Finlandia University Closing: Not Many Options are Available to Communities When a College Closes

As recently reported by the Daily Mining Gazette, City Manager Mary Babcock notified the city council that there are liens placed on Finlandia properties by the Department of Education, which will likely slow down any sort of progress the state receiver made in selling properties. The liens make the Department of Education, Finlandia’s largest creditor, the first in line to benefit from the sale of property. Hancock has said that are working with the State Reciever, O’Keefe LLC’s Patrick O’Keefe, toward solutions, even considering possibly petitioning the Department of Education and Michigan representatives for help.

“Certainly the department could do it, you know, and the taxpayers would just not have that money back. It’s doable, but it’s a process, and you’re petitioning a bureaucracy to do something it has not done before, or doesn’t have the confidence to do.” – David Jesse

Colleges that close in small towns can have devastating impacts on local communities and economies. These institutions often act as important centers within communities as a place for events, debates, concerts and more.

“It can really devastate a place for a long time. Not only is it a lot of land, but when you think about the amount of money spent by students, and the parents, for parents weekend or bringing their kids up. That affects restaurants, and so you’ve got to find a way to build all of that back up. And in a lot of small rural areas, right, the college is the center of town. And now what you’re trying to do is, find a new center. So not only do you need that money, that was lost by all of the students leaving. And think of all of the faculty jobs that now leave town. And that goes beyond teachers, to the landscapers, the dining hall, those running administrative tasks. Those jobs are all gone as well. So now you are trying to find a new sort of town square.” – David Jesse

Keweenaw Report reached out for comment from President Pinnow and Patrick O’Keefe. We would like to thank the City of Hancock and Leadership Reporter David Jesse for their participation in this series. You can find parts one and two linked below, as well as a link to David Jesse’s The College that Mortgaged Everything published in the Chronicle of Higher Education, for those interested in reading his original coverage.

Finlandia University Closing: Financial Troubles Date back to the 1990’s

Finlandia University Closing: Liens by the Department of Education Will Make it Difficult to Sell Properties

The College that Mortgaged Everything by David Jesse of the Chronicle of Higher Education