How Do You Close A College? Important advice from former campus leaders

Henry Epp of Vermont Public Radio conducted an interesting interview with Yves Bradley, "From Records To Real Estate, How Do You Close Down A College?"  Bradley served as chair of the board of trustees for Burlington College in Burlington, VT when it closed in 2016.  He is also currently a vice president at Pomerleau Real Estate.

Bradley's urges any institution facing financial difficulty to put together a detailed plan for orderly closure.  He argues that is easy for trustees to fall into a trap of putting their energy into saving an institution while failing to consider closure as a possibility.

The article identifies four key areas of advice for trustees and administrators:

• Place a priority on preservation of student academic records. 
• Institutions have an obligation to mitigate the impact of a closure on their future education.
• Figure out a plan for disposal of real estate before a lender forecloses and you lose all control.
• Be a proactive since trustees have a responsibility to assure orderly closure.

The interview was posted March 12, 2019 and is just over 5-minutes in length.

Those interested in the process of college closure should also visit a previous College History Garden post, President of Saint Paul's College Recognized from December 2014 when Millard D. 'Pete" Stith Jr. was recognized by the Richmond Times-Dispatch Faces of 2014 for his leadership of Saint Paul's College in VA when it closed in 2013. Stith offered reflections on the closing of Saint Paul's and the responsibility for stewardship of remaining assets and records.