Burlington College announces it will close next month

According to the Chronicle of Higher Education,  the college's president, wife of Senator Bernie Sanders, made a bad financial move when she had the school purchase property from the local Catholic archdiocese some six years ago.  In April of this year, the local bank yanked the college's line of credit, pushing it over the brink.

Mrs. Sanders's successor resigned suddenly in 2014 in the midst of student protests.  Main complaints against her seem to have revolved around mishandling of finances.

The New England Association of Schools and Colleges has placed the college on probation, making for a perfect storm.

The official college statement is as follows:

In recent years, Burlington College has struggled under the crushing weight of the debt incurred by the purchase of the Archdiocese property on North Avenue. Through sales of property, the College has worked to reduce this debt to a manageable level.
Since July 2014, the College has been on probation with its accrediting agency, The New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) due to not meeting its financial resources standard. The Federal Department of Education allows a college only two years of probation. Hence, we anticipate notice from NEASC that we have not met the Commission’s financial standard, and, therefore, our accreditation will be lifted as of January 2017, and the College will not be able to award academic credit after this time.
These hurdles are insurmountable at this time.
On May 13, 2016, the Burlington College Board of Trustees voted unanimously to close the College’s programs effective May 27, 2016.
The higher education community has extended their support to the College and all of our current students will be able to continue their education at a neighboring college and graduate as scheduled. Newly deposited students for fall 2016 will also be welcomed by colleges within Vermont, of their choosing.

It is with a great sense of loss to the educational community that Burlington College’s progressive and unique educational model will no longer be available to students.



So what to make of this?  Is it the crest of the fifth wave breaking over private higher education?  Or merely a rare example of such blatant mismanagement and bad judgment as to be an aberration?  Or perhaps a bit of both?

Another interesting question: Will it impact Bernie Sanders's run for the presidency?  My answer to that one is that Bernie's wife could hardly be more of an embarrassment than Hilary's hubbie.  She'd really have to go some to top him.