Northpoint Bible College in Haverhill is at risk of losing its accreditation amid concerns over its financial stability.
The private Christian college received a show-cause order in October, requiring it to demonstrate sufficient revenue streams, institutional resources and financial reserves to sustain operations and withstand potential enrollment or financial fluctuations, according to the Association for Biblical Higher Education’s Commission on Accreditation.
It isn’t the first time Northpoint Bible College has been in the hot seat. In February 2024, the college was put on the commonwealth’s public watchlist of institutions that are financially unstable and/or at risk of imminent closure.
The list was created after the abrupt closure of Mount Ida College in 2018.
Officials at the accreditation agency and Northpoint Bible College did not respond to MassLive’s requests for comment.
Of the four Massachusetts colleges now listed as being in a financially shaky position, three are religiously affiliated. A different accreditor put Anna Maria College, a private Catholic college in Paxton, “in danger” of not meeting institutional resources.
About a fifth of the Massachusetts colleges that have closed in the past decade were religiously affiliated — a high proportion in the state.
Eastern Nazarene College, a private Christian liberal arts college in Quincy, closed its doors in May.
What’s next for Northpoint Bible College
Northpoint Bible College was given until Dec. 15 to prove its viability. A final decision will be made at the accreditor’s February 2026 meeting, where the college’s representatives are expected to be in attendance to answer any questions.
The decision isn’t something that is able to be appealed and could have substantial impacts on the future of the institution if its accreditation is revoked.
Schools that lose accreditation — a higher education quality measure assessed by independent agencies — risk losing access to federal financial aid for students and can have transfer credits and even degrees rejected by other institutions. Colleges can run without accreditation, but would need to take steps with the state as an unaccredited institution.
The Massachusetts Department of Higher Education will remain in contact with the accreditation agency and the college to “ensure that students are positioned to complete the degrees they started regardless of what happens with Northpoint’s accreditation,” a department spokesperson said.
The college had already been given a warning by accreditors in June 2023, which continued for another year before being placed on probation in 2024.
As a result, the college has had to create teach-out plans in case it has to close. Teach-out plans typically arrange for students to finish their degrees at other colleges if the original school closes.
Other locations of Northpoint Bible College, in Kentucky, California and Michigan were approved last month to close.
Northpoint Bible College began in 1924 in Rhode Island as Zion Bible College. In 2008, the college moved to Massachusetts. It primarily trains students for ministry.
It is small with 128 undergraduate and graduate students in Fall 2023, according to the most recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
The college has struggled with its retention rates for first-time students pursuing bachelor’s degrees, with only 19% of full-time students continuing in Fall 2023, according to the center.
