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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowWhile colleges are borrowing billions from the debt market to fund campus upgrades, an Indiana university is taking a unique route: selling a Georgia O’Keeffe painting.
Valparaiso University in northwest Indiana received court approval last month for its contentious plan to sell three works of art from its Brauer Museum of Art collection, most notably “Rust Red Hills” by the famed modernist painter, that’s estimated to be worth as much as $15 million. It intends to use the proceeds to finance renovations for freshman dormitories, expecting these upgrades to cost between $12 million and $20 million.
The maneuver comes as the university, much like its peers, is contending with a decline in enrollment. Several other higher-education institutes have embarked on a borrowing spree— selling $23 billion of muni debt so far this year, an increase of more than 100% over the same period in 2023. It’s a precarious situation: if they fail to lure new students, they might have to raise tuition fees for existing ones or risk shouldering a heftier financial burden.
Smaller colleges are stuck in a “catch-22 situation,” where they either can’t make investments to strengthen their programs or don’t have the enrollment to support these improvements, said Dora Lee, director of research at Belle Haven Investments.
In Valparaiso’s case, headcount dropped 26% since 2019, according to the university’s website. Its unusual path to raise money has come with its own complications after it faced backlash from the art world and its own community.
“I think their decision to sell the paintings for dorm renovations kind of points to—I wouldn’t say a last ditch effort—but a desperate attempt to reverse its enrollment declines, which is really the cause of its financial troubles,” Lee said.
The university garnered ire from art institutions over its decision to deaccession the art. It was also sued by two retired professors—Richard Brauer and Philipp Brockington—last year over the matter. Brauer, the first director of the university’s museum and its namesake, said in a statement that he will ask to have his name removed if the paintings are sold. Brockington has since died, his lawyer said.
Valparaiso said it will respect Brauer’s request.
“This has been a difficult decision throughout,” a spokesperson for the school said in an emailed statement, adding that the move to sell is “the best possible future for the Sloan trust, our students, and our university as a whole.”
The university—citing an operating deficit because of declining enrollment—deemed it “impractical and wasteful” to spend on capital improvements needed to securely display the paintings, according to a petition shared by the New York Times. It also said it should be able to sell the pieces because the Percy H. Sloan trust—through which the paintings were acquired —was established with the intention of purchasing conservative art, which two of the paintings it wants to sell are not.
Lisa Washburn, a managing director at Municipal Market Analytics, said the art sale underscores the lack of financial resources currently at the school’s disposal.
“It’s not credit positive to see any organization have to resort to one-time measures in order to be able to fund necessary improvements,” she said.
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Valparaiso University’s decision to sell its Georgia O’Keeffe painting and other art pieces to fund much-needed dormitory renovations is a pragmatic and responsible approach to fulfilling its mission of educating students while keeping costs manageable. In today’s challenging financial climate, institutions like Valparaiso are forced to make tough choices to ensure their survival and success. The university’s leadership recognizes that improving campus facilities is essential to attracting and retaining students, which is vital for the institution’s future.
The backlash from the art world and some faculty members reveals a disconnect between academic elites and the real-world challenges faced by the university. Faculty who have benefited from donor and institutional funding may not fully appreciate the financial realities that necessitate such decisions. It’s easy to criticize from a position of comfort, but the university must prioritize its broader mission over the preferences of a few.
Moreover, selling the art could potentially allow these works to reach a wider audience if acquired by a larger, more prominent institution with the resources to display them more effectively. This not only honors the art but also serves the greater good by making it accessible to more people.
As for the request to remove Richard Brauer’s name from the museum, it’s unfortunate that he cannot see the bigger picture—no pun intended. Valparaiso University is making a difficult but necessary decision to secure its future and continue its important work of educating students. The university’s leadership should be commended for taking bold steps to navigate these challenging times.
Amen!
Maybe, like all colleges, they could try cost cutting. Universities have a lot of fat that can be trimmed, like all of the provosts and assistant provosts of this, that and the other. Get back to the mission of teaching and research and get rid of all of that middle management.
When I read the headline that IU was selling a major piece of art, because I just visited the IU art museum and while I didn’t remember seeing this particular piece, I thought this is terrible.
When I read the article I realized it was “An Indiana university”. That was bad editing on the headline.
^^^ Same
Plus, I thought: IU’s pathetic president has made another stupid decision.
Agree, why wasn’t “Valparaiso University…” in the headline?
Yes, I thought the same thing when I read the headline. It was confusing.
I agree with of the above four about the misleading headline! Since it was a retread from this morning’s IBJ @ 8, was it just to see if we were paying attention? Some of us were!
+1
We’ve changed the headline to make it more clear. Thank you for reading.