Birmingham-Southern College stated on Tuesday that it will stop operating at the end of May after the school was unable to get a loan from the state.
The college’s board of trustees made a decision on Tuesday to shut down the school after being told that a bill to change the state program for loans to higher-education institutions did not have enough support in Alabama’s House of Representatives.
Rev. Keith D. Thompson, the chair of the board, expressed, “This is a tragic day for the College, our students, our employees, and our alumni,” in a statement. “But it is also a terrible day for Birmingham, for the neighborhoods who have surrounded our campus for more than 100 years, and for Alabama.”
The school’s president, Daniel B. Coleman, mentioned that the college explored every option to get a loan through the Distressed Institutions of Higher Learning Revolving Loan Fund, which was created after being signed into law last June. While the school applied for the loan, it was turned down in October 2023 by state Treasurer Young Boozer III.
The school claimed that it met all the necessary qualifications but still didn't get the loan.
In an attempt to have the loan approved, state Sens. Jabo Waggoner (R) and Rodger Smitherman (D) introduced a bill last month to change the law that created the loan program. If the bill passes, the loan program would be managed by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education instead of the treasurer.
The state Senate approved it, but the school said it didn't have enough support in the state House. Boozer had opposed the new bill, as reported by AL.com. Boozer warned during a state House committee hearing earlier this month, as quoted by the outlet, “My warning to this committee, the public, and especially to taxpayers, if you loan it, you will own it.”
Birmingham-Southern College, a private liberal arts institution, was founded in 1918 by the merger of two Methodist colleges. In its Tuesday announcement, the college said it has made plans for students who will be forced to transfer to other schools and is helping employees who will be displaced by May 31.
Birmingham-Southern College stated on Tuesday that it will stop operating at the end of May after the school was unable to get a loan from the state. The college’s board of trustees made a decision on Tuesday to shut down the school after being told that a bill to change the state program for loans to higher-education institutions did not have enough support in Alabama’s…
