College mergers not a new concept

FINDLAY — University of Findlay President Katherine Fell and Bluffton University President Jane Wood announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the intent to merge operations at a joint press conference last Wednesday. Fell said the universities will remain separate entities until the merger is approved, which is expected to happen in about 12-15 months. The merger is projected to be finalized by fall 2025. Though a new idea locally, two or more universities merging is not a new concept in the higher education landscape. In 2006, the University of Toledo and the Medical University of Ohio merged, creating the third-largest public university operating budget in Ohio. Just last year, Bloomfield College, located in New Jersey, successfully merged with Montclair State University, also in New Jersey, becoming the Bloomfield College of Montclair State University. "Bloomfield University and Montclair University have merged successfully and Bloomfield is Division II, and Montclair is Division III," President Fell said during a town hall this week on the University of Findlay's campus. "I think you might find that encouraging, especially those of you interested in our athletics programs," she said. Universities merge for a variety of reasons. Financial turmoil, government consolidation and proactively recruiting students in other markets are some of the main reasons why mergers occur, according to the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business. The state with the most university mergers from 2016-18 is Massachusetts with eight, according to data compiled by Research.com. Ohio saw three mergers from 2016-18 according to the same data. A big part of the University of Findlay and Bluffton University's projected merger has to do with tackling the "enrollment cliff" affecting student enrollment to higher education institutions, Fell said. "There is a population cliff coming of traditionally college-age students," Fell said at the town hall. "This type of merger, not only is good for us, whether that cliff is coming or not — for reasons of synergies of courses and more offerings for our students, more beautiful spaces for our students to spend time — but it is also a preparation for that cliff." Universities that serve the regional population are going to be hit the hardest by the cliff and expect to lose 11% of their students by 2029, according to the College and University Professional Association for Human Resources. The organization attributes the loss in students to the sharp decline in births during the 2008 recession. "We all know that we are going to have fewer college-aged students in the next five to 8, 9, 10 years," Wood said. "So we started talking about these really interesting places where (Bluffton) had some unique strengths and where Findlay also had some strengths and how we could leverage this for our students, and for, quite frankly, future enrollment pipelines." Fell said at the town hall that more mergers between higher education institutions are likely to occur in the coming years. "I like to think that Bluffton University and the University of Findlay are leading the way and that we will do this properly and appropriately," she said. "Carefully. And with vision."