Iona College To Acquire Concordia College's Bronxville Campus

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — Iona College will acquire Concordia College New York's Bronxville campus, after the latter institution announced it would cease operations in the fall.

Both colleges announced Thursday they are proceeding with a formal agreement that will allow Iona to provide continued education for Concordia students through a teach-out plan that would enable most students to continue their degrees to completion at Iona.

Concordia's classes will cease beginning with the fall 2021 semester, and the college will close.

According to a spokesperson, details of the agreement are being finalized and are subject to regulatory approval. The agreement is expected to be completed by summer 2021.

Rev. John A. Nunes, Concordia's president, said the college's challenges were reflected broadly in the higher education sector.

"Accelerated by the pandemic, these challenges necessitated an outcome that brings deep pain to all those invested in Concordia and its 140-year history," he said.

Nunes said students continue to be the priority.

"By acting now, Concordia's Regents have provided our students with an excellent pathway for continuing the high-quality, faith-informed education they began at Concordia," he said.

Iona's President Seamus Carey said the closure of a sister institution affects everyone.

"As I've said since I arrived at Iona, higher education must, and will, be different going forward," he said.

"This is especially true for private, faith-based institutions, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated the circumstances demanding change," Carey said.

Both Iona and Concordia will work to ensure their students can complete their educations with minimal disruption, he said.

The Concordia campus will be used by Iona to develop a leading school of health sciences, furthering Iona's strategic investments in the field, and continuing Concordia's legacy of excellence in health sciences education, according to a spokesperson.

There will be a series of co-hosted, virtual town halls to discuss the plans and answer questions, details of which will be announced shortly, officials said.

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