Labouré College to Close

Labouré College of Healthcare will shut down in August but some elements will live on; nearby Curry College plans to absorb its nursing program, officials announced last week.

The transfer of academic programs will require regulatory approval.

“This decision was a hard one to make,” Labouré president Lily S. Hu wrote in a closure announcement posted Thursday. “Faced with persistent financial and enrollment challenges and regulatory hurdles, the Board of Directors proactively investigated options that would preserve Labouré’s mission. The board sought a partner institution with the ability, resources, and commitment to serve our current and future students. In Curry College, we found a partner that shares our goal to make nursing degree education accessible for a student body of adult learners and healthcare professionals who represent the rich diversity of our community.”

The institutions are both private and located roughly five miles apart outside Boston.

Labouré’s closure comes after years of declining enrollment; its head count fell from a recent high of 1,188 in fall 2020 to 530 students in fall 2024, according to the latest federal data.

State regulators voted to shut down the college’s nursing program in 2023 after students failed to achieve an 80 percent first-time pass rate on a national nursing licensure exam, but that decision was overturned after Labouré appealed.

Labouré is now the fourth private, nonprofit institution to announce a closure this year following Lourdes University, Providence Christian College and California College of the Arts.