After nearly 50 years, Martin University, Indiana’s only predominantly Black university, has formally announced its impending closure, ending weeks of speculation about its future.
In December, the private institution had already declared it was halting operations, laying off numerous staff, and advising students to seek transfers. The Board of Trustees officially confirmed the closure on December 30th, though the announcement initially received little public attention.
According to an announcement in The Indianapolis Recorder, the university’s board attributed the closure to insufficient operating cash, citing “declining enrollment, increasing costs and accumulated debt.”
The institution wrote in part, “The full Board of Trustees made the painful but necessary decision to pause operations, which ultimately led to closure. This decision was not made lightly, nor was it made without feeling. We recognize the deep sense of loss many are experiencing. We share it. But we also have a responsibility to confront financial reality with honesty and courage.
Martin University’s target demographic has always been students with great promise who, too often, have had limited financial means. Many of our students cannot afford to pay full tuition. As a result, Martin has had to rely heavily on grants, government support and philanthropy. Without an endowment and given today’s political climate around higher education funding, this financial model is simply not sustainable.
Throughout this process, our greatest concern has been our students. The Board and university leadership have remained steadfast in working to ensure that every current Martin student has a path to continue their education without interruption. Teach-out agreements and transition plans are being established, and individualized support has been provided so that students can complete their degrees elsewhere.”
The trustees also claimed that the Higher Learning Commission (HLC), the university’s accreditor, had instructed the school to shut down, though the HLC has disputed this claim, as reported by Inside Higher Ed.
As of yet, a closure announcement has not been published on Martin University’s website.
Despite the confusion surrounding the closure, some students, like Jaylin Coleman, a graduate student at Martin University who completed all of her credits and was set to get her degree in May, voiced frustration over the lack of official notification.
Coleman told WTHR, “I never got an email. You had to know people for you to know that they were closing down,” suggesting news of the closure circulated unofficially.
“Not going to lie, I cried all night yesterday because, like, I was done, and now I have to start over,” Coleman expressed.
Coleman recounted the difficulties she had in obtaining her academic transcripts from Martin University. “I pretty much begged Martin for like three months to transfer my transcripts,” she stated.
Despite her attempts and outreach from the university she intended to transfer to, the documents were never sent. “The university that I was trying to go to never received anything. They reached out to Martin, they didn’t get anything. I reached out, I never got anything from Martin,” Coleman explained.
Coleman also added that her recent attempts to contact university staff for guidance on next steps have been unsuccessful.
“I’m not getting any response from anybody,” Coleman noted. “People are saying talk to the board of trustees and different things, but no one is really giving you an answer. You’re getting the run-around, or they’re saying they can’t say much, but there’s no staff to even communicate with you.”
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Martin University, Indiana’s sole predominantly Black institution, had struggled financially for years. A significant blow came last year when Governor Mike Braun omitted the private university from his budget proposal, according to Inside Higher Ed.
This action cut off an anticipated $5 million in funding, which was clearly essential for the university’s survival. Although it is a private institution, Martin had received state funding in previous budget cycles but did not receive it regularly.
For the past three audits, auditors issued warnings that the university faced the risk of closure due to various financial difficulties. These problems included enrollment drops, significant debt, and the expense incurred from a cyberattack.
Martin University, founded in Indianapolis in 1977, has seen a sharp contraction in its enrollment over the years, a persistent decline visible in federal data. The university’s head count dropped significantly, from nearly 1,000 students in fall 2010 to just 223 in fall 2023.
The announcement of Martin University’s closure brings the total number of universities announcing their closure in 2025 to at least 16.
