According to a letter shared with students, staff and alumni, Siena Heights University will shutter after the 2025-2026 academic year.
“The reality is that colleges and universities across America have been impacted by shifts in demographics, declining enrollment, and rising costs,” wrote SHU President Douglas Palmer in a letter June 30. “It is just not possible to continue beyond this next year. We’re not the first college and university to close, nor will we be the last.”
The university is working on a list of academic partners who will accept students with full academic credit, according to the letter.
“We look ahead to the next academic year planning all the activities one would normally get, including athletics, residential life, and great events that we share with our alumni and entire community,” Palmer wrote, adding: “More information will be available in the ensuing weeks and months.”
Siena Heights University graduates gather in Trinity Garden prior to the commencement ceremony Saturday May 6, 2023.
Palmer said the university will work with faculty and staff to “ease the transition into the next chapter of your career.”
“We understand that this is going to be a painful time,” he added.
SHU, a Catholic institution, was founded in 1919 by the Adrian Dominican Sisters.
“For 105 years, Siena Heights University has been a beacon of light in a world sometimes cast in darkness,” Palmer read. “The spirit of Siena Heights will continue long after the institution itself closes its doors because it lives in every graduate, faculty member, and staff person who has been on campus — whether in-person or online.”
Statement from Adrian College
In the hours following the announcement, Adrian College President Jeffrey Docking acknowledged the impending closure of SHU.
“While our institutions have maintained distinct identities, we have long shared a spirit of mutual respect and cooperation,” Docking wrote in a statement. “Over the years, Adrian College and Siena Heights University have partnered on numerous initiatives in service to our city, our region, and the greater good. These collaborations have enriched our institutions and strengthened our community.”
Docking shared his support for students, facility and staff at SHU.
“In the spirit of that partnership, Adrian College stands ready to assist during this challenging time,” Docking said. “… In times of uncertainty, it is our unity that defines us. (Our) community remains dedicated to the well-being of our city and all who call it home.”
Boosted enrollment and budgetary woes
In 2024, SHU set a record for the most incoming students at the school’s Adrian Campus, with 445 learners starting their undergraduate education. More than 100 of them were served by SHU’s Brain Gain Program, a tuition-free guarantee for eligible Michigan high school graduates designed to keep students in-state.
But since then, the school has faced budgetary setbacks and a lawsuit.
Debi Andrews, former chief financial officer at SHU, filed her lawsuit in April in U.S. District Court, claiming the university fired her in August in retaliation for encouraging a coworker to file a sexual discrimination claim against Palmer, and for refusing to participate in potential fraud and other misconduct.
The lawsuit named the school, former HR Director Fran Johnson, and Palmer as defendants. In her filing from attorney David Nacht of Ann Arbor, Andrews said she was hired as Siena’s CFO in February 2024. Her first task was to develop a balanced budget for the university. Andrews was aware when she was hired, she said, that SHU had “extensive budgetary issues” and “significant changes” needed to be made. Andrews said she presented multiple ways to balance the budget to the school’s board of trustees.
The lawsuit points to problems including, but not limited to, “improper check requests by coaches from fundraising accounts to compensate themselves, members of their staff, and (on one occasion) a family member; and improper labeling of expenses as student expenses that were actually for personal use.”
Later during her tenure, Andrews said, she opposed SHU’s proposed budget, telling Palmer the proposal wasn’t based on sound accounting and saying she wouldn’t lie to SHU’s board or donors about what the school had or hadn’t done to secure funding.
According to court records, SHU was given until June 23 to respond to the lawsuit. A response had not been posted as of June 30.
“While we are unable to discuss the specifics of pending litigation or personnel matters, we stand by the personnel decisions made following a thorough and careful review of the situation,” SHU wrote in a statement to The Daily Telegram in April. “The university followed established protocols and remains committed to maintaining a safe, respectful, and accountable work environment.
“Siena Heights University’s focus remains on supporting our campus community and continuing to fulfill our educational mission.”
— Cassidey Kavathas is the politics and court reporter at The Holland Sentinel. Contact her at ckavathas@hollandsentinel.com. Follow her on Twitter @cassideykava.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Siena Heights University in Adrian announces closure amid budget woes
