"Becker College to close this spring as pandemic deals final blow, officials say" by Laura Krantz Globe Staff, March 29, 2021
Becker College, a small, private liberal arts school in Worcester, will close after the end of this school year, the board of trustees announced Monday.
The school, best known for its veterinary, nursing, and video game design programs, has struggled financially for years and trustees said the COVID-19 pandemic, which hurt enrollment and brought added costs, dealt the final blow.
“Ultimately, the impacts of COVID-19 turned what was a very challenging situation into an unsustainable situation,” President Nancy P. Crimmin said in a statement from the school, which had said it was on the brink of closure earlier this month.
Of course, despite its shaky finances, the school’s top officials have continued to earn typical salaries for the industry and in 2018, Crimmin was paid $355,000 plus a $36,000 housing allowance while school’s executive vice president and chief financial officer, David Ellis, received $369,000.
What will they do now, kids, and are you not worried about them?
Becker is the latest small, tuition-dependent institution to shut its doors in recent years. After Mount Ida College in Newton closed abruptly in 2018, state and industry leaders vowed to keep a closer watch over schools’ finances to avoid another equally chaotic situation. They flagged Becker’s fiscal situation as concerning late last year.
The anger has di$$ipated $ince then.
Becker, which has about 1,500 students, will help students continue their studies elsewhere through August 31, officials said in a press release. Becker has made arrangements with several local schools to admit its students. For incoming students who were admitted for the fall, Becker will refund deposits and help students find new places to enroll. The college will also help faculty and staff find new employment.
The school’s final graduation ceremony will take place May 8.
It will be in an empty outdoors arena, too.
“This was a deeply painful decision for the Board to make — one that the College administration made every possible effort to stave off, but one we came to realize in recent weeks was unavoidable,” said Christine L. Cassidy, chair of Becker’s board of trustees. “We pushed ourselves to develop scenarios in which Becker remained open for another year and beyond,” she said, “however, those scenarios included more debt, selling assets, and further cutting operations.”
So how much was $he paid?
Related:
Oh, what to do with the bribe, 'er, money, huh?
Commit it to $ports or $omething el$e.
Also see:
"Some University of Vermont faculty on Monday derided the plan to phase out certain arts and sciences programs and questioned the school’s financial issues, when it has millions of dollars in funds, calling it a values crisis at the state’s flagship university. A group of students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members called UVM United Against the Cuts held a virtual press conference to call for the resignation of UVM President Suresh Garimella. More that 2,900 people have signed a petition expressing no confidence in his leadership. Last December, UVM announced a plan to phase out 12 of the College of Arts and Sciences’ 56 majors, 11 of its 63 minors, and four of its 10 master’s degree programs, based on low enrollment, and was facing structural deficit of over $8 million in fiscal year 2021, the school said. Of the no-confidence petition, UVM spokesperson Enrique Corredera said it’s a change.org petition being promoted by unrecognized and unaffiliated group that anyone in the world can sign. “We have been receiving widespread support from people who are pleased the university is examining these issues and taking care to ensure that student tuition dollars, which pay for 75% of our general fund expenses, are used responsibly,” he said by email....."
Maybe the governor can help with the $ituation:
"A decade and a half ago, Brown University put out a report examining its historical ties to slavery. It was considered a groundbreaking effort to confront its past, and a blueprint for other universities to follow, but some students on the Ivy League campus now want the university to act more decisively on its findings. Last week, they expressed interest in a measure generally dismissed when the Slavery and Justice report came out: reparations....."
They will have to clo$e the $chool like the club:
"The Boston Licensing Board on Monday indefinitely suspended the liquor license of a Mattapan club for violating COVID-19 safety protocols, records show. Lesley Delaney Hawkins, the board’s executive secretary, said in a written notice to Macumba Latina located at 477 River Street that the panel voted to indefinitely suspend the club’s liquor license. The board also ordered the establishment to “close immediately,” the notice said. Hawkins wrote that Boston police conducted an inspection of the club Sunday night in response to “numerous complaints” that the business was flouting COVID-19 protocols. Police, Hawkins wrote, “observed multiple violations during the inspection including a large line outside the Licensed Premise that the Licensee was unable to manage, patrons in line failing to social distance, patrons in line failing to wear a mask, patrons inside failing to social distance, patrons inside failing to wear a mask, and patrons standing all in violation of mandatory COVID-19 operational requirements.”
I'm so glad there are no robberies, rapes, thefts, shootings, or murders that need solving in Bo$ton.
It's the $oft police $tate no more:
"Officers documented the violations by taking photographs, the notice said. When detectives approached the club, the report said, they “observed a very long line of patrons waiting to enter the establishment. As Detectives tried to walk up to the front door, Detectives could not reach the door because of a large crowd that had gathered at the entrance. Detectives observed the security person was trying to push patrons back so that he could open the door.” Detectives, the report said, had to help the security guard with moving the crowd, so that they could enter the club to conduct the inspection. They didn’t like what they saw once they got inside. “Detectives observed multiple patrons standing and walking around without any face coverings on,” the report said. “Detectives also noticed that the premise had a Disc Jockey providing live musical entertainment. Detectives reiterated the importance of the Governor’s COVID guidelines and the Boston Licensing Board’s Advisory on the current prohibition of these activities.” That’s not all they did. “As a result of what Detectives observed, Sgt. Det. [William] Gallagher issued licensed premise inspection notice #048197,” the report said. “This notice was for failure to adhere to the Governor’s COVID guidelines and the Boston Licensing Board’s Advisory of no patrons waiting in line, patrons walking around without facial coverings and premise providing disc jockey (live entertainment). Detectives, the report said, also notified the club of Monday’s hearing before the board - which club officials ultimately skipped. To date, city officials said Monday, the Licensing Board has indefinitely suspended the licenses of Macuna and two other establishments: Tom English’s Cottage in South Boston and Causeway Restaurant and Bar downtown. Tom English’s and Causeway’s licenses were suspended “until the Board received a COVID-19 operational plan that was sufficient,” the City Hall press office said in a statement. “Both licensees also attended their respective hearings.”
Are Detectives a race now?
I wonder how long they will have to spend in detention.
