As promised during Thursday’s conference call with President Paula Peinovich and Provost Dan Katz, we have prepared the following information in response to the many questions you sent via email, social media, our blog, and by phone. The following is what we know now and we hope to be able to provide by mid-December more specific information to students, faculty and staff detailing how the closure will proceed.
NLC is closing in an orderly manner. Pursuant to the Board of Trustees’ direction, over the coming months, NLC will be shutting down a little bit at a time. NLC officers are writing a plan on how to close down the College in an orderly way. We do not have an exact timeline of these events, but we will share it when we do.
Our main focus is on the students. We want students who are close to graduation to be able to finish their degree at National Labor College. To that end, our Provost and academic advisors are recommending course substitutions and finding other ways to make sure you can complete your degree at NLC, especially if you just have a handful of classes remaining. Please contact your academic advisor as soon as possible to discuss your individual educational plan. And remember to do your current classwork so you continue to earn credit for your hard work.
This process takes time. Since each student is in a unique situation, we need to determine which students need which courses to be able to complete their degrees. We want the process to be as easy, seamless and stress-free as possible but realize it may be a bit bumpy.
Why is NLC closing? NLC’s Board of Trustees reluctantly decided to accept the inevitability of closure due to the College’s ongoing financial difficulties. The financial difficulties stem largely from the heavy debt burden taken on when the Kirkland Conference Center was built in 2006.
Why can’t we just raise more money? We can try to raise more money, and we have been trying. The three main funding mechanisms of any college are: tuition, grants, and fundraising.
Tuition revenue. At NLC, our student tuition is intentionally set a reasonable level – the 40th percentile of in-state tuition for state schools. And although our student body has been growing, the tuition revenue alone will not be able to make a dent in the debt burden of the property. The tuition revenue covers the costs of operating the academic program.
Grants. NLC has received a good share of grants, both federal and state, but once again, while these grants assist in the day-to-day operating costs of the College, they don’t address the debt burden.
Fundraising. The third mechanism is fundraising and President Peinovich has been a tireless advocate for NLC. She personally raised over $5 million from international and local unions, labor-oriented organizations, businesses and wealthy individuals. Under her auspices, NLC held our first ever “Galas” and instituted the “Leadership Circle” which both raised NLC’s profile and gathered funds for the College. NLC also conducted a fundraising drive last year among alumni that garnered $4,000.
Campus Property Sale. As a final effort, NLC has been trying to sell our major asset, the campus property, since the College doesn’t need dormitories and classrooms anymore. While we thought we would be able to get out from under the debt burden over the summer with the sale of our property to Reid Temple and the Montgomery County Housing Opportunities Commission, that deal fell through. The property is still for sale but we have no idea when it will be sold. Many commercial land developers are not ready to purchase the property at the present time because of a pending zoning issue in the county.
NLC is open for current students and federal financial aid is available in spring 2014. Please register now for for the upcoming semester (January – May 2014) so NLC gets a sense of what students need. Payment can be made at a later date. Make sure to apply for financial aid by our priority deadline of December 2, 2013. NLC is no longer accepting applications. We are not admitting any new students in any program.
The value of an NLC degree. No matter how or when NLC closes, NLC degrees will retain their full value since NLC is regionally accredited through the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 3624 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104; (267) 284-5000. For more information about how accreditation works and what it means, go to www.msche.org.
Access to academic transcripts. NLC will work with the State of Maryland and possibly another institution to ensure students and alumni will have access to their transcripts in perpetuity. As soon as we have the details worked out, we will share them with you.
Access to senior papers or projects. Please contact the Office of the Provost (301-628-5603) if you have questions about your senior project or paper.
National Labor College faculty and employees. NLC is meeting with the bargaining unit representatives for all the unions on campus to determine what will happen to employees. The unions include The Newspaper Guild/CWA; OPEIU Local 2; SEIU; IUOE; and AFT.
National Labor College’s Silver Spring campus. NLC’s 47-acre property is currently for sale. There are a number of offers for the property, and the realtor will continue to work with the bidders to sell the property.
The National Workers Memorial. The National Workers Memorial will be relocated to an appropriate location.
George Meany Memorial Archives. The George Meany Memorial Archives were donated to the University of Maryland in October 2013. For more information please visit the archive’s page on the University of Maryland website.
NLC’s Board of Trustees. On the call someone asked for the contact information of our Board members. Their names and positions are all available here on our website.
