Christian Aycock
ENGL 1102 328
Prof. Weaver
4/25/2023
Why are Liberal Art Colleges losing their value and closing? What does this mean for Education in America? How does this affect Higher Ed in America?
Liberal Art Colleges have been around for a long time and generally emphasize small class sizes and a curriculum centered around humanities, arts, social sciences, and natural sciences. These colleges mean a lot to students but now they are starting to close down and affect education not just for the state but all around America. Some of the reasons why this is happening is because of the 2020 pandemic, the cost of the college, and the enrollment of students within the college. These colleges are important because they mean something to students as well.
Liberal art schools closing is a big factor in college and undergrad students wanting these degrees play a big role in the topic. In the article, “Why Art Schools Are Disappearing” from the FEE Freeman Article (2019), Michael J. Pearce, talks about art school’s impact on students and why they are important. The article states that “Art programs need to teach students the skills they need to live a life in the art of their time. The reason CTEC and the ateliers are thriving is that they are teaching practical skills very, very well (Pearce 1).” Art schools can give students great benefits such as creativity and skills in the arts. The article also says, “But creativity does not lie in self-indulgence. Creativity grows from mastering a domain. True creativity is born after skills become second nature, not before (Pearce).” Students going to liberal arts schools master the skill they have so they can build upon it and because of that it increases education rates in America.
Not only do liberal art colleges help students learn, but they also have to run a certain way to function. An essay called “Art School Stakeout.” Inside Higher Ed. (2019). Rick Seltzer, talks about art colleges and how they work, and how they help students. It says, “Meanwhile, art schools remain capital-intensive operations to run, as supplies, equipment, small class sizes, and generous faculty-to-student ratios keep expenses high. But art schools have also been under pressures that cut across the higher education landscape and are bearing down on many liberal arts colleges. Population and demographic shifts are changing where high schoolers are graduating in the greatest numbers, who those students are, what they can pay, and what they value in a college education. And as the cost of providing students with a good education rises annually, many small institutions struggle to keep costs in line without the benefits of efficiencies of scale (Seltzer).” This gives more insight into what goes into these liberal art colleges and how when they start to close, it can put people out of a job and change lives.
In addition to colleges changing lives, the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic has most definitely changed college life and closed down schools. A report from Inside Higher Ed called, “More colleges will likely face closure 2023 experts say” (2023). Josh Moody helps explains how Covid-19 changes college. The report says that “While many of the colleges that announced closures last year cited the coronavirus, in part, for putting them out of business, experts note that federal government funding during the COVID-19 pandemic may have kept many institutions alive. Now that the spigot of federal relief funds has been shut off, higher education observers believe that other embattled institutions may ultimately succumb to closure, a path that many were on prior to the pandemic (Moody).” This says that colleges and universities could have been forced to close prior to the pandemic because of cost and the colleges that have been trying to stay open are getting funded by the government to still provide education for these college students.
Colleges and schools give out many things to help students but they also can’t control what happens if something. In the article, Liberal Arts Colleges in Crisis.” from the Capstone Wealth Partners site (2020). Joe Messinger, talks about why colleges and universities closing and what parents of students should do. Ever since 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic has affected many people and Messinger says that tuition is the main reason why small liberal arts schools are losing their value and are closing. Messenger states that “Even before COVID-19, demographics were working against them, with the birth rate dropping to 13% after the recession, the number of college-bound high schoolers is shrinking. Without those tuition dollars flowing in, colleges cannot stay open. They do not have other sources of funding. Many are selling real estate or laying off personnel and cutting salaries (Messenger 1).” This serves as a serious problem for students and colleges in America. This could mean that many students would not be able to get the best possible education from the college they choose for their career path and overall could ruin their lives.
Many closings have happened within the last 5 years and they have ruined lots of student’s lives but because of this, it affects people later down the road, Another article, “PROOF POINTS: 861 colleges and 9,499 campuses have closed down since 2004.” from The Hechinger Report (2022). Jill Barshay, talks about the overall number of colleges and universities that have closed down in America and how this affects students. Barshay states that “Higher education administrators point out that it’s equally important to monitor individual campus closures. The closure of a branch campus can also leave students without good, nearby options for completing their degrees even when the parent institution is still operating branches elsewhere (Barshay).” Students going through college closures can be forever impacted and because of this, it shows that these small liberal art colleges really can change a student’s life in the long run. The report also states,” More than 60 percent of the students at a shuttered campus became college dropouts, adding to the large pool of U.S. adults who have student loans and no degree. “Their schools’ closing effectively closes doors on the student’s educational dreams,” said Shapiro. “It is a serious hardship for the students (Barshay).” This serves as a big problem for both college students and liberal art schools.
Not only do students with loans and no degrees have no college, but they also get financial problems. In the article, “Cazenovia College Closes, In a Possible Harbinger for Similar Schools.” from Diverse Education (2022) John Edelman, describes a story of a 199-year-old liberal art college in upstate new york that announced its closure after its 2022 spring semester. The article talks about how the students first felt about hearing the news and what the students endured further into the year. Edelman talks about the financial problems the school had and how the student enrollment rate affected the college. Edelman says that “Students and faculty became aware that Cazenovia might have to close when it defaulted on a $25 million bank loan earlier this fall. But the college’s financial problems had been building for years. In recent years, the student body had decreased 40% from a peak of nearly 1,000, a product of declining college enrollment rates across the country (Edelman).” Enrollment in schools and money problems help these small liberal art colleges close which is not a good sign.
So the main reason why these colleges are closing is because of the financial problems they face, the 2020 Pandemic that affected not just college students but the world, and also the number of students they admit and enrolment problems they face. One way I suggest how we can change this is by speaking out about the issue. This issue needs to be dealt with and the people around you can help. Your voice can change the way we see anything and joining together to help can take education in America very far.
Work Cited
Michael J. Pearce. “Why Art Schools Are Disappearing:” FEE Freeman Article. 01 June 2019. https://fee.org/articles/why-art-schools-are-disappearing/
Rick Seltzer. “Art School Stakeout.” Inside Higher Ed. 06 February 2019. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/02/07/art-schools-show-signs-stress-what-can-liberal-arts-colleges-learn
Josh Moody. “More colleges will likely face closure 2023 experts say.” Inside Higher Ed. 18 January 2023. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2023/01/19/more-colleges-will-likely-face-closure-2023-experts-say
Joe Messinger. “Liberal Arts Colleges in Crisis.” Capstone Wealth Partners. 26 August 2020. https://capstonewealthpartners.com/liberal-arts-colleges-in-crisis/
Jill Barshay. “PROOF POINTS: 861 colleges and 9,499 campuses have closed down since 2004.” The Hechinger Report. 21 November 2022. https://hechingerreport.org/proof-points-861-colleges-and-9499-campuses-have-closed-down-since-2004/
John Edelman. “Cazenovia College Closes, In a Possible Harbinger for Similar Schools.” Diverse Education. 15 December 2022. https://www.diverseeducation.com/institutions/article/15304376/cazenovia-college-closes-in-a-possible-harbinger-for-similar-schools