[T]he College of St. Joseph will keep its doors open despite concerns that a financial deficit and low enrollment could threaten the future of the school.
Earlier this month, President Larry Jensen told the college community that the school could close in September because of a loss of $5 million in revenues.
The trustees of the college voted Monday to back a plan proposed by President Larry Jensen to keep the college afloat, including marketing the history of the Catholic college, which is based in Rutland.
College officials want to promote the Clementwood Mansion on campus for weddings and other events. In addition, they plan to sell merchandise, enhance the tramautology department, open a child care system and pull in more funding from donors and foundations.
School officials said in a press release Tuesday that the school hoped to draw more students to the school with incentives, including scholarships and free Chromebooks.
Jensen said the college plans to boost enrollment to 235 full-time undergraduate students this fall.
As of May 1, there were only 95 undergraduates registered for the fall of 2018, and 85 of them are returning students. Jensen claimed on Wednesday there were 200 enrollees in the undergraduate program.
In an email to faculty and students on April 26, Jensen said the school’s financial troubles stem from declining enrollment. Last year, only 10 new students enrolled in the school when 250 were expected, he said.
Jensen said the incentives would put the school “in the black,” but declined to give specifics on how much the programs would cost and how much the programs would bring in.
“[In the black] is about as close as I am going to get for you,” Jensen said.
Last week, the board postponed a meeting because of a planned demonstration that administrators said would threaten the safety of students and board members.
Students questioned Jensen about where their money was going. Faculty members complained about a lack of information about the cause of ongoing deficits. In 2015, the school had a deficit of $2.6 million.
In October, the faculty gave a vote of no confidence in Jensen.
A. Jay Kenlan, the chair of the board of trustees, and Jensen said in a statement that it was not solely the board’s responsibility to keep the school afloat and that alumni volunteers, nonprofits, community members, students and business leaders “should do their part,” in recruiting, registering and making contributions.
“This is not a passenger vessel,” Kenlan said. “Every person on board is a member of the crew. We need all of you to help us achieve these goals.”
Jensen said the board’s support for the plan is the first step in securing a sustainable financial future.
“What’s really important to understand is that this vote didn’t solve our challenges,” Jensen said. “We have a lot of work ahead of us. But what we said is we are willing to take on these challenges and fight for the future of the college.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story referred imprecisely to last week’s postponement of a college board meeting. The decision was made by the board after administrators expressed concern over a planed demonstration.
