Over 100 employees at this Finger Lakes College will soon need to search for work

Over 100 employees will lose their jobs when Wells College closes later this month, according to recently released Workforce Adjustment and Retraining (WARN) notice.

Wells College is a private college at the cornerstone of the Aurora community since 1868. Last month, school officials announced that it will be closing in its entirety at the end of this semester.

The move began as a decision by the college’s trustees who determined that it does not have “adequate financial resources to continue.”

The New York State Department of Labor WARN unit released a notice on the closing, stating 141 workers would be affected out of 165 total employees at the site, with the difference in the figures likely stemming from volunteer positions.

The college’s closure is expected to begin May 31, with full closure expected by the end of this year.

For comparison, the College of Saint Rose announced its closing late last year with the state WARN unit identifying 646 affected workers, who will no longer work with the college as of December 31, 2024.

The college has organized a counseling services support page for its soon-to-be ex-faculty and staff, which includes a Manhattanville Open House from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, and a host of upcoming virtual information sessions each “Wells Wednesday.”

Wells students heading to MU

Wells officials said the school entered into an agreement with Manhattanville University, naming it the college’s “preferred teach-out partner,” meaning Wells students will be given connections to Manhattanville University in the coming months, to transfer there, if they wish.

Manhattanville University recently received its university designation, upgrading its namesake from Manhattanville College.

“Manhattanville is developing dedicated housing for Wells students and will be partners in supporting our students with transfer plans,” Wells officials said. “Manhattanville has also expressed interest in developing a legacy agreement that would integrate the Wells College name and history into the Manhattanville community.”

Officials from the Purchase, New York, university stated that it is “highly committed to the sustained preservation of the Wells College legacy,” in a statement late last month.

U.S. News and World Report has ranked the private liberal arts college the No. 1 private, non-profit institution in New York among Top Performers of Social Mobility in Regional Universities North for the last three years.