Hampshire College announced Tuesday that it would close after nearly six decades of offering an unconventional liberal arts education, expanding and deepening the academic ecosystem of the Five College Area, and winding its way deep into the fabric of the Pioneer Valley.
Hampshire had been following a financial sustainability plan that was originally conceived as a five-year plan in 2019 after it almost closed. The goal was to increase enrollment, raise $60 million (it raised $55 million), and leverage the school’s land, among other assets.
“Despite this herculean effort, the financial pressures on the College’s operations have become increasingly complex, compounded by shifting external factors,” college president Jennifer Chrisler wrote in an email to the Hampshire community. “We are faced with the clear, heartbreaking reality that progress on each of these three key factors has fallen far short of what we had hoped.”
The announcement marks the end of another tumultuous chapter in the ongoing saga of the liberal arts school, which nearly shuttered in 2019, and is part of the Five College Consortium that also includes bigger and wealthier neighbors such as the University of Massachusetts as well as Amherst, Mount Holyoke, and Smith colleges.
Hampshire’s fight for survival reflects the higher education landscape more broadly, as schools struggle to convince enough families of the value of a four-year college degree. A new estimate forecasts that more than a quarter of private colleges could close or be forced to merge within the next 10 years.
Founded as an “experimenting college” in 1965, Hampshire has a history of contending with instability due to its relatively small size and limited resources, but its loyal alumni base — which includes documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, actress Lupita Nyong’o, and author Jon Krakauer — has rallied time and time again to try and keep the college going.
The New England Commission of Higher Education last month said it would require Hampshire to show cause in June as to why it shouldn’t be placed on probation or have its accreditation withdrawn over concerns the college may no longer be meeting the organization’s institutional resources standard.
NECHE based its decision on four factors: Hampshire’s enrollment drop from 842 in Fall 2024 to 747 in Fall 2025, a land sale that fell through, the college’s inability to refinance its $21 million bond debt by next September, and its waning unrestricted endowment for operational support.
Hampshire, located on approximately 800 acres in Amherst, missed its enrollment target by around half this fall, enrolling 168 new students instead of 300. The school was already under scrutiny by creditors and had been notified that institutional resources were not where they needed to be; a warning NECHE continued and affirmed.
In an interview earlier this year, Chrisler was clear that Hampshire was not considering a merger.
Hampshire will not enroll new students this fall and plans to refunded admitted students. A final commencement ceremony will be held at the end of the year.
Hampshire students not yet finished with their degree will be eligible to transfer to partner institutions, including Amherst College, Bennington College, Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Massachusetts College of the Liberal Arts, Mount Holyoke College, Prescott College, Smith College, the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
“Hampshire’s board made this decision only after exploring every possible alternative,” its board of trustees chair Jose Fuentes said in a statement. “Nearly every trustee is an alum, and we share in the community’s heartbreak.”
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
Brooke Hauser can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @brookehauser. Diti Kohli can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @ditikohli_.
