With two months until Birmingham-Southern College closes its doors after nearly 168 years, officials are enlisting the help of local agencies and nearby colleges to ensure students and staff make a smooth transition.

In a newly released FAQ, BSC officials said they are working out transfer agreements with nearby colleges to ensure current students can complete their degrees on time.

Several colleges have already made offers to transferring BSC students – with some including hefty financial aid packages.

As of fall 2023, the private, liberal arts college enrolled 731 full-time students. As the college awaited a lifeline from the state legislature this year, several of those students told AL.com that they were worried about their options if the school were to shut down.

Some are on financial aid packages that might not transfer over. Others feared for their career and athletic prospects.

“I feel like I’m in quicksand,” one student, Daniel Johnson, told AL.com in November. “It’s like I had my chance to get out, but now I’m in too deep.”

BSC officials said they are still in talks with partnering institutions to ensure students can meet transfer deadlines and won’t have to duplicate coursework.

“Specifics will vary based on individual agreements, but the goal is to maximize transfer of credit to meet program requirements and minimize distance to the new institutions,” the FAQ reads. “That means these institutions will likely be in the Southeast.”

Leaders plan to meet with students when they return from spring break on Monday, April 1, to give more details and will hold additional advising meetings that week.

The school has scheduled a transfer fair on Friday, April 5 to help students weigh their options with other colleges. A spokeswoman said the school expects to have most transfer agreements finalized by then.

Other questions involving graduation ceremonies and funding plans, officials said, will be addressed in the days ahead.

Here’s what we know so far:

What will happen to student athletes? Is it too late to enter the transfer portal?

BSC student-athletes who wish to transfer schools can talk to other coaches now or as soon as they are in the transfer portal. The deadline to fill out a transfer portal application is April 15.

Eligible students must be in good academic standing at BSC, meaning students who are not on academic probation or suspension. They must also have met the minimum GPA requirements by the end of the spring semester.

All athletes are able to make a request with the transferring institution to file for an extension on their eligibility. Information on BSC student athletes will remain in the transfer portal until the athlete has matriculated to a new institution.

Will employees get severance payments?

Officials said they do not plan to provide severance to employees affected by the closure. BSC has 292 employees who were paid a total of nearly $21.7 million in salary and benefits in fiscal year 2022.

Staff will receive layoff notices 60 days prior to their termination date, as required by federal law. All employees must retrieve their belongings from the campus before it closes on May 31.

“For us to gracefully shut down our operations, we are not in a financial situation to offer any severance payment instead of the 60-day work-through notice period,” officials wrote.

The school said it will continue to provide health care and mental health benefits to employees through July 31, and is working to secure additional support from local agencies.

I’m a recent donor. Where is my money going?

The college is still accepting donations to “help fund a smooth transition for students, faculty and staff.”

Its annual day of giving, Forward Ever Day, is still scheduled for April 4. That money will go toward the rest of this year’s operating expenses, a spokeswoman said.

Officials said they are still working on a plan to manage the remaining endowed funds “in a way that honors the intentions of its donors.”

About $46 million in gifts and pledges have been committed toward a new endowment in the BSC Foundation. A spokeswoman told AL.com that the school has received about $10 million of that amount. The fund is separate from the school’s main endowment.

I graduate in the summer. Will the school hold a commencement ceremony?

Summer 2024 graduates will be able to either finish their coursework online or through a partnering institution.

A spokeswoman told AL.com that officials are still working on a plan for summer commencement and will let students know once details are in place.