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After 156 years, Wells College is closed.Ìý

Alumni and community members marked the closing date with some college traditions, from the bellringing to singing the alma mater. The Rev. Barb Blom, a Wells alumna, recited "A Wells Song of the Sycamore." 

It has been two months since Wells College's leadership announced the Aurora institution would close at the end of the academic year. The college informed the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, the school's accreditor, that it would close June 30.Ìý

The closure affected students who are in the process of continuing their academic careers elsewhere. Faculty and staff lost their jobs.Ìý

It's expected that a small number of employees will remain at the Aurora campus through the end of the year. The college is working with the state attorney general's office to dispose of its assets.Ìý

With questions about the closure and fate of the college's storied traditions, the event Sunday provided a break from the lingering anger and sadness expressed after the sudden announcement in April.Ìý

As the bells began ringing shortly after 4 p.m., a group of alumni and community members walked through the campus. They strolled by Cleveland Hall, named for former first lady Frances Folsom Cleveland, and Smith Hall, named for Helen Fairchild Smith, who served as dean of the college from 1894 to 1905.Ìý

The tour ended with a walk across the Glen Park Bridge to return to Main Building.Ìý

The group's goal, according to Blom, was to time it so they would arrive as the alma mater played. But the bells rang for 20 more minutes.Ìý

There were some reflections shared Sunday. For alumni, Wells is where they found themselves and developed lifelong friendships. Local residents know Wells as the center of the village.Ìý

"Aurora will change. Wells College will change," Blom said. "But its legacy will always be here."