Judson College releases statement saying college not closed, remains operating business
Daphne Robinson, the president of Judson College, sent a letter addressed to the school's alumni Friday morning, saying the college is not closed and remains an operating business despite not holding classes since July 2021.
The letter came in response to an article posted Thursday night about the passing of a bill Thursday night which would establish the Distressed Institutions of Higher Education Revolving Loan Program Fund which would provide aid to struggling public and private colleges in the state. The article, posted to AL.com, stated Judson College was closed in 2022 and did not ask the state for support, unlike Birmingham Southern College.
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"The program, approved through 2027, is intended to support Birmingham-Southern, but could theoretically help other struggling colleges in Alabama," the AL.com article stated. "It is not clear whether any have asked the legislature for help. Officials say Judson College, which closed in 2022, did not ask for state support."
Robinson said the college sent a response to the media outlet claiming that final sentence was incorrect.
"Please note this statement is incorrect," Robinson stated in her response, which was then forward to the school's alumni. "Judson College has not closed. It ceased holding classes effective July 2021, but it remains an operating business. Also, Judson College did reach out to representatives from the state seeking financial assistance."
According to the letter, the school had written correspondence and some verbal conversations with several state officials including people from the Governor's office, the Alabama House of Representatives, the Alabama Senate, ADECA, and State Finance.
Robinson said Judson College is continuing to seek financial assistance from the state and hopes to hold meetings with state lawmakers and representatives from the Governor's office.
Judson College still has an active website but no news has been posted since August 2021 when the board of trustees voted to close the 183-year-old institution.
Robinson clarified the college is not currently in any bankruptcy proceedings.
"SB278 is so new that Judson is attempting to navigate through it to determine if there is a benefit to the College," Robinson said in another statement Friday afternoon. "The objective in emailing our alumnae today was to assure them that Judson did seek state assistance and request AL.com to correct its story."
