By Anne Levin
An email sent to the Rider University community on September 19 by President John Loyack warned students, faculty, parents, and staff that Rider’s financial condition — which includes a $21.8 million deficit — is “very serious” and “more severe than expected.”
The school in Lawrence Township “faces a severe cash deficit this year, one that, if left unaddressed, would jeopardize our ability to meet core financial obligations later this fiscal year and likely would imperil the University’s future. Unless we rebuild our foundation, and we have options to do so, the future we aspire to will remain out of reach,” Loyack wrote.
Loyack took over as president on July 7, replacing Gregory Dell’Omo, whose controversial tenure included the relocation and eventual sale of the Westminster Choir College campus in Princeton, affiliated with Rider since 1991.
Dell’Omo had hoped to sell the property for more than $40 million when it was announced in 2017. The Rider News reported last week that the University will receive $13 million from the settlement reached in July with Princeton Theological Seminary from the sale of the property to the Municipality of Princeton, which acquired it in April for $42 million. The remaining $29 million goes to the Seminary, which originally owned Westminster Choir College.
Loyack’s previous record includes solving the financial crises of King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and Alvernia University in Reading, Pa. Doing the same for Rider will involve restructuring, following small-group conversations with faculty, staff, and student leaders “to listen, exchange perspectives and surface insights that will inform the recommendations we prepare for the Board,” Loyack wrote. Members of the community are invited to share their suggestions at univcomm@rider.edu.
Increasing enrollment is key to Rider’s survival. “Only with a strong enrollment can we meet our financial challenges and begin building toward a stronger future,” Loyack wrote. “That is why I am asking every member of our community to make student success and enrollment a top priority. Whether through making Rider possible by encouraging students to attend, helping them complete their degree or sharing Rider’s story in your networks, your efforts can and will make a difference.”
Loyack acknowledged the “extraordinary sacrifices” members of the Rider community made under Dell’Omo due to the financial situation.
“You have had to say goodbye to valued colleagues, experience the early retirement of senior faculty, face reduced compensation and hours, and adapt to closed programs and delayed investments in our facilities,” he wrote. “Each of these steps has been painful, and together they underscore just how deeply these challenges have already touched our campus.”
He also noted “declining demographics of college-aged students, rising operating costs, shifting student expectations, and increased competition. These national trends have placed extraordinary pressure on many institutions, Rider among them.”
In an issue of The Rider News following Loyack’s message to the community, Vice President of External Affairs Kristine Brown is quoted in an email, “We understand there’s interest in learning more, but at this time, the University is not providing any additional information beyond what was shared in President Loyack’s announcement. When there are any further updates to communicate, we will be sure to share them with the campus community.”
A request for further comment by Town Topics this week was not returned.
The University community must move “with both urgency and thoughtfulness,” Loyack wrote. “All options to address Rider’s financial realities and position the University for long-term strength must be on the table. The Board will fulfill its fiduciary responsibility in evaluating these options, and my team and I will provide them with the fullest possible information and perspective to guide their decisions.”