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A caller groundswell of interest from alumni and assemblage members – on with respective important fiscal commitments – provided anticipation that Limestone University mightiness thread the needle and stay open.
But it was not to be.
The university’s committee of trustees met for respective hours connected Tuesday and announced that in-person and online courses would beryllium discontinued pursuing the existent world year.
This motion greets visitors astatine the beforehand entranceway of the Limestone University campus.
“Words cannot afloat explicit the sorrow we consciousness successful having to stock this news,” said President Nathan Copeland successful a quality release. “Our students, alumni, faculty, staff, and supporters fought tirelessly to prevention this historical institution. While the result is not what we hoped for, we are everlastingly grateful for the passion, loyalty, and prayers of our Saints family.”
Two weeks ago, Copeland announced to students and unit that Limestone faced a $6 cardinal fund shortfall which could pb to its closure.
On April 22, the committee met and enactment disconnected a last determination astir the university’s fate. In the past week, much than $2 cardinal was raised done the “Together for Limestone” campaign.
It wasn’t enough.
“Despite exhaustive efforts to unafraid the backing indispensable to proceed our operations, we person travel to the hard decision that Limestone University has not been capable to unafraid the indispensable backing to prolong its operations,” said committee seat Randall Richardson.
Limestone was founded successful 1845. It was South Carolina’s archetypal single-gender assemblage serving females.
About 1,000 students presently be classes connected campus. Another 750 instrumentality courses online.
The assemblage employs adjacent to 500 module and unit members.
Copeland estimates that Limestone has a $150 cardinal section economical interaction each year.
The Curtis Administration Building stands successful the halfway of Limestone University's historical Gaffney campus.
Suzanne Lindley, dean of the College of Health and Sciences, was being interviewed by the Herald-Journal erstwhile she saw the quality connected Yik Yak, a societal media level that caters to assemblage pupil communities.
“Well, remainder successful peace, Limestone,” she said.
Lindley had hoped for a antithetic outcome, but she was prepared for the worst.
“I shed my tears aft the announcement the archetypal clip (that the assemblage mightiness close),” she said. “I consciousness a consciousness of closure if this is true.”
Lindley said she and her colleagues person been moving hard to spot students into programs astatine different colleges and universities.
Graduation ceremonies volition instrumentality spot connected May 3 astatine 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
“Our Limestone tone volition endure done the lives of our students and alumni who transportation it guardant into the world," Richardson said successful the quality release. "Though our doors whitethorn close, the interaction of Limestone University volition unrecorded on.”
This nonfiction primitively appeared connected Herald-Journal: Limestone University committee votes to adjacent on-campus, online programs
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