Presentation College announced on Tuesday that it will not enroll students for the 2023-24 academic year and will cease educational operations at its Aberdeen campus after the Spring and Summer 2023 sessions. Three Teach-Out Agreements with other higher educational institutions are in place to provide complete credit acceptance and comparable net tuition costs for current students. Employees will be provided staggered end dates and final compensation based upon their responsibilities.
“After careful evaluation of the sustainability of the College’s academic programs, and a thorough review of alternatives, the Board of Trustees and Presentation Sisters reluctantly decided to close the physical campus and implement Teach-Out programs as the most responsible way to steward students’ pathways to completing their degrees,” Sister Mary Thomas, president of the Presentation Sisters Corporate Board shared. “We understand and share the heartbreak by our students, faculty, staff, alumni, and Aberdeen community, and we will work closely with them to succeed through this transition.”
Presentation Sisters founded the College in 1951 to fulfill its mission of rural health care and service through nursing education. The College later expanded to include academic programs in Health and Natural Sciences, and Social Science and Humanities, to support its mission of development of the whole person, in the Catholic tradition. Presentation Sisters have continuously sponsored the College and retained ownership of the campus land with the College as a separate nonprofit.
The school’s online BSN programs will be offered by St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa. Presentation also has Teach-Out Agreements in place with the University of Mary (Bismarck, North Dakota) and Olivet College (Olivet, Michigan) and continues to pursue adding agreements with other regional and online institutions. January 30-31, the College is hosting a Teach-Out Fair (in the afternoons) and a Career Fair (in the mornings) to assist students and faculty, respectively, with their transitions to other higher educational institutions.