St. Catharine College to close at end of July

ST. CATHARINE, Ky. (WTVQ) – St. Catharine College Board of Trustees chairman, John Turner, announced at a campus-wide faculty and staff meeting on Wednesday that the College would be closing its doors.

“It is with great sadness that I announce today, after exploring all possible options, the Board of Trustees has determined the challenges facing St. Catharine College are insurmountable and we will be closing the College at the end of July,” Turner said.

He went on to say the decline in overall enrollment, caused recently by the federal Department of Education’s admitted wrongful withholding of student aid on several key academic programs, has proven to be too difficult to manage with the debt obligation the College has assumed in recent years.

The debt he referenced was due to the building of new facilities including residence halls, a health-sciences building, and most recently a state-of-the-art library.

In recent weeks, the College administrators and trustees have explored various options for moving ahead and even explored the idea of an alliance with several other institutions. St. Catharine College President, Dr. Cindy Gnadinger, has recently held meetings with other college leaders, but the idea of some type of merger has proven unsuccessful.

The decision came after a board meeting Tuesday night, where the Board voted to close.

Summer camps and classes will proceed as already scheduled, but no classes will begin in the Fall.

SCC employed 118 full-time faculty and staff employees, as well as numerous part-time staff and adjunct instructors.