Formidable Founder and CEO Emily Parkhurst oversaw the deal to merge Cornish College of the Arts with Seattle University last year, a model that other colleges should consider. Photo by Winnie Westergard
What you probably already know: Higher education is a crossroads in the United States. Costs to deliver programs have skyrocketed while high tuition rates have students and parents questioning the value of a degree. Meanwhile, a demographic cliff has institutions competing over a smaller number of students. Add to that, chaos caused by changes to the regulatory environment, disruption from AI, mounting pressure from political leaders, and a national perception that a model that measures itself by the number of people it keeps out is problematic and in need of reform.
Why? Many accreditors have put colleges with fewer than 1,000 students on a watch list for closure. More than 500 colleges and universities have closed in the last decade, many without warning. Most recently, Hampshire College in Massachusetts announced it would close after the fall 2026 semester. This wreaks havoc for the students, many of whom then fail to finish their degrees. It also leaves more people unemployed. Unique, valuable programs are being lost. Many schools are just hanging on, one bad year from financial collapse.
What it means: For many institutions, particularly those with fewer than 3,000 students, a merger or acquisition is an appealing option. This, however, can be an intimidating process full of regulatory hurdles, expensive legal fees, and long, drawn out processes that simply can’t be completed before the institution is out of runway. Most previous examples of successful mergers took years to execute, and then more years to fully integrate. That long timeline has led to some deals simply falling apart before they hit the finish line. Additionally, many higher education leaders have little incentive to pursue a deal, as it often means they’re working themselves out of a job. A merged college, after all, no longer needs a second president, and the board is generally dissolved through this process
What happens now? But there are other options. Formidable Founder and CEO Emily Parkhurst led Cornish College of the Arts through a rapid merger with Seattle University that took 10 months to complete. Additionally, the Education Department is considering new rules that would facilitate faster mergers by streamlining the review and approval process, which used to take as long as three years. While higher education institutions are relatively new to the merger process — it’s just not part of the typical higher ed playbook — the industry is increasingly considering consolidation as an alternative to closure.
Formidable is offering a playbook for college boards of trustees and administrators to consider rapid mergers as an alternative to closure that is based on Emily Parkhurst’s experience. Download it here or share this with leaders you think might be interested.
