How would you lead your college if you knew that you had to close it? In this episode, we speak with someone who did just that. Less than one year into her job as Vice President of Academic Affairs at Wheelock College, Churchill found herself in the midst of an institutional life or death decision process. In their recently released book, When Colleges Close, Churchill and Wheelock's president, Dr. David Chard, tell the remarkable success story of Wheelock's merger with Boston University and its closure as a standalone institution. In our conversation, Mary shares how Wheelock's Board determined early that it needed to plan for a future in which it would no longer be viable as well as lessons learned from the process that will be valuable for all higher ed leaders who are in the midst of crisis or transition.
Churchill currently serves as the Chief of Policy and Planning for Boston Mayor Kim Janey. Before joining the administration in 2021, she was Associate Dean of Community Engagement at Boston University where she represented the college at the Boston Public Schools Equity Roundtable convenings. Prior to her time at Boston University, she served as Vice President for Academic Affairs at Wheelock College. Additionally, she has held leadership roles in universities and colleges in New England for over thirty years. These include positions at Salem State University, Northeastern University, Bentley College, and Emmanuel College. For more information about Churchill's background, see here: https://www.bu.edu/wheelock/profile/mary-churchill/