NLC Campus Art & Artifacts. Many graduating classes, unions and individuals have donated beautiful pieces of art and other special mementos to the College. We are in the process of cataloguing which artwork belongs to NLC, which belong to the AFL-CIO and which belongs to others. We will next determine a plan for the distribution of any appropriate pieces.
Graduation 2014. At this point, we are uncertain whether NLC will be holding Commencement Exercises in person. Typically, we hold a ceremony on the fourth Saturday of June, so that would be Saturday, June 28, 2014.
National Labor College Community 
Gerald Guerrero said:
I’m wondering if I can take three classes per semester so I can finish in 1 yr? Need answers? Thank you, Gerald Guerrero
NLCcommunity said:
Gerald, we’ve forwarded your message to our Academic Advising team – they’re the best people to answer your question.
You can reach out to your advisor here: http://www.nlc.edu/students/academic-advising.html
Anonymous said:
I wonder why the NLC took on the debt burden in 2006 building the Conference Center if tuition covers the cost of the academic program and grants cover the day to day operations of the college. How did they plan to pay for this debt when they made it?
It is a tragedy to the labor movement that this school is going under. The things I have learned here in the last 2 years would have never been taught anywhere else in the country. Labor has taken a step back with this event and I hope we can recover soon.
Anonymous said:
unions have left the AFL-CIO. This school is typical of union mismanagement across the board. Let’s go ahead and buy something we can’t pay for!! All you have to do is look at the sheet metal workers building trades Indiana. That says it all. Run by one big contractor for the most part.And appointed officials out for themselves holding on to what they have. Nothing more needs to be said. It was good while it lasted, say good bye to everything our forefathers worked and fought for. It’s going to get worse before it gets better for sheet metal workers in the building trades. The rest are next. we are on a down fall and no way to stop it. Hold on tight because this is just the beginning.
Michael Caffrey said:
What provisions and assistance will be available for those students that are not close to graduation? I met with representatives at the IATSE Convention in July of 2013 and I feel blind sided, by this closing. Will there be a spring term 2013?
NLCcommunity said:
Michael, the best person to talk with is your academic advisor. We are currently registering students for the Spring 2014 semester. Registering for spring classes and financial aid by December 2 will help NLC and our board to assess the needs of our students. Payment can even be made at a later date!
jeremy@infowells.com said:
Reply:
Where was support from the AFL-CIO?
The labor movement, the AFL-CIO, UAW, gave Obama and the Democratic Party some $200 million in the 2008 election. (2012 ?).
As the AFL-CIO has been in perpetual decline (organizaed/unorganized membership ratio decline), and as it lost 400,000 members in2013. TheAFL-CIO has degenerated to being a part of management, in demanding workers accept eight year contracts, at reduced pay, at loss of benefits. (Boeing last example, with the UAW relationship to it’s membership, etc.) The UAW recently allowed the end of the eight hour work day and loss of overtime pay at one auto facility.
But I am sure you know all of this and seen it happening.
The AFL-CIO, with 10-11 million dues paying trade union members, has a steady stream of tens of millions income every month. The UAW bureaucracy, Bob King, administering VEBA, with an economic stock interest in Chryslet, the wealthiest of unions, couldn’t help?
This is yet another indication of the complete collapse of the trade union movement as a representative of worker interests, and becoming a complete Human Resources management arm of corporations.
Please read the attached .pdf as a rather “utopian” proposal, which is rather joke at this point.
Jeremy Wells.
Michael J Butler said:
There are 2 things going on in this country that everyone needs to pay attention to:
1) our Government is creating more debt then we can ever pay yet our representatives are some of the wealthiest people in America.
2) our unions are turning there backs on our members while living on incomes that at lease double our pay yet our locals are barely scraping by.
This is the plan of the wealthy, to take control over all our lives in everyway so they can have all the power and money while the rest of us poor slobs that work for a living and make the economy work have to scratch out our a living in a terrible future of a debt ridden society. This closing of NLC is a tragety! The George Means Center should not ever be moved or done away with! My degree from NLC was one of the most uplifting times of my life and now the whole thing is just a memory without a location to so my grandchildren. A very sad day has come about for the working people of America and everyone is just fine to sit back and watch it happen. After lives have been given and taken for our labor rights, we are just watching it all slip away!
Joe McCulley said:
I am a retired Steelworker and 33 year member of the union. I saw an article in the latest edition of their magazine about the National Labor College selling their school property. Since in all the years I have been involved in the labor movement as a local union official and member I had never heard of the college. So I thought I would go online just to obtain some information. To my surprise I found out the college is closing due to debt on a building. Two questions: Why has the college been kept a secret to labor union members all these years, and why would the administration take on a debt they had to know in advance they could not pay? Looks like bad management to me!
