Citing financial concerns, Hampshire College president Dr. Miriam Nelson announced in an email this week that the school will likely merge with another higher education institution by June.
It was unclear if the small, liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts known for its nontraditional curriculum and gradeless courses would admit a first-year class in the fall. Hampshire is one of the more well-known institutions in the country to announce a potential merger.
The announcement is unusual because the school’s finances do not appear as unstable as the finances at other schools that have not decided to merge.
Hampshire officials said they would prefer to be diligent about their future.
“We’re not going to have our head in the sand, and we’re really going to be proactive,” Nelson said.
To date, the schools in Massachusetts that have merged or closed its doors have been less selective and well-known, according to The Boston Globe.
Obtaining a merger partner by June would allow both schools to outline the transition before Hampshire’s 50th anniversary in June 2020, Nelson said.
