PORTLAND, Ore. — A longstanding Oregon acupuncture school is closing in Portland's Old Town. The Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, or OCOM, is one of the top acupuncture schools in the country, staff said. Though due to its location, staff said it’s become more challenging to stay in business.
"Starting with the pandemic, we saw an increase of crime, increase of open drug use," Phil Lundberg, the President of the OCOM, said.
Since COVID, many businesses have left Old Town. Now, Lundberg said OCOM has seen a rise in abuse and attacks directed toward faculty and students from people on the streets in Old Town. The school has also seen attendance drop by half, Lundberg added.
“We hear from prospective students that their families counseled them against coming to Portland, whereas that used to be a draw," he said.
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Now, the school will merge with the National University of Natural Medicine across town where students will be able to continue their education.
Though some former students believe the primary cause of the shutdown may be due to the high price of attendance.
"People investing in an education that's hundreds of thousands of dollars that they may never be able to pay off is a huge deterrent as well,” Dr. Cailin O’Hara said.
O’Hara attended OCOM from 2012-2016. While she said the rise in crime could be a factor, cost is the biggest.
"Cost for the student really isn't the issue,” Lundberg refuted. “It's the issues on the ground that keep people from coming that's the issue."
Old Town business owners agree that problems in the neighborhood are hurting some businesses.
"A lot of us are drowning," said Jessie Burke, the Old Town Community Association Chair.
While new businesses are coming to Old Town, it’s been challenging for mainstays to stay afloat, Burke added.
"I hope that our city and county and state leadership take it seriously," she added.
OCOM will close regular operations August 31 in order to graduate a final class of students.