Future U. Podcast

@Jselingo and @MichaelBHorn discuss what’s next for higher Ed and talk with the newsmakers you want to hear from most. #highered

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

The college athletics arms race has turned many athletics departments into shadow universities, with their own systems, processes, and finances running parallel to the rest of campus.

Karen Weaver joins @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn on Future U to talk about what leaders are missing and whether a whole new board structure for sports is needed.

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Athletics departments at many D-I institutions have become shadow universities, with their own CFOs, their own student affairs structures, and their own financial logic.

Karen Weaver joins @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn on Future U to dig into what college leaders are missing and what needs to change.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Most coverage of college closures stops at the announcement. Doug Moore's job starts there. He walks @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn through what the process actually looks like — and what's still at stake long after the doors close — on Future U.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Closing a college doesn't end the responsibility to the surrounding community. Someone still has to secure an abandoned campus — and figure out what happens to everything left behind. Doug Moore has done it more than almost anyone. Full conversation with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn on Future U.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

What happens to a college campus after it closes?

For some, there's a buyer or a new use. But as @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn discuss at the close of this Future U episode, for many there won't be — just empty buildings and the memories attached to them.

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People break into abandoned malls, film what they find, and post it online. The comments are full of nostalgia.

@JSelingo wonders on Future U whether the same thing will one day happen to college campuses — and given what Doug Moore said earlier in the episode, it's not as far-fetched as it sounds.

Full conversation with @MichaelBHorn on @futureupodcast.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Boards in trouble keep being told by consultants that a merger is the answer.

Doug Moore has that conversation every week. His response: all the attractive schools have already been picked up. The ones still available aren't ones anyone wants to take on, and the debt attached to those campuses makes it even less appealing.

The merger market is a lot thinner than struggling institutions are being led to believe.

Full conversation on @futureupodcast with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Why aren't there more college mergers, even as closures accelerate?

According to Doug Moore, it comes down to two things: there aren't many schools willing to absorb a struggling campus, and there are almost none willing to take on the debt that comes with it.

For boards still holding out hope for a buyer, that's a hard truth worth hearing.

Full conversation on @futureupodcast with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Higher ed was built for the baby boom. It has never adjusted to the reality that followed.

Doug Moore on Future U with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn — and his timeline for what's coming next is tighter than most people realize.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

25 nonprofit four-year colleges closed last year.

8 so far this year.

Doug Moore thinks another 20-30 will close by end of summer.

@JSelingo's response: "There's a headline for us."

Full conversation on @futureupodcast.

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400 colleges closed completely in the next 7-10 years.

Not mergers. Abandoned campuses.

That's Doug Moore's prediction on Future U with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn — and his explanation for why is simpler than you might expect.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Who's to blame for the wave of college closures coming?

Doug Moore's answer on Future U: nobody in particular.

"This is supply and demand. We have too many seats for not enough butts, and those butts are declining."

Full conversation with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

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When your school is first to add women's lacrosse, you don't have to offer big scholarships to fill the roster.

Then every competitor does the same thing — and suddenly you're in a race to the bottom on discounts just to fill the same seats.

Doug Moore on the athletics trap on Future U with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

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Big athletics programs mean big facilities. Big facilities usually mean big debt.

"That's where the house of cards really gets wobbly."

Doug Moore on how the athletics arms race becomes a structural liability on Future U with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

A discount rate above 70%. More than 70% athletes. A brand new president.

Doug Moore has been inside more college closures than almost anyone. These are the patterns he keeps seeing — and he's clear that each one on its own is a serious red flag.

All three together? Almost a guarantee of what comes next.

Full conversation on Future U with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Three warning signs a college is headed for serious trouble, according to closure specialist Doug Moore:

— More than 70% of students are athletes
— A discount rate above 70%
— A president who's been there less than a year

Each one alone is bad. All three is almost a guarantee.

Full conversation on Future U with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Most coverage of college closures stops at the announcement. Doug Moore's job starts there. He walks @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn through what the process actually looks like — and what's still at stake long after the doors close — on Future U.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

Closing a college doesn't end the responsibility to the surrounding community. Someone still has to secure an abandoned campus — and figure out what happens to everything left behind. Doug Moore has done it more than almost anyone. Full conversation with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn on Future U.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

3 warning signs a college is headed for closure, according to a man who's helped shut down more of them than almost anyone:

— More than 70% of students are athletes
— A discount rate above 70%
— A president who's been there less than a year

Each one is bad. All three is almost a guarantee.

@JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn dig into why on Future U.

[Future U. Podcast @futureupodcast]

What actually happens when a college closes — the teach-outs, the liquidations, the lawsuits, the community impact, the emotional toll?

Doug Moore has been inside more of those closures than almost anyone in the country. His prediction: 400 campuses gone in the next 7-10 years.

Full conversation with @JSelingo and @MichaelBHorn on Future U.