SHARON COHEN and ALAN CLENDENNING
Associated Press
CHICAGO (AP) — When Jamie Bolker started teaching composition at MacMurray College in January, she felt she'd won the lottery. After sending out more than 140 resumes, she had a tenure-track position in English.
Last month, though, Bolker delivered a dire Twitter announcement: "Welp. MacMurray College is permanently closing ... They were already on the edge and coronavirus was the final nail."
While the Jacksonville, Illinois, school's financial troubles were years in the making — fueled by declining enrollment, an inadequate endowment and competition — MacMurray spokesman James Prescott said the challenge of securing funding during or after the economically crippling pandemic helped seal its fate.
The dramatic and widespread f