NLCcommunity said:
A number of factors have changed since the 2006 construction of the Kirkland Center. The building was constructed to serve as a resource for students, but also as an income-generating conference center.
However, after the 2008 economic downturn, many organizations needed to cut back on their conferences. The recession hit NLC hard, as it did many other nonprofits and unions.
Anonymous said:
That would be the AFL-CIO’s problem if Sweeney didnt have the “lets build it and they will come” mentality. Use for the school I agree, but the decision to build the convention center in DC, any idiot knows that Conventions are held in warm sunny places like Vegas and Florida.
William Hickman said:
I want to register for spring ,at the colleges, they said, are available please let me know the Colleges, so i can be sure they accept my courses.Also where do i send my claim form in, for reimbersment if said college dosent accept credits.
NLCcommunity said:
William, we are registering students currently for Spring 2014 classes. Payment can be made at a later date. Get in touch with your academic advisor about other questions you may have.
C. Jay Hadley, BLE (T) 193, New Orleans, LA said:
Rich Egeland would like to have the Mother Jones picture that was hanging in the library.He was a major contributor in the commissioning of an artist and will hang the picture in his Union Hall in Chicago. I believe he is trying to communicate with the College for its return.
NLCcommunity said:
We’ll forward your message along. We are in the process of cataloguing which artwork belongs to NLC, which belong to the AFL-CIO and which belongs to others. We will next determine a plan for the distribution of any appropriate pieces.
Al Abromitis said:
A devastating blow to the labor movement. It appears an educated union membership is a low priority to the AFL-CIO leadership. So sad.
Laura Dely said:
Like unions in general, there is no contact information for the NLC Board of Directors on the NLC web site.
This is a short-sighted practice that is highlighted by the want of many of the NLC community to reach the NLC Board members.
I do not understand why it is so difficult to contact labor leaders, especially now that the Labor College is in crisis and is closing.
Anonymous said:
Go to https://sites.google.com/site/savethenlc/home and find some information on how to contact them
anonymous said:
The NLC has been in a state of crisis for years. Management just chose not to disclose it to the students. They chose to create a false sense of security that has blindsided each student. I feel sorry for the students who spent their time and money working towards a NLC degree. Here’s hoping that other insitutions will accept NLC classes.
Gerald Guerrero said:
Its easy for someone to claim bad management when they have no proof. Mr. Anonymous doesn’t have to the sac to post his name. Just as big of a coward as the folks he is throwing under the bus! Our nation has been struggling for many years, lots of business have failed and are currently failing. So be part of the solution not part of the problem!
Ed Kelly said:
what’s your solution genius? Another Obama? Another deduction from our dues for the AFL-CIO? Another deduction for the building trades council? Another deception by union politicians. I’m not mister anonymous but he’s right. What’s going to stop them from starting another semester, collect the money then close the doors a day after the students can’t withdraw?
Gerald Guerrero said:
Again, another bus driver who needs a hug. If union politicians are so deceptive then why are you in one? Our local, IBEW Local 11 is making ground in membership. Our local is thriving when others are struggling. Dues are tax write off Mr. Kelly. So put on your big boy pants and suck it up. Things go wrong in life. Stop blaming the POTUS for your misery and do something for a change instead of whinning. I’m not happy about my current educational status either. I will lose time and money but I just have to transfer to another school. It is my choice. Learn about choice. If you aren’t happy with the union have some self esteem to change policy.
Nope. You are too busy crying about how the POTUS has wreck your world.
sally weger said:
Well said , Mr. Guerrero !
NLCcommunity said:
Ed, NLC is currently registering students for Spring 2014 without having to make a payment at this time.
anonymous said:
For more information about how accreditation works and what it means, go to http://www.msche.org. This website/link doesn’t exist. What does this mean about the NLC accreditation?
NLCcommunity said:
The link above is working. Institutions like Princeton University, Pace University, and American University join NLC in carrying this accreditation.
If you’re having problems on your end accessing the website, you can also contact them by phone or email.
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
3624 Market Street, 2nd Floor West, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Telephone: (267) 284–5000
E-mail: info@msche.org
Anonymous said:
Is this a joke? You’re comparing the NLC to Princeton?
