Antioch College to stay open

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Antioch College trustees agreed Saturday to keep the cash-strapped school open with the help of alumni fundraising, reversing plans to shutter the campus.

The plan is contingent on whether alumni and the school can meet fundraising goals over the next three years, board chairman Art Zucker said.

Antioch, which is known for its pioneering academic programs, will still close some buildings and dormitories and downsize the faculty to meet budget constraints, he said.

Trustees announced in June that because of declining enrollment, heavy dependence on tuition and a small endowment, the college would close after the spring term, reorganize and reopen in 2012.

Alumni formally asked the trustees last month to reverse the decision, saying they had raised $18 million primarily in pledges to keep the school going. They feared that temporarily closing the college would scare off badly needed donors and make it difficult to recruit faculty and attract new students when the school reopens.

Antioch, which costs $36,000 a year to attend, has an $18 million operating budget and a $2.6 million deficit. Enrollment is down to 230 students.

Alumni and school officials must raise $6.6 million in cash by Dec. 15, an additional $12 million by May 2008, an additional $26 million by June 2009 and an additional $19 million by June 2010, Zucker said.