To the Editor:

Next fall, for the first time, the students of Westminster Choir College will begin their academic year in Lawrenceville.

Rider’s plan to transition Westminster’s programs to Lawrenceville represents our larger vision of elevating and enhancing all of the university’s arts and music programs, including Westminster’s, and creating new opportunities that will serve the needs of 21st-century students. In that spirit, Westminster Choir College students will continue learning from a curriculum that adheres to the highest standards in an environment that nurtures their personal, academic, and musical growth.

Rider has been a proud champion of Westminster Choir College since the two institutions affiliated in 1991. But because the university has incurred persistent financial losses in operating Westminster in Princeton, the board of trustees determined that it does not make financial sense to continue operating a separate campus for a student population that, in any given year (even at full enrollment), typically makes up less than 10 percent of Rider’s total enrollment. The costs associated with operating two fully operational campuses in such close proximity are no longer sustainable.

Despite these circumstances, we recognize the connection between the Princeton community and Westminster, which was one reason Rider went to extraordinary lengths to find a partner willing to keep Westminster in Princeton. In 2017, Rider contacted more than 280 institutions to gauge their interest in operating Westminster in Princeton. That outreach yielded only five proposals committed to keeping the Choir College in Princeton, none of which were from a U.S. higher education institution.

Rider determined that Kaiwen Education was the best option to achieve the goal of keeping Westminster in Princeton. But last July, Rider and Kaiwen agreed to end the agreement for Kaiwen to operate Westminster after it became clear the timeline was not feasible.

To this day, after nearly three years and despite the sense of urgency surrounding Westminster’s future, no other individual, organization, or entity has presented Rider with a viable plan that would maintain Westminster in Princeton. Anyone who claims to have an alternative plan in their back pocket has had many chances to present it. Now, given the extent of resources invested in the transition, those chances have passed, and we are intensely focused on ensuring a successful transition.

To be clear, the trustees did consider an alternative to moving Westminster: closure. For everyone who has been touched by the talent of Westminster’s students, alumni, and faculty, we’re grateful the trustees have rejected this option in favor of pursuing a way forward for Westminster and its esteemed musical legacy. In addition, we hope to retain a portion of the Princeton campus, in part for the Westminster Conservatory, an important member of the greater Princeton community.

We continue to believe strongly in Westminster and the importance of its cultural contribution to the world. We are making every effort to perpetuate those contributions and create a strong and sustainable future for Westminster Choir College.

Gregory G. Dell’omo, Ph.d.
President, Rider University