Northland College is closing at the end of the school year

Northland College, a private school in Ashland, Wis., could not overcome its financial difficulties, and its Board of Trustees on Tuesday voted unanimously to close the liberal arts college at the end of the current academic year.

The move comes just a year after school leaders declared a financial exigency, a formal recognition of the dire financial crisis that needed immediate resolution.

Northland had operated at a sizable deficit annually for eight straight years, including in 2023 when expenses were $7 million more than revenue, according to tax filings on ProPublica.com.

In an effort to avert closure, the school just blocks from Lake Superior radically restructured its curriculum, cutting the number of majors from 40 to nine and reduced its enrollment for the 2024-25 school year from about 500 to 350. Some staff members were cut amid the school’s efforts to cut costs and raise revenue.

Supporters rallied around college and contributed a record $1.5 million in donations during a quickly arranged fundraising campaign last spring.

But it was not enough to save the 133-year-old institution known for integrating an environmental focus into its liberal arts curriculum.

“With declining enrollment and soaring costs, it takes more to operate the college than we raise in tuition,” said Ted Bristol, chair of the Northland College Board of Trustees. “Even after enacting aggressive measures to cut costs and raise revenues, Northland College has no sustainable path forward.”

In another move, the Board of Trustees also accepted the resignation of Chad Dayton, the school’s president since 2023. Barb Lundberg, vice president of academic affairs and dean of faculty, was named Northland’s interim president, the school said.

In a letter to the college community, Lundberg called the news “crushing,” and said each student will be paired with an academic adviser to guide them through options to complete their degrees, such as teach-out agreements with cooperating institutions or transfer to another college.