The Landing School of Boatbuilding & Design in Arundel has announced that it is closing its doors.

The school along the Kennebunk River has been operating for nearly 50 years, preparing students for careers in the marine industry, including boatbuilding and marine systems. The Landing School’s website describes it as the oldest operating institution of its kind in the United States.

President John Caron and board of trustees Chair Susan Swanton said in a written statement posted to the school’s website last week that “a sustained and significant decline in student enrollment” created financial issues, leading to the decision to close the school.

“The broader forces reshaping higher education — rising costs, shifting workforce trends, and changing perceptions of higher education have hit small, mission-driven schools like ours especially hard,” the statement reads. “We did not make this decision quickly or lightly.”

The Landing School was named after “The Landing” on which it is located: a stretch of land along the river that was home to a number of shipbuilding firms as far back as the 1600s.

Founded by John Burgess and Cricket Tupper, the school opened in 1978 and began teaching students the trade of boatbuilding in a time of increasing demand.

While a full timeline for the closure is still being worked out, the school will refund deposits given for the 2026-27 academic year, the statement says. The school celebrated its final class of graduates on May 16.

Prospective or current students are encouraged to reach out to the school‘s admissions department for assistance in figuring out their next steps.

No official decision has been made regarding the campus, equipment or historical collections, but school leaders said they will announce updates when they can.

“What we cannot close is our legacy,” the statement reads. “The Landing School lives on in every graduate who carried their skills to a boatyard, design studio, or workshop. It lives on in the vessels built, the careers launched, and the communities strengthened by the marine professionals we helped shape.”