Anthology’s bankruptcy explained: What Higher Ed leaders need to know when exploring Gravyty as an alternative

A vendor collapse can feel like uncertainty, but for many institutions, it becomes the moment they rethink what’s possible..

In September 2025, when Anthology entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy, campuses across the country used the shift as an opportunity to reassess their technology, reduce risk, and transition to platforms designed for long-term innovation and stability.

The result? Instead of uncertainty, advancement, alumni, fundraising, IT, and enrollment leaders now have a rare opportunity to chart a smarter, more stable path forward.

Here’s a look at what happened, why it matters, and what institutional leaders should do now to protect their programs, data, and relationships through the transition.

A quick snapshot of what we’ll cover:

Gravyty offers a stable, AI-driven alternative for advancement and alumni engagement, helping teams ensure continuity, connection, and innovation while the market realigns.

Anthology filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2025, burdened by $1.7B in debt and declining revenue.

The company is being split into three parts: Encoura will acquire its engagement and student success products (including Reach, Raise, and Encompass); Ellucian will take over enterprise and ERP systems; and Blackboard will remain under Anthology.

No new product development is expected until ownership transitions complete in 2026, which is creating a good deal of uncertainty for advancement and alumni teams that rely on these tools.

Institutions should audit contracts, confirm data control, and plan for potential vendor and integration changes as new ownership takes effect.

Table of Contents

1. Why Anthology Filed for Bankruptcy in 2025 (What Institutions Need to Know)
2. Who Is Acquiring Anthology’s Products? Encoura, Ellucian, and What Changes for Higher Ed
3. Anthology Bankruptcy Timeline: How Long the Restructuring Will Last
4. Risks of Staying on Anthology Products After Bankruptcy (Raise, Encompass, Reach, Engage)
5. Key Risks for Institutions During Anthology’s Bankruptcy and Transition
6. How Higher Ed Leaders Should Respond to Anthology’s Bankruptcy
7. Anthology vs. Gravyty: Best Alternatives for Advancement & Alumni Engagement in 2025
8. What Anthology’s Bankruptcy Means for Higher Ed Advancement in 2026 and Beyond

Why Anthology Filed for Bankruptcy in 2025 (What Institutions Need to Know)

For industry insiders, Anthology’s restructuring was really no surprise. 

In fact, it was the culmination of years of rapid, highly leveraged expansion that eventually outpaced operational integration.

Anthology was formed in 2020 from the merger of three major tech players in the higher education space: Campus Management, iModules, and Campus Labs.

The resulting merged entity (Anthology) promised to deliver an all-in-one ecosystem for higher education, including student management, alumni engagement, advancement, and learning.

In 2021, Anthology acquired Blackboard, one of the largest and oldest learning management systems in higher education. At the time, that merger was billed as a big step toward creating “the world’s largest EdTech ecosystem.”

But by mid-2025, cracks were showing.

• $1.7 billion in debt weighed on the company’s balance sheet.
• Annual revenue dropped by $80 million, according to Inside Higher Ed.
• The company’s 30+ products spanned overlapping codebases and customer segments, creating massive integration challenges.

So what happened? 

What you might expect: the private equity firms behind Anthology (Oaktree Capital Management and Nexus Capital Management) faced mounting pressure to recover value from an increasingly fragmented business and decided it was time for drastic measures.

That’s why, on September 29, 2025, Anthology filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. 

That initiated a court-supervised process to split the company into three independent entities, each to be sold to different buyers. 

Being together, in person, made that real.

Who Is Acquiring Anthology’s Products? Encoura, Ellucian, and What Changes for Higher Ed

Here’s what’s changing hands, and what that means for institutions.

Encoura’s acquisition: Lifecycle Engagement and Student Success

Encoura (known for its enrollment marketing and data analytics platform) will acquire Anthology’s Lifecycle Engagement and Student Success divisions.

That portfolio includes:

• Anthology Reach: A CRM-like tool spanning recruitment, retention, and alumni communication.
• Anthology Raise: An advancement CRM and donor management platform for fundraising teams.
• Anthology Encompass: A digital engagement suite for events, giving, and alumni communities.
• Anthology Engage: A communications and email marketing module integrated into Encompass.

According to reports, Encoura is acquiring Anthology’s‘Lifecycle Engagement and Student Success’ assets. 

For institutions currently using these systems, expect new ownership (and probably new support pathways) for engagement tools once the sale closes.

However, this focus does raise an important question: will Encoura invest in advancement innovation, or will its new products primarily serve student recruitment and retention?

The truth is, while Encoura’s acquisition might give the company a stronger foothold in student success and engagement markets, it remains unclear how advancement-focused tools like Encompass and Raise will evolve under the new structure.

Key risk:

Encoura’s historical focus on enrollment and student success may shape how these engagement tools evolve post-acquisition, and whether organizations can expect the same quality and innovation from these tools moving forward.

Ellucian’s acquisition: Enterprise, ERP, and back-office systems

Ellucian, a long-established provider of SIS and ERP platforms (including Banner and Colleague), is set to acquire Anthology’s Enterprise Solutions division.

