On Nov. 4, Trinity Christian College, a CRC-affiliated liberal arts school, announced that it will close at the end of the 2025-26 school year. Trinity has a teach-out partnership with Calvin to offer its students an opportunity to continue their studies. 

Trinity’s closure follows a trend of closures among Christian liberal arts institutions including Finlandia University which closed in 2023, and Siena Heights University closing in 2026.

According to the college’s website, this closure comes as a result of being “financially impacted by fast-evolving economic and cultural realities: post-Covid financial losses; persistent operating deficits; a decline in college enrollment and increased competition for students; and a shift in donor giving and financial circumstances.” Due to these circumstances, “after reviewing assessments from financial and higher education advisors, and following a period of intense and prayerful deliberation and discernment, Trinity’s Board of Trustees has determined there is no path toward long-term sustainability for our beloved institution.”

In a statement reacting to the closure, President Greg Elzinga said, “We extend our sympathy to the Trinity community during this difficult time and encourage [the Calvin community] to pray for their students, faculty, staff and alumni.” 

Craig Mattson, Arthur DeKruyter Chair in Faith and Communication, taught at Trinity Christian College for 20 years before coming to Calvin University. On the closure, he says, “What a gorgeous liberal arts project Trinity has been in the Chicago southland. From my twenty years at Trinity, I give thanks for the college’s plucky and generous learning community. They used entrepreneurial practicality to pursue racial reparations in South Chicago. They conducted a storied student festival of scholarship, called OPUS, and they did it all with joy and deep learnedness, not to mention infectious merriment. The theater community, the culture of musical performance, the courageous artistic design — all these were determinedly excellent. I honor the enormous effort that faculty from every discipline, in labs and classrooms across the campus, have poured into student research. All these things I give thanks for — and grieve at the same time.”

Teach out

Following the final commencement at Trinity on May 8, 2026, students will have the opportunity to choose between Calvin University, Saint Xavier University and Olivet Nazarene University to continue their studies through teach-out programs. 

Calvin was approached by the Trinity board of trustees in pursuit of a teach-out partnership, according to Laura DeHaan, dean of curriculum and assessment. This, DeHaan explains, was done as Trinity was “trying to find a university with similar values, and we align on our mission — they’re also a Reformed university. I think we’re probably the closest mission fit, which is why they reached out to us, even though we’re not in Illinois.”

DeHaan explains that “a teach-out relationship is … saying we guarantee to store your records [and] we guarantee to help you graduate on time.” A list of undergraduate programs that will be available through Calvin’s teach-out program is available through the Trinity website. 

Students may choose to transfer to another school, but they may not receive the same benefits available through the teach-out partnerships, explains the Trinity website.

In terms of storing records, Trinity chose Calvin to host these documents for all former alumni, according to John Zimmerman, associate director of public relations. The documents that will be handled are “diplomas, transcripts and degree verification,” according to the Trinity website. Calvin was chosen for this duty as Trinity knew “we’d be around. We’re a solid school, and we’ve been around for 150 years, and we’re doing everything we can to continue to be around for another 150 years — they felt it would be a safe place for us to hold their records,” said Zimmerman.

When it comes to graduating on time, areas such as tuition, core requirements and transfer credits are all being considered. 

For tuition pricing, Trinity’s website explains that Trinity juniors and seniors who choose to continue their studies at Calvin “will receive a package with the same net out-of-pocket tuition and fee cost for the duration of their program,” while “Trinity freshman and sophomores will receive a package with the same net out-of-pocket tuition and fee cost for the first two semesters at Calvin University.”  

Core requirements for incoming Trinity students will look different than other Calvin students’ core requirements. For instance, certain core requirements will be waived particularly for transferring upperclassmen, such as having to take one religion course at Calvin, according to DeHaan.

Another opportunity available through the teach-out program is that “credits transferred into Trinity and earned at Trinity will be accepted by the receiving institution,” according to the Trinity website. This, DeHaan says, is “because we’re trying to honor the fact that these students aren’t choosing to leave — they have to leave,” and that “we really do want to serve them.”

Visiting Calvin

Potential students who may transfer to Calvin via the teach-out partnership will be visiting campus on Nov. 25. DeHaan hopes that this day will “give them a warm welcome, and I imagine that when they come, they’re going to want to talk to students and find out about your experience.”