Tre’Jean Watkins
In recent years, a growing number of private D3 and NAIA institutions have closed altogether, primarily driven by declining undergraduate enrollment and the financial instability that follows. This trend is troubling for higher education as a whole and even more alarming for small college athletics.
These schools rely heavily on steady enrollment, especially since many students choose them because they cannot afford higher-tier Division I options. Yet cultural shifts have placed less emphasis on the arts and academics, and political rhetoric has created skepticism surrounding the value of traditional academic pathways. With fewer students entering these institutions, the financial base that supports both academics and athletics begins to erode.
Athletics at the D3 level face even greater vulnerability because most programs depend almost entirely on private funding. Without consistent resources, schools struggle to maintain facilities that meet modern standards, recruit competitively, and attract the talent needed to sustain winning programs. When teams stop winning, credibility declines. As credibility declines, boards begin to question whether athletic programs justify their costs. In many cases, the answer is no.
This challenge is not new, but it is far more intense than it was thirty years ago. College was more affordable, and academic institutions carried greater cultural weight. Tuition costs are now significantly higher, public confidence in higher education has decreased, and the financial model that once kept small schools stable is cracking.
For these institutions, undergraduate enrollment is the lifeline for financial health. When enrollment declines and skepticism grows about the value of a college degree, administrators are forced to make increasingly difficult decisions. Athletics, never designed to be a financial centerpiece for D3 schools, quickly become expendable. When programs are cut, the short-term savings rarely reverse the long-term enrollment decline. Eventually, many of these colleges turn to loans, emergency funding, or temporary financial fixes, but the downward trend continues until closure becomes inevitable.
Preventing this pattern is complex. Private D3 and NAIA institutions receive less state and federal funding than their public counterparts, and the cost of maintaining both academic and athletic operations continues to rise. Even with aggressive fundraising, new revenue streams, or strategic partnerships, the financial gap is often too large to close.
Until higher education can reduce costs, rebuild public confidence, and shift back toward student-centered academic planning rather than revenue-centered survival, small colleges will remain at risk. The reality is painful because higher education represents opportunity and upward mobility. When institutions lose the ability to provide that pathway, we all lose something essential.
At the end of the day, students want a chance to grow, learn, and improve their lives. When we can no longer offer that, we must ask ourselves what the future of higher education is supposed to be.
