The Acupuncture and Integrative Medicine College, operating locations in California and Texas, has announced it will close, according to a statement released last week. The decision came after the institution’s financial responsibility score dropped to 0.9, falling below the 1.5 minimum required to maintain eligibility for federal student aid programs. This metric is used by the federal government to assess institutional financial health.
David Solin Lee, the college’s president and CEO, detailed the closure decision in an email, stating that the institution had 45 days to secure sufficient funding but found no viable path to do so while simultaneously operating a new academic term. Lee characterized the recommendation as difficult but necessary given regulatory timelines and the college’s operating budget constraints. The closure will affect 115 students who were enrolled in fall 2024.
Lee acknowledged the disruptions the closure will cause and expressed regret over the decision. He noted that he had worked toward finding alternative solutions but concluded he could not responsibly begin the next term without concrete financial improvements rather than relying on optimism alone.
The closure comes as Chinese medicine graduate programs face new federal restrictions. Beginning July 1, students in these programs are now limited to borrowing $20,500 annually and $100,000 over their lifetime. Lee suggested these loan caps, combined with other federal regulations, pose significant challenges not only for AIMC but potentially for other Chinese medicine programs as well. He warned that the financial burden imposed by these restrictions will likely grow more severe with each passing term, eventually making operation unfeasible for many institutions in the field.
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