It’s only been a few months since Anna Maria College closed its doors. While that announcement caught many students and parents by surprise, it came as no shock to faculty members or state higher education officials who had been watching the institution’s financial struggles unfold.
Since then, we’ve been warning TJHN readers that Anna Maria’s closure—and the closures of other small colleges—is only the tip of the iceberg. If the financial crisis facing higher education isn’t brought under control, this iceberg won’t just sink the Titanic. It could take hundreds of institutions down with it.
The latest casualty is the University of Valley Forge, which will close at the conclusion of the 2026 summer semester. With an enrollment of roughly 600 students, the small military college sponsored 12 men’s and women’s NCAA Division III athletic programs. While hockey wasn’t one of them, it’s fair to look at those enrollment numbers, compare them to the number of varsity sports offered, and ask: What were the administrators thinking?
Unfortunately, Valley Forge will not be the last.
TJHN is tracking nearly a dozen colleges and universities that are now in serious financial distress due to a combination of declining enrollment, mounting debt, and poor financial management. Eight of those institutions sponsor either NCAA Division I or Division III hockey. Three of those eight are in critical condition and face significant uncertainty beyond the 2026-27 academic year.
It’s time for junior hockey players and parents to stop burying their heads in the sand. College hockey, at every level, is facing real financial pressure. At the Division I level, there are at least five programs in serious financial difficulty. At the Division III level, there are six more that are facing major challenges.
The warning signs aren’t difficult to spot if you’re willing to do a little homework.
Pay attention to Division III programs that suddenly carry rosters of more than 30 players. That can be a clue—not definitive proof, but a clue—that the institution is relying on additional tuition revenue to help balance the books.
Notice leagues celebrating commitments to the same handful of schools year after year? Unless it’s a brand-new expansion program, it should raise eyebrows when a college signs 11 new forwards from Tier III junior hockey despite already having a dozen or more returning players. At some point, the math simply doesn’t add up.
Consider Albright College in Pennsylvania. The school is reportedly seeking $65 million in bond financing to refinance approximately $42 million in debt. Yet just a few months ago, it announced plans to launch a new NCAA Division III women’s hockey program beginning in 2027.
How does a university in that financial position expect to service that debt? One obvious answer is by increasing enrollment through athletics—expanding rosters and bringing in more tuition-paying student-athletes. It’s a strategy we’ve seen repeated across the country.
Rider University and their ACHA D2 program are also on very precarious financial grounds. The University is attempting to slash its debt to stay afloat, but waters are rising.
Parents and players need to stop accepting every promise from junior and college coaches at face value. Ask hard questions. Examine the financial health of the schools being recommended. Develop a plan based on your educational, athletic, and financial future—not on what benefits a coach or an admissions office.
Your hockey career may last a few years. Your education and the stability of the institution awarding your degree will matter for the rest of your life.
