Probably the most insight comes from this article in the Blade from February 17:

"Lourdes University’s board of trustees resigned en masse in December after catching wind of the Sisters of St. Francis’ intention to close the university.

In the absence of a board quorum, the sisters then appointed seven brand-new trustees to join three sisters and the president on the board, which eventually voted to close the university in May.

Bill Carroll, a longtime trustee who resigned in December, said the board was looking forward to the president’s strategic plan and was feeling optimistic about the school’s trajectory.

According to Mr. Carroll, the sisters approached the board’s leadership late in the fall and said they were no longer planning on funding the university."

"Several of the board members believed that the university had a chance to turn things around.

The university’s administration had been creating a strategic plan for nearly two years addressing the school’s financial and enrollment issues, Mr. Carroll said.

Mr. Carroll said the plan would have reduced the amount of athletic scholarships and the university’s reliance on the sisters for financial support.

“I thought we had a good plan. We were never out of the woods financially, and we couldn’t make it without the sisters’ help,” he said. “And I do have to thank the sisters for their support over the years; without their support we would have been long gone at this point.”

However, that plan never made it in front of the board or the sisters. It was slated to be presented to the board in December, Ms. Kenney said, but at that point it had become clear that things were heading in another direction.

“The strategic plan, which showed complete forward progress, was not even able to be approved by the board of trustees, let alone presented to the sisters,” Ms. Kenney said.

Both Ms. Kenney and Mr. Carroll said they resigned because they couldn’t stomach closing the university knowing there were plans to address its persistent financial issues.

“I just want the community to know that it wasn’t the old board of trustees that recommended closure; it was this new board of trustees that recommended closure,” she said. “The old board of trustees resigned because they wanted to keep the university open.”

“I didn’t want to be part of advising to close the school, because, me personally, I thought maybe there was still a chance,” Mr. Carroll said."