ST. LOUIS — The numbers are bleak.
Since 2011, Fontbonne University has seen its enrollment cut by more than half, from 2,293 students to 955 last fall.
And the steep drop has taken a toll on finances: The long-time liberal arts institution has operated at a deficit for the past decade, filings show, as assets fall and liabilities grow.
It’s maintained operations, but Fontbonne’s performance raises questions about its long-term viability, said an expert in higher education finance who reviewed public information about the university.
“At some point, unless something changes, they’re going to run out of money,” said Robert Kelchen, professor and department head of educational leadership and policy studies at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. “It’s not going to be tomorrow. It doesn’t necessarily have to be five years from now. (But) they're facing a really challenging trend.”
The stakes are high for the St. Louis area, where Fontbonne, with 16 acres at a prime site, has been located since its founding nearly 100 years ago in 1923.
“It’s a cornerstone educational institution in Clayton and it has a lot of history, has a beautiful campus and we all, as residents and businesses alike, benefit from having Fontbonne in our community,” said Clayton Mayor Michelle Harris.
The challenges aren’t unique to Fontbonne, one of many small, private colleges across the nation grappling with enrollment declines. And the university is looking to tackle its problems head-on, led by a familiar face who returned to take its president job in 2020.
"I knew that I was coming here to carry out a mandate to grow the enrollment,” Nancy Blattner said. “I think that we've begun to do that and I think that that will continue in the next several years.”
Fontbonne has crafted a strategy it contends will secure its future. That blueprint includes launching new degree programs, extending its reach beyond the St. Louis region and even establishing a new collegiate football conference. Those initiatives are aimed at a target: boosting Fontbonne’s enrollment to 1,500 students within the next five years.
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