St. Andrews University in Laurinburg, North Carolina, home to the St. Andrews Equestrian Program, will permanently close its doors Monday, May 5, at the conclusion of the school’s spring semester. Citing that “the financial realities of maintaining operations in Laurinburg have become unsustainable,” the closure was announced to the public via social media on April 25. 

While alumni and others familiar with the equestrian program took to social media following the announcement to share that all of St. Andrews’ horses needed to find new homes immediately, the St. Andrews Equestrian Program Facebook page posted later that same day, “At this time, all of our horses have been accounted for regarding the rehoming process,” and thanked followers for their support.

St. Andrews Equestrian Program faculty and staff did not respond to requests for comment, and a spokesperson in the university’s main office did not feel qualified to answer questions regarding the equestrian program.

Reports of financial instability at the university have abounded for years. In 2011, the school merged with the Florida-based Webber International University after financial and accreditation struggles. The same year, the university sold its campus and leased it back at a cost exceeding $780,000 annually. Its board of trustees made the decision to close St. Andrews after “extensive financial analysis, strategic review, and exhaustive recovery efforts.” Recent enrollment numbers have fluctuated between 700 and 900 students across all programs annually.

“We explored every viable path forward,” Dr. Nelson Marquez, president and CEO of Webber International University, said in the announcement. “But the persistent financial and enrollment challenges facing St. Andrews could no longer be mitigated through internal solutions alone. This was a deeply painful but necessary decision.”

The St. Andrews Equestrian Program is well known for its success in Intercollegiate Horse Shows Association and American National Riding Commission competitions and at U.S. Equestrian Federation- and North Carolina Hunter Jumper Association-recognized shows, as well as for its “Ride-Like-A-Knight” Therapeutic Horsemanship Program. The university offered four equine-related degrees and a minor in equine studies.

Savannah Hutto, who will finish her bachelor’s degree in business administration with a specialization in equine business management at St. Andrews this spring, is representing the school this week at the IHSA National Championships, which run Friday through Sunday at the Tryon International Equestrian Center in Mill Spring, North Carolina, in both the USHJA Hunter Seat High Point Rider and the Team Level 1 Western Horsemanship classes. Hutto said students on campus were called to an assembly on Friday morning, where university president Tarun Malik shared the news.

“We were all shocked,” said Hutto, Timmonsville, South Carolina. “We had no idea it was coming. It was a really big deal for us, because we all love St. Andrews. St. Andrews is the place where you come, and you fit right in, and you get so many opportunities you would never get anywhere else.”

Hutto shared that everyone involved with the equine program is trying to push through difficult emotions and focus on the positive.

“Our horses are going to amazing new homes, and the people who are not graduating are going to get to experience a new college,” Hutto said. “People are trying to be super optimistic and take in our last couple of days at St. Andrews.”

The university is working to ensure its current students are able to seamlessly transfer to other institutions, as well as establishing teach-out agreements to allow students to complete their current degrees elsewhere. Additionally, it is offering “personalized transition guidance” to the school’s faculty and staff. 

As Hutto and her teammates prepare to represent the school in its final IHSA National Championship, they have its legacy in the front of their minds. 

“We have to go out with a bang,” Hutto said. “Our western team has been reserve champion at Nationals the last two years, and everyone is really working their tails off, because we want to go out with a win. We want to go out, with the last horse show we’ll ever be at, and be like—yes, our school is closing down in one day, but we won it.”