C. Jay Hadley, BLE (T) 193, New Orleans, LA said:
It all depends on how you want to compare the wo. If it’s an MBA you’re after you’ve come to the wrong college. Same thing could be said of Princeton if you want a course in Labor Negotiations~ you’re outta luck. NLC is a college for the working man and Princeton is an Ivy league school. I don’t think a comparison is fair play.
Tanya Cassingham said:
The MSCHE is the same commission that accredits Princeton and the other schools mentioned.
Michael Murphy said:
My NLC degree was enough to get me into the University of Texas School of Law–a top 20 law program, so yes, an NLC degree is as good as an ivy degree.
gerald guerreo said:
I always love the comments from folks like anonymous because they don’t have the self confidence to post a name in fear of someone finding out who they are. A person who goes to NLC is confident and can make a different in the world. They don’t need a Princeton degree to hold their head up in the world.
Helena Worthen said:
Let’s talk about what the NLC community, which is huge, can do to support the college while this process goes on. It sounds as if the immediate thing to do is to get students to register for Spring semester classes so that they can complete their degrees. This means contacting people through whatever networks you have, helping them understand what is going on and helping them get back on the track so they can graduate with an NLC degree.
joseph mark yancey said:
i think it is a crying shame that the only specialized labor college in the United States of America can not support itself to continue. This institution represents a lot more than labor students represented by labor unions. It represents a way of life in America. I received my degree in 2002 and went on to receive a Masters of Public Administration in 2009. I can tell you my degree in labor studies has been invaluable to me in my job as a labor relations specialist with the federal government. i understand that a miscalculation in management was made to construct the Kirkland Center, things happen and change, but i can not understand how the AFL-CIO would allow this to happen to such a valuable institution. Strength is truly in numbers, so lets pull all the stops out to save this college. Joseph Mark Yancey
Rene Mendoza said:
Lets think about what can be done. If it’s not going to be the NLC, what part of our institution can be saved and rebuilt. Maybe we can just offer one program in labor studies with a handful of classes. Become a specialized department at an accredited University with online courses or a small online unionized charter school. Labor must find a way to continue to produce highly educated leaders for continue to grow our rank and file. I look forward to reading about our new ideas this cant be the end !!!
C. Jay Hadley, BLE (T) 193, New Orleans, LA said:
AMEN, Brother !!!!
Paul Plaganis said:
There are other wonderful labor education schools that one can attend. Cornell NYSSILR in New York – full time on campus intuition. And for distance learning, SUNY Empire. Both wonderful labor schools.
onceanemployee said:
Faced with a continuing tide of red ink, no endowment, and constant turnover at the top, the National Labor College’s board voted Nov. 12 to close the college. And NLC presidents did not devote time to fundraising, the number one priority of college presidents-public or private-nationwide. The trustees also approved a 5-year master plan, posted on the college’s website. But for various reasons, nobody has followed it, the ex-employee said. A national marketing plan went unimplemented.
These are some excerpts from an article written in Peoples World. I believe this to be the truest explanation for the NLC closure. The College has choosen to employ various people at positions without the credentials or experience to preform well and move the College into a premier institution for future generations.
Lacy Gillespie class of 2006 and 2009 said:
Brothers, Sisters, and fellow graduates of NLC, I am a 2006 graduate of the college, and a MPA graduate of the University of Baltimore of 2009. I am still trying to get over the 8/24/12 closing of the actual campus beginning with the layoffs of the folks who made our many stays on the campus comfortable. It is ironic that the first to suffer were those NLC/Aramark employees who earned the least amount of money. The sad part is that some of those employees were fortunate enough to obtain a good paying union job at the college without a HS diploma, or a GED. When they were laid off, their chances of finding comparable employment elsewhere are slim and none in this economy. We can sit here and point fingers back and forth, but that will not help those folks. From 2004 thru 2008, we students participated in NLC forums and discussed in depth about how we should take advantage of every opportunity to rebuild organized labor. My only point is that what is left of organized labor have an obligation to continue to educate, agitate, and organize working people or we will continue to parish. Basic union principles such as the improvement of quality of life have been lost in political positions and has continued to divide and conquer organized labor. The best way to conquer a force like organized labor is to take away its ability to educate and grow itself. The only wake up call for corporate America is a general strike or some major collective action of working people everywhere. Do something!
Rene Gloria Mendoza said:
I agree
Anonymous said:
We are planning a picket in DC or National Wildcat strike against the AFL-CIO if they go through with this. Try this site: https://sites.google.com/site/savethenlc/home for upcoming information.
