Siena Heights University is the latest to close

Siena Heights University, a small private Catholic institution in Adrian, Michigan, has announced that it will be closing at the end of the 2026 academic year.

Like many other institutions that have closed in the past year, Siena Heights faced mounting financial difficulties brought on by demographic changes, rising costs and declining enrollment, President Douglas Palmer said in a video announcement.

“It is just not possible to continue beyond this next year. We’re not the first college and university to close, nor will we be the last.”

Growing student-athlete enrollment and the expansion of its online programs led Siena Heights to welcome 445 students last fall, the largest incoming class in its history. SHU Global, its online degree school, ranked among one of the best online degree programs by U.S. News & World Report this year.

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However, total enrollment has dropped by a third over the past decade, according to IPEDS data gathered between 2024 and 2014. About 2,300 students enrolled in the 2023-2024 school year, according to MI School Data.

The Michigan university has promised to remain fully functional throughout the upcoming academic year and will host its final commencement ceremony in May 2026. Remaining students and faculty will be supported with transfer pathways and transition assistance.

“We look ahead to the next academic year, planning all the activities one would normally get, including athletics, residential life and great events that we share with our alumni and entire community,” Palmer said.

Siena Heights will be 107 years old at the time of its expected closure at the end of the next school year. It was founded as St. Joseph’s College, a women’s college, in 1919. It adopted its current name, Siena Heights, in 1939 and became coeducational in 1969.

Click here for University Business’ running list of college closings and mergers this year.