History
Bradford College traced its origins to Bradford Academy, which was founded in 1803, and used that date in its collegiate logo. Many of Bradford's early graduates became Christian missionaries. The first president of Bradford was Dr. Katharine Denworth, a graduate of Swarthmore with a doctorate from Columbia. Her tenure from 1927 to 1939 oversaw the transformation of Bradford in 1932 to a liberal arts junior college for women leading to a bachelor's degree. With degrees in classics from Oberlin College and Smith College, scholar Dorothy M. Bell became President in 1940. Over the ensuing 27 years Ms. Bell led Bradford Junior College through World War II and to national and international prestige as a two-year liberal arts private women's college, retiring in 1967. The college became coeducational and the name changed to Bradford College in 1971.
During the 1990s, annual budget shortfalls of more than $1 million, combined with declining enrollment and revenues along with resulting losses due to competition from larger regional institutions sealed the school's fate. In 1997, the school incurred a $18 million debt when it refinanced old debt and sought funds to build new dormitories.
After 197 years, Bradford College was closed in 2000, leaving substantial debt. In late 2007, the remaining endowment of $3.6 million was awarded to Hampshire College, an alternative liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. With the closing, 33 full-time professors and 133 employees were left without jobs.
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