Shuttered NY College Has Alumni Fighting Over Its Future

Two competing groups of alumni have launched bids to buy back their shuttered college.

Wells College — established in 1868 by Wells Fargo and American Express founder Henry Wells — closed its doors last year, prompting questions about the fate of its campus in upstate New York. A mix of alumni jumped into the bidding pool to purchase the 127-acre campus on the shores of Cayuga Lake. One group is offering $10 million, with the stipulation that it would tack on $500,000 to the highest proposal, while another bid $11 million. Neither cohort is backed by a deep-pocketed donor, instead opting for grass-roots fundraising efforts.