Southern Vermont College to close

BENNINGTON, Vt. (AP) — College officials say Southern Vermont College in Bennington will close at the end of the spring semester because of a decline in enrollment and related debt issues that also face other small schools in the Northeast.

The Bennington Banner reports that college officials were holding a series of meetings Monday to announce the closure.

President David R. Evans says the board of trustees voted on Friday to close the school. The newspaper reports that the vote came a day after a show-cause hearing before the New England Commission of Higher Education to determine whether the school should be placed on probation for failing to meet the financial resources standard for continued accreditation.