Rose Art Museum - Planned Closing

Planned Closing

On January 26, 2009, Brandeis University announced its plans to close the museum by the end of the summer in response to the global financial crisis of 2008–2009. University spokesman Dennis Nealon called the surprise announcement a "hard decision," but said, "The bottom line is that the students, the faculty and core academic mission come first. Trustees had to look at the college's assets and came to a decision to maintain that fundamental commitment to teaching." The move was criticized by the museum's director and board, numerous art-world figures and some donors to the museum. The Massachusetts attorney general's office has approval powers over certain actions of state nonprofit institutions, and Attorney General Martha Coakley said she plans to conduct a detailed review of the decision relative to wills and agreements made with donors. Nealon has claimed the attorney general had "approved the legality of closing the Rose and selling its art,", but the attorney general's office claimed they were only informed about the decision, not consulted. An early estimate of the total value of the collection was in the $350–400 million range, though values may be less due to a flagging art market. The university's endowment was $700 million before being hit by the drop in financial markets. Several of the university's large donors were reportedly particularly hard hit due to investment with Bernard Madoff.

On July 27, 2009, three of the museum's overseers filed a lawsuit in Massachusetts to halt the closing and sale of works. The three, including a member of the Rose family, contended that the planned closing contradicts the museum's "charitable intentions", violates the trust of those who donated art to the institution, and reneges on "Brandeis's promises that the Rose would be maintained in perpetuity."

By June 30, 2011, under the new leadership of Brandeis University President Frederick M. Lawrence, the lawsuit that had been brought against the university to prevent the closing of the Rose was settled. The museum remains open, and no works of art were sold to support university operations.