ST. LOUIS — It was an emotional day for Fontbonne University students, faculty and staff who learned about the closure of the liberal arts college Monday.

The move follows a decline in student enrollment and a shrinking endowment. The university had a $5.2 million deficit for fiscal year 2024.

The Fontbonne University Board of Trustees voted Sunday, March 10, to close and cease operations after the 2025 summer session.

"Fontbonne is a university and it's a work place, but it's a community, it's a family," President Dr. Nancy Blattner said. "What will be lost is that feeling of support where people know each other," she said, adding it is common for students share good news with her and other vice presidents and officials.

"The students will find a place, but they're not going to find necessarily a place quite like Fontbonne where there's that community and family feeling."

Fontbonne University has graduated more than 20,000 students over the course of its 100 years. Blattner said tears were shed when she broke the news to the faculty and students.

“I love our students and it broke my heart when I looked out onto the bleachers and I saw some of them crying and embracing each other,” she said. 

Blattner told students their dream of a college degree can still happen at another institution where "they feel at home."

"I really want our students to feel comfortable where they go to school," she said.

Blattner said she has cried herself about the closure and did not expected this would happen. 

Fontbonne will not admit a freshmen class in the fall of 2024, but will continue to teach classes through the summer of 2025 for students to complete their degrees.

To help cover tuition costs, Fontbonne will use its remaining $9 million endowment to provide all undergraduate students scholarships for the 2024 and 2025 summer sessions.

Support will be available to help each student either graduate from Fontbonne, transfer them to another institution or teach-out partner to complete their college education. Blattner said students who are eligble to graduate by the summer of 2025 from Frontbonne will have an individualized plan from their advisors to reach that goal. 

After May's graduation, Fontbonne will have 617 students that includes both undergrads and those in graduate programs. Blattner estimates about half of those students will be able to graduate by the 2025 summer session if they chose to stay. 

Fontbonne currently has 59 full-time faculty, 86 full-time staff members about 100 adjunct teachers. Blattner said severance packages will offered to all faculty and staff. Until then, faculty and staff will receive their contracts this week. 

Sophomore Alexus Kauble said she was surprised when she found out the news.

“I had my suspicions, but it was not expected,” Kauble told Spectrum News.

She would have graduated from Fontbonne’s nursing program in 2026.

“Now, I have a deadline to try to transfer and understand my options of where to go because I don’t think I can continue my first year of nursing school here,” Kauble said.

She said her first suspicion about the university after the news regarding its deficit budget and then she noticed dorm building issues not being addressed.

All students who do not complete their programs within six months of Fontbonne closing are automatically entitled to having their loans discharged, according to Blattner. She said it is too early to share how many students are eligible.

Another St. Louis institution is interested in maintaining the Center for Bosnian Studies. More information is to come, Blattner said.

In December, 21 programs and 19 faculty members were planned to be eliminated following the college’s budget deficit of $5.2 million for fiscal year 2024. The cuts would have saved more than $2.3 million.

At the time, Blattner said the university was in discussions with potential partners about strategic alliances, and possible mergers and acquisitions.

Since then, she noted that those possibilities “were not successful.”

After submitting a provisional plan for all programs to the Higher Learning Commission, it was learned that the university was not in a position to admit new students, according to Blattner.

She mentioned that Fontbonne had increasing relied on its endowment to meet operational shortfalls. That became an issue when enrollment dropped to less than 1,000 students as the university receives funding from tuition and its endowment. 

Some money has been invested in the upkeep and maintenance of the 100-year-old buildings, but Blattner said it is unfair to increase intuition on students who are financially strapped. 

In 2009, she said Fontbonne had 2,976 students. In 2020, there were appoximatley 995 students, noting that drop in enrollment has continued.

"For the first time in my life, people are questioning the value of higher education, which I never, ever anticipated, given that I came a family that did not have the opportunity for higher education," Blattner said.

"I also think that it's difficult for people to meet the needs of tuition, and that many students and their families are no longer willing to go into debt and take out loans, which I understand because the economy has been so unpredictable."

Fontbonne officials entered into a purchase agreement this past weekend with Washington University to acquire the 16-acre Clayton campus in the coming months. Talks began back in December, according to Blattner.

Washington University will lease the campus back to Fontbonne for a nominal amount until operations wind down.

"We are saddened that Fontbonne University’s Board has made the difficult decision to cease operations," a statement from Washington University says.

"Our institutions have enjoyed a long history of mutual support and friendship as neighbors and community partners. Fontbonne and Washington University have maintained close communication for many years, including recent discussions about how we can support Fontbonne as they considered their path forward. While we wish today’s circumstances were different, we are committed to our partnership with Fontbonne."

Washington University said it does not have definite plans yet with property. 

“We are so grateful to Washington University for this partnership which will allow Fontbonne to continue to teach classes through summer 2025,” Blattner said.