Anonymous said:
https://sites.google.com/site/savethenlc/home
Gary Kloepfer said:
The decision to close the NLC must have been traumatic. The final decision to close this Labor educational institute had to be based on the lack of funds caused by the decreasing number of students. The AFL-CIO, nor any of its affiliates, can force members to attend the campus or seek to improve an individual’s Labor education. The NLC was made available at great expense for the purpose of educating workers and improving the skills of Union Officers. Anyone can point the finger of blame on the AFL-CIO for the NLC’s closing; however I applaud it forward thinking from the date the idea of the NLC orginated up to this date. I suggest the conversation switch from one of blame to one of rebuilding the educational efforts by Labor. I am a 2012 graduate of the NLC with a double major and I am proud to announce I have used the education and training from the NLC in a variety of tasks for the American Postal Workers Union. In this regards the workplace for postal workers has improved and union governance has improved also. The closing of the NLC is tragic, but it also represents a new challenge to all of us to develop the “new” educational institute for Labor.
Anonymous said:
Students, me and other activists are going to the following site:
https://sites.google.com/site/savethenlc/home
to learn more about what we can do and the truths behind why this is happening. Closing this school has some other motive. They are also planning something to go to Washington and picket the AFL-CIO headquarters. Ironic isn’t it.
Anonymous said:
Goddard College has a low-residency BA program that works with building trades. Similar format to NLC, and they’ll take up to 75 transfer credits. Faculty and staff are both unionized through UAW. Here’s a link to their program designed for Elevator Constructors: http://www.goddard.edu/partnerships/neiep
E. Fox said:
This is a question that I have asked more then a few times before. Why with all the newsletters and newspapers that our different unions have, they did not talk about NLC. These unions are the same unions that are on the Board and make up the AFL/CIO. You would think it is the easiest way to market the school and build unionism which seems to be falling by the wayside.
Cliff Paschall said:
What about the week long Bonnie Ladin Union Skills classes for union leaders. Will those still be taught?
NLCcommunity said:
Bonnie Ladin Union Skills courses will be offered through April 2014.
Tanya Cassingham said:
Can you please post an update about the BOT meeting on December 17? thanks
S. Walker said:
In the November 15th, 2012 teleconference announcing the closure of NLC, we were informed that further information would be provided in mid December. When can we expect to hear the details?
Lisa Helman said:
Can someone please give us an update on the status of the meeting held this month. We really need to hear from the school officials and/or advisers on the status on the spring and further semesters. We don’t have a lot of time to plan if we are kept out of the loop.
gerald guerreo said:
I don’t know what happened a few nights ago but I will tell those who are in the Construction Management program, to speak with Mr. Garcia at Everglades University. I’m pretty sure NLC is keeping the doors open another semester. I’m enrolled and paid for two classes. I keep hoping I get a scholarship because I’ve already spent some money on classes that I will probably have to retake at Everglades. Do what is best for you in your particular situation. If that means sticking by NLC and hoping to finish, than go ahead. If you have a long way to go like me, I probably will ask for a refund, and transfer to Everglades. If accepted, they are working on a deal to charge transfer students the same rate we paid at NLC. It isn’t in stone so speak to the people at Everglades to verify. NLC gave CM students two colleges as options to continue our education. I called So. Mississippi and they are very $$$ so that is out for me as an option. If your company pays for your school, than maybe it is for you? Either way, speak with as many people as possible. NO more need to name call or speak negatively about the past and what could have been done. Bad things happen to good people. We the students are just in a bad spot right now. Move forward and good luck.
Paul Plaganis said:
I encourage everyone to look into SUNY Empire labor program in NYC. Over 7,000 grads to date.
gerald guerreo said:
Paul, one of my friends is looking into SUNY. They DO NOT have a Bachelor Degree program in Construction Management. I was directing people who are in the CM program to Everglades because they do.
Elizabeth H. said:
Has anyone noticed that NLC has a different website? You can no longer post comments on the new site. Not sure what’s up with that because it’s nice to see folks working together on this tragic situation. Some of the comments are rather negative, maybe NLC didn’t want folks to see those. Oh well.
C. Jay Hadley said:
Yes, Elizabeth…I couldn’t agree with you more. But…the only thing I’ve seen come out of a dead horse isn’t particularly appetizing.
NLCcommunity said:
Hi Elizabeth, I’m sorry you’re having trouble posting comments on the new site. We’re happy you mentioned this because it alerted us to an issue with the new template.
We’ll get comments up and running as soon as possible – the blog is now integrated as part of the main website in order for the conversations to be more central to our online community.
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