AMHERST — Hampshire College’s ability to handle the required teach-out of students who remain on campus this summer and fall, ensuring they will complete their degrees, could be impacted by a lack of financial resources to do this work, President Jennifer Chrisler wrote in a recent letter to the campus.
Chrisler told students, faculty and staff that there are questions about whether the college will have the money to undertake another semester. That semester would mostly be for so-called Division III students who would be able to graduate by the end of 2026.
“Our financial modeling shows that presently the college does not have enough available funds to cover the expected expenses for the teach-out,” Chrisler wrote.
But Chrisler cautioned that, while college leaders knew this would be difficult, there are obstacles that are in the way.
She wrote that the first obstacle is the ongoing analysis and negotiation over the unencumbered assets that could generate proceeds to fund operations. Another is a requirement for up-front payment from several vendors whose services are necessary for maintaining college operations. And the third obstacle is a mismatch between expected teach-out expenses and revenue modeling, based on cash received from fundraising and student enrollment.
College leadership since the April 14 closing announcement has prioritized supporting students as they conclude the academic year, identifying transfer opportunities and preparing for the teach-out.
“From the outset, the board and I understood that successfully implementing the teach-out would require careful financial planning, additional fundraising and close collaboration with our financial partners to ensure we had the resources necessary to fulfill our commitments,” Chrisler wrote.
The letter came out before Monday, a deadline for some students to consider transferring to another college or university, and as some faculty and staff are in the midst of deciding whether to remain at Hampshire until other opportunities arise.
“I can assure you, we are actively exploring options to secure the necessary financial resources in time for the teach-out, and we remain optimistic,” Chrisler wrote. “At the same time, we believe it is important to share this information now so that members of our community can make informed decisions about their future.”
Should the teach-out go as planned, there would be a 17:1 student-to-faculty ratio for Division III students, and the agreement calls for providing stipends for additional committee chairs and committee members to support all Division III students with two-person committees.
