William Jewell College facing ‘significant financial challenges’ due to increased costs

LIBERTY, Mo. (KCTV) - One of the oldest liberal arts colleges in the Kansas City area has fallen into significant financial troubles.

William Jewell College’s Board of Trustees and its interim president sent a letter to students, parents and staff notifying them of a declaration of financial exigency.

The bottom line: the school is spending more than it is bringing in, and drastic actions have been taken.

“There have been many strategic innovations in the last several years including a tuition re-pricing, diversified enrollment growth and the In Pursuit campaign,” a William Jewell College release stated. “Despite these efforts which led to increased enrollment, the cost of operations has increasingly exceeded the pace of revenue. It’s essential that we confront inefficiencies to build a solid foundation for future growth and sustainability.”

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The college stated that it has recently implemented cost-cutting measures such as asset sales, savings through improved procurement and sourcing, operational cost cuts, deferral of maintenance on non-essential properties and equipment, and most recently, a reduction in istrative staff.

The Board has also paused its current search for a new president.

Ivan Calderon is a Junior in school. He is an English and musical theater major.

“Base reaction, obviously very scary email to receive,” Calderon said. “It definitely puts me in a situation where I’m like what are the next steps with my college career and with my future.”

Similarly, Student/Athlete Angelo Batrez was concerned when he heard the news.

“We were addressed by our coach, you know kind of what the situation was going on,” Batrez said. “He kind of just reassured us that we were going to be alright, and he was just updating us on the status of the school.”

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KCTV5 reached out to William Jewell to clarify on points of the letter, such as clarification on reduction of staff, programs, scholarships, sports and other considerations. A communications firm representing William sent the following statement.

“The filing of exigency is an important tool that involves an overall restructuring in the way Jewell delivers programs to students. It can involve reductions in force, reallocation of resources and restructuring of academic programs.

“The College is committed to its approach using a student-first mindset, in the context of marketplace demands and needs of today’s prospective students. Jewell will transition out of the financial exigency period in less than one year after efficiencies are being achieved according to plan. More information will be shared in the coming weeks.”

The full statement from William Jewell College is below:

“Like many small liberal arts colleges across the country with modest enrollments and endowments, Jewell is facing significant financial challenges brought about by increasing costs. There have been many strategic innovations in the last several years including a tuition re-pricing, diversified enrollment growth and the In Pursuit campaign. Despite these efforts which led to increased enrollment, the cost of operations has increasingly exceeded the pace of revenue. It’s essential that we confront inefficiencies to build a solid foundation for future growth and sustainability.

“Ultimately, we exist for our students and their futures. We are ionately committed to navigating these challenges to transform William Jewell College—now and for decades to come.

“The College's leadership—including the interim president, cabinet, faculty leadership and the Board of Trustees—previously implemented a variety of strategic cost-cutting measures to achieve efficiencies. These included asset sales, savings through improved procurement and sourcing, operational cost cuts, deferral of maintenance on non-essential properties and equipment, and most recently, a reduction in istrative staff.

Despite these efforts, stronger measures and urgent changes are required to place Jewell on solid financial footing for the future. Additional immediate cost-saving measures must be implemented to balance our budget and ensure Jewell’s future success.

“Following extensive analysis and thoughtful deliberation, the William Jewell College Board of Trustees has voted to declare financial exigency, an intentional step toward creating financial stability and securing the path forward for the College. In doing so, the Board is deploying an important tool that enables reallocation of resources, restructuring of academic programs and scholarships and significant reductions in force. We will transition out of the financial exigency period in less than one year after efficiencies are being achieved according to plan.

“This is a challenging time and will involve difficult decisions which impact our valued colleagues, all of whom have contributed to the historical legacy of Jewell. That said, we are collectively dedicated to the preservation of Jewell for the long term, and we see no alternative course of action. We are grateful to faculty for their collaboration and for engaging in meaningful ways in this process to ensure Jewell’s future relevance as a leading higher education institution.

“A committee comprised of faculty and of the Board of Trustees will be tasked with evaluating departments, programs and majors in the context of marketplace demands and needs of today’s prospective students. Further details will be shared in the coming weeks as the College’s leadership, faculty and staff act to deliver programs more cost effectively and responsive to marketplace demand, while maintaining our reputation for the quality education and highly developed critical thinking skills demonstrated by our graduates.

“We are determined to sustain our mission as a critical-thinking, career-focused college. Declaring exigency reflects our commitment to improving Jewell for the future and is the first step in the process toward ensuring long-term stability.

“Additionally, the Board of Trustees has paused the presidential search to determine the most appropriate leadership needs during this period of transition. We will resume this search soon, after a re-evaluation of our leadership needs, with specific emphasis on financial health. Our interim president, Susan Chambers, remains committed to serving the College until longer-term leadership is identified.

"We are committed to reimagining a Jewell that serves students, employers and our Greater Kansas City community long into the future. We extend our genuine appreciation for your continued and welcome and questions at [email protected] and encourage you to visit jewell.edu/reimagine to learn more.”

With Gratitude and For Jewell,

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