closed may be useful. While they are no longer operating, some of these schools offer either online or distance learning programs that allow students to earn a degree at their own pace.
You’ve probably heard about Trinity Mother Frances Rose Heights School of Ministry—a catholic school located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania—that stopped offering classes to new students after the spring 2016 semester and will close by 2020. The school was founded in 1858 as Trinity High School and is affiliated with the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament. If you’re looking for a similar educational experience from an institution that has had over 150 years’ worth of experience providing quality education, then this school might be right for you!
There have been many Catholic colleges that have closed recently
One of the reasons for the closure of these colleges was that they did not meet accreditation standards.
Accreditation is an important factor when it comes to quality assurance because it means the school’s curriculum, faculty and facilities have been reviewed by a third party in order to make sure they meet certain standards.
Closing
It is important to remember that just because a Catholic college closes doesn’t mean it can’t reopen as something new. These schools have had a long history of educating thousands of students and providing them with the tools they need to succeed in life after graduation.