By Maria Polletta, The Republic | azcentral.com
Three years after a Mesa push to attract old-school liberal-arts universities landed the city five new branch colleges, two of them have cut their losses and decided to leave town.
Missouri-based Westminster College announced plans to close its downtown campus in April of last year. Pennsylvania-based Albright College followed last month, citing low enrollment numbers.
All eyes have been on the remaining three colleges since, with community leaders quietly wondering whether the city has done enough to support the schools for which former Mayor Scott Smith pushed so hard.
Both city and university officials have acknowledged the difficulty of breaking into the Valley’s sprawling market without the name recognition Benedictine, Wilkes and Upper Iowa universities enjoy in the Midwest and on the East Coast.
