Hampshire College to close permanently after fall 2026 semester

[Eugene]

Source: WWLP-TV

Hampshire College to close permanently after fall 2026 semester

by: Emma McCorkindale, Areta Odiah
Posted: Apr 14, 2026 / 09:50 AM EDT
Updated: Apr 14, 2026 / 06:10 PM EDT

AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) – Hampshire College’s board of trustees voted to permanently close the institution following the Fall 2026 semester. The decision comes after years of financial struggle and unsuccessful efforts to secure the college’s future.

The college has navigated financial challenges since 2019, experiencing declining enrollment, rising costs and an unstable funding environment that affects small, liberal arts colleges. Despite pursuing a financial sustainability plan and raising more than $55 million through its Change in the Making campaign, efforts in enrollment growth, debt refinancing and land development did not yield a viable path forward.

Hampshire College will provide academic, student life and transitional services to currently enrolled students through the end of the fall semester. The college will not admit a new class for Fall 2026 and all deposits from admitted students will be refunded.

Division III students, who are in their final year, will be eligible to complete their degrees at Hampshire College through the end of the Fall 2026 semester. Campus housing and support services will remain available for these students.

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Read more: https://www.wwlp.com/news/local-news/hampshire-county/hampshire-college-to-close-permanently-after-fall-2026-semester/

Apr 14, 2026
Hampshire College’s board of trustees has announced that the college will be closing at the end of the year.

[BumRushDaShow]

1. UMASS/Amherst is my alma mater

and Hampshire is part of what they dubbed the "5 College Consortium" of UMASS, Smith, Hampshire, Mt. Holyoke, and Amherst College.

Students could take courses at any of the 5 and there was a lot of interaction between the 5.

At the time I was at UMASS, Hampshire was one of the most expensive schools in the country and I remember visiting a friend there and checked out their dorms (all students were in single dorm rooms) and like all the schools in the area, they had jamming parties. The school curriculum was basically unstructured student-created/interdisciplinary (with professorial mentors).

Hampshire has a huge campus for such a small-enrollment school so I know they are going to really be looking at how to handle that property.

When I saw this story yesterday, I sent to my sisters (who also went to UMASS) and one of them mentioned a friend she had at Hampshire who was literally majoring in "Frisbee" and physics (we used to joke about UMASS having a Frisbee team - ZooDisc).

[druidity33]

2. I think this will...

hit the area hard. The "5 Colleges" identity is Strong here in Western Mass. Hundreds of lost jobs in fields (Liberal Arts) that are not hiring. Amherst the town willbe fine and it might even help the housing crunch a bit... but there will be some very sad people hanging around the next few years.

K&R