180-year-old Christian university in South Carolina to close after $6M fundraiser falls short

A 180-year-old backstage Christian assemblage successful South Carolina is closing astatine the extremity of the semester aft failing to rise $6 cardinal to prolong its acquisition operations.

Limestone University raised astir $2.1 cardinal from astir 200 donations during a two-week fundraising period, falling abbreviated of the backing needed to proceed its on-campus and online programs, the assemblage said successful a quality merchandise Tuesday.

"Our Limestone tone volition endure done the lives of our students and alumni who transportation it guardant into the world," said Randall Richardson, seat of Limestone University’s trustees. "Though our doors whitethorn close, the interaction of Limestone University volition unrecorded on."

Limestone University's online and in-person enrollment dropped from astir 3,200 students successful 2014 to astir 1,600, according to authorities higher acquisition data.

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Limestone University successful Gaffney, S.C., announced precocious Tuesday it would adjacent aft failing to rise $6 million. (AP Photo/Mary Ann Chastain, File)

Several 100 professors and enactment unit volition suffer their jobs arsenic portion of the closure. The schoolhouse said it promised to assistance students transportation to different schools.

Students and module person questioned whether the school’s fiscal problems could person been handled sooner.

"Why didn’t we bash thing sooner?" Emma Knapp, a student, told WSPA-TV. "We kept spending wealth erstwhile we shouldn’t person been."

"The problems didn’t hap overnight and they astir apt could person been addressed sooner," Paul LeFrancois, a prof of economics astatine Limestone told the station.

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Daniel Deneen Jr., who plays shot for Limestone, said helium was shocked astatine the school’s dire fiscal concern and abrupt closure.

"When we recovered retired the schoolhouse had $30 cardinal successful debt, we each wondered however they were going to get retired of it. The past 2 weeks person been precise stressful with finals coming up this week," Deneen told The Post and Courier.

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Limestone, founded successful Gaffney successful 1845, volition clasp its last commencement ceremonies on Saturday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.