Cardinal Stritch University, facing a 'no-win situation,' closing at the end of this semester

Cardinal Stritch University is closing its doors for good at the end of spring semester, a casualty of the demographic and financial forces haunting most every other higher education institution in Wisconsin.

The decision announced Monday leaves hundreds of employees without jobs and forces an untold number of students to enroll elsewhere if they want to finish their degrees. The closure also leaves the Milwaukee region mourning the loss of a Catholic college committed to serving students since 1937.

"We're all devastated by this development, but after examining all options this decision was necessary," President Dan Scholz said in a video announcement. "I wish there was a different path we could pursue. However, the fiscal realities, downward enrollment trends, the pandemic, the need for more resources and the mounting operational and facility challenges presented a no-win situation."

The university Board of Trustees recommended the closure to the Sisters of St. Francis of Assisi after determining the Fox Point school "could no longer provide high-quality educational experiences our students deserve," he said. The Sisters accepted the recommendation and set the closing in motion, Scholz said.

The announcement came as a shock to the close-knit campus, and to its broader community.

Dawn Wankowski, an assistant professor in biology at Cardinal Stritch, hugged and consoled students Tuesday morning. She’s worked on the campus for 21 years and said staff found out about the closure at the same time as students, at about 5:30 p.m. Monday.

Student Jumanah Almohsin said the situation seems too surreal to believe just yet.

“This is a beautiful place with amazing professors, and I guess I just want to hold out hope that something can be done to save the university because a lot of us don't want this place to go,” she said.

Almohsin’s not aware of any movement that could lead the university to reverse its decision but she said she’s willing to donate if it means she could stay at Cardinal Stritch.

“It’s devastating for everyone here,” said Philip Jakobsson, a student who plays on the school's soccer team. Jakobsson said he had considered transferring to a different university and even submitted an application, but he was leaning toward staying at Cardinal Stritch next year. That ended Monday evening.

Now, he's hoping the other university admits him; otherwise, he will have to head back home to Germany.“A lot of people were crying,” Jakobsson said. “At this university, I would say everyone has such a familiar relationship to everyone.”

As the school winds down its operations, Scholz said, Cardinal Stritch will offer some services this summer to help students close to completing their graduation requirements. The school is also finalizing partnerships with local universities for students seeking to transfer their credits.

Commencement will still be celebrated at the Wisconsin Center this spring.

School struggled with declining enrollment, financial difficulties

Cardinal Stritch celebrated its 85th anniversary last summer. But like many smaller, private schools, it relies heavily on a steady flow of tuition dollars to keep its doors open.

The school enrolled more than 6,000 students in the year before the Great Recession hit in December 2007. But filling seats is much more difficult for institutions these days. Cardinal Stritch was up against the same headwinds facing most institutions in this state: fewer high school graduates to compete for, and fewer of those graduates choosing to go on to college.

Since 2009, federal education data show Cardinal Stritch enrolled fewer and fewer students every year. The fall of 2021 brought 1,365 students to campus.

Tax filings show Cardinal Stritch operated in the red for seven of the last eight years, with losses ranging from roughly half a million dollars to $9.2 million. The school cut expenses from $70 million in fiscal year 2013 to $43 million in fiscal year 2020, which is the latest publicly available tax data. Over that period, the institution shed about 1,000 employees and was down to roughly 660 staff members.

During the pandemic, Cardinal Stritch was buoyed by a $3.8 million forgivable loan from the federal government’s Paycheck Protection Program, according to a 2021 audit. The university in 2020 also received $2.5 million in gifts and contributions from members of the Board of Trustees and employees.

The school did not make Scholz available for an interview Monday or Tuesday. He became president in 2020.

Cardinal Stritch is known for serving a diverse population. About a quarter of its students are Black or Hispanic, and a third of undergraduates received Pell grants, which are awarded to those with the most financial need. It also attracted a number of international students.

The school offered more than 60 academic programs, the most popular in business and education.

"It's a great little school, and the personal attention that kids get — there's nothing like it," Mary Kellner said in 2019, after her family donated $2.5 million to the school. Kellner co-chairs the Board of Trustees.

More: Stunned Cardinal Stritch underclass students not sure where they are headed next

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Alumni cite Stritch's deep impact

Kellner is an alumna, earning her doctorate in leadership for the advancement of learning and service in 2007. More than 40,000 others have also graduated with a Stritch degree, some of whom talked wistfully Monday about the transformational experience the school provided and the effect it had on the Milwaukee region.

"This one hurts big time," Wesley Shaver, president and CEO of Milwaukee Pridefest, wrote on his LinkedIn page. "As a young man, Stritch changed my life and put me on a path that I never knew existed. Stritch’s impact on SE Wisconsin and the world is far deeper than many know."

More: Signs of Stritch closing have been clear for a while, but many, including me, didn't notice

About 70% of the school's alumni base lives in Wisconsin, according to school data.

Sherrie Tussler credits Cardinal Stritch for turning her from an art major into a business manager. She has led Hunger Task Force, a nonprofit advocacy organization and food bank, since 1997.

She said the school’s closure would be keenly felt among people of color.

The school recognized Tussler for her advocacy work in 2010. She was the first layperson to receive the Spirit of St. Francis Award, which recognizes individuals who personify the values of the university. Tussler said she was surprised by the honor, and deeply grateful.

“I think they saw things in me that I didn’t see in myself,” Tussler said. “That’s what Stritch has been about. They see what could be and then they strengthen that in a person.”

Village official looks to future

Asked what the loss meant to Fox Point, Village Manager Scott Botcher sounded optimistic about finding a new use for the 40-acre campus.

"While losing an institution with this much history is tinged with sadness, it gives Fox Point (and Glendale) the opportunity to work with current or subsequent property owners to facilitate another use which may more highly benefit the community," he wrote in an email.

Botcher and Glendale Mayor Bryan Kennedy said they learned about the closure Monday.

College closures are fairly rare. Somewhere between five to 12 four-year nonprofit colleges shuttered their doors annually over the past eight years, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education.

The last campus to close in Wisconsin was Holy Family College, which ended operations in 2020 with just 360 students enrolled. The Manitowoc school cited rising operating costs, enrollment decline and fundraising as continual challenges, but COVID-19 pushed the school past the point of sustainability.

Journal Sentinel reporters Beck Salgado, Alex Groth, Drake Bentley and La Risa Lynch contributed.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milwaukee's Cardinal Stritch University closing at end of semester