$5M Donation to College of New Rochelle in Fiscal Crisis

NEW ROCHELLE, NY – The Board of Trustees of The College of New Rochelle announced Wednesday that an anonymous benefactor recently donated $5 million to the “We Are CNR” fundraising campaign launched to ensure the school's future.

The $5 million donation, along with another $1.5 million in donations come as the college works through a financial crisis which emerged earlier this fall.

Preliminary inquiries found the college did not pay payroll taxes totaling $20 million over a period of eight quarters, beginning in 2014. When the financial crisis was uncovered in October, President Judith Huntington stepped down and Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Dorothy Escribano was named interim president. Not only was a chief restructuring officer engaged to manage the college’s finances, but a forensic accounting firm was hired to review the school’s financial records and practices.

In addition, the “We Are CNR” campaign was launched to secure the necessary funding to support the College in the short term while a long term restructuring plan is finalized.

The campaign has included both online and person-to-person outreach as well as a series of videos featuring faculty, students and alumnae/i sharing what CNR means to them.

“In addition to the generous support of our alumnae, faculty, staff, students and friends, we had 100 percent participation from our Board and our Executive Team in helping us to reach this goal. The result was a sense of community and commitment to make CNR successful, at a time when we had all but run out of options to save this institution we love,” said Gwen Adolph, Chair of the Board of Trustees, in an announcement about the anonymous donation.

“We are humbled and grateful for the generosity of those who have donated and continue to donate, as well as the ongoing support we are receiving from alumnae and others in our hour of need. Although we have more work to do, I am pleased to say that the College will remain in business and continue moving forward,” Adolph said.

Adolph said the Board and College administrators will restructure the College and reduce costs while seeking additional funding to stabilize the College’s finances and meet past and current obligations.

As part of its strategy to extricate itself from the crisis, CNR was planning to auction off five single-family homes that it owns adjacent to the campus in New Rochelle. That auction is scheduled for 7 p.m. Dec. 14 at the Hilton Westchester in Rye Brook.

Staff reductions have already begun, and more are expected, as the College right-sizes its financial standing for the future, officials said.

“We are very grateful that we can continue to provide a quality education for students today and into the future,” said Dr. Dorothy Escribano, interim president.

Applications for incoming students remain steady, officials said. This follows the enrollment of the largest freshman class in decades – and the first to admit men to the College’s School of Arts & Sciences in its history.

“We were motivated throughout this effort with the unshakeable belief that The College of New Rochelle was worth fighting for,” said Adolph. “Our work is not done. But this $5 million donation and additional financial support we have received allows us to continue this fight and to continue to provide a profound education in the Ursuline tradition to future generations of students who follow in the footsteps of the more than 50,000 alumnae/i who have come before them.”

SEE ALSO

• College of New Rochelle to Auction Off 5 Homes to Offset Financial Crisis
  
• College of New Rochelle Owes $20M in Payroll Taxes
  

Patch file photo