That includes:

• Anthology Student: The student information system (SIS).
• Anthology Finance and HR: Institutional budgeting, payroll, and personnel systems.
• Anthology Institutional Research: Analytics and reporting platforms.

The goal for Ellucian is clear: consolidate market share in the SIS and ERP space.

Institutions may experience some transition-related changes as the acquisition is completed, especially where systems overlap.

Key risk:

Given the overlap in enterprise systems, institutions should follow Ellucian’s guidance on how the acquired products will align with existing Banner and Colleague environments.

What remains under Anthology (Blackboard)?

Anthology will retain Blackboard, its flagship learning management system.

That means Anthology’s post-bankruptcy future is effectively a return to its roots: LMS software, not enterprise engagement.

For advancement and alumni relations professionals, this marks a complete exit from the space Anthology once dominated.

Anthology Bankruptcy Timeline: How Long the Restructuring Will Last

According to recent reports, the asset sales process is anticipated to run into 2026, with ownership transitions expected to close early in the year.

That suggests that the total restructuring process could take roughly a year to a year and a half (depending on court approvals and buyer transition).

During this timeframe, no new research, feature releases, or major integrations are expected from Anthology’s engagement and advancement products.

For advancement leaders, that pause means one thing: the systems may keep running, but they won’t keep improving.

Risks of Staying on Anthology Products After Bankruptcy (Raise, Encompass, Reach, Engage)

For advancement and alumni teams, Anthology’s technology footprint has always been sprawling.

Historically, it’s spanned fundraising, engagement, student success, and enterprise systems. 

Now, those products are being split across multiple owners, each with different priorities and customer bases.

That fragmentation will almost certainly create real questions for the people who rely on these platforms every day, including: 

• Which systems will stay supported? 
• Which will change hands? 
• And how can institutions protect continuity while this transition unfolds?

Let’s break down what’s known about Anthology’s major products, and what leadership teams should be thinking about right now.

What is Anthology Raise, and what’s the risk of staying?

Anthology Raise was designed to help advancement teams manage donor pipelines, track outreach, and report on giving campaigns. It essentially acts as a CRM layer for fundraisers.

That product now sits inside the Lifecycle Engagement and Student Success portfolio that Anthology is selling to Encoura, a company best known for its enrollment marketing and student success analytics.

Encoura’s focus has traditionally been on student recruitment and lifecycle communications, not donor stewardship. 

So while Anthology Raise will continue to function for now, advancement leaders should prepare for a period of transition: new ownership, new support teams, and potentially a different product roadmap once the sale closes in early 2026.

What this means for you:

If you depend on Raise to power your giving strategy, now’s the time to:

• Confirm contract ownership and renewal terms for FY2026
• Back up donor and solicitation data in exportable formats
• Evaluate whether your CRM integrations could break during the transition.

Even if the product doesn’t go away, the pace of innovation almost certainly will slow until ownership stabilizes.

What is Anthology Encompass, and how stable is it under Encoura?

Encompass has been a mainstay for alumni relations teams, powering directories, event registration, giving pages, and community forums. It’s part of the same engagement suite being sold to Encoura, meaning it will move out of Anthology’s ecosystem entirely.

Reports indicate that product development across these divisions is paused until ownership transitions finalize. 

That’s not a shutdown, but it does mean feature updates, new integrations, and bug fixes may be on hold through 2026.

What this means for you:

Alumni teams using Encompass should be asking direct, practical questions:

• Who will manage our support tickets once Encoura assumes ownership?
• Will our email, event, and donation pages remain under the same SLA?
• How easy is it to export and migrate alumni profiles, communication history, and transaction data if needed?

Encompass may keep your directory running… but for now, it won’t be evolving.

What is Anthology Reach, and will it change under Encoura?

Reach connects multiple points of the student and alumni journey, from recruitment through lifelong engagement. It’s also part of the portfolio transferring to Encoura.

While Encoura will likely integrate these into its own lifecycle engagement suite, those integrations will take time that many teams simply can’t spare.

That means your organization should expect several quarters of operational overlap and limited new development while Encoura consolidates its platforms.

What this means for you:

Cross-functional teams (especially IT and communications) should map where Reach interacts with CRMs, SIS systems, and advancement tools. Any of those connections could be disrupted when APIs, authentication, or data ownership shift to Encoura.

Use this moment to inventory integrations and document export processes before the transition is complete.

What is Anthology Engage, and is it at risk of consolidation?

Engage is the email and communications tool often bundled with Encompass. It sits squarely in the engagement portfolio being acquired by Encoura.

Since Encoura already has its own marketing automation capabilities, there’s a strong possibility of overlap. 

That could mean that tools, features, or functionality your team has come to depend on could change or sunset completely in 2026 – and if you’re not prepared, the results could be significant.

What this means for you:

Communications and advancement teams should focus on safeguarding their digital assets:

• Export reusable templates and campaigns.
• Confirm authentication and domain management (SPF, DKIM, DMARC).
• Verify where consent and unsubscribe data live and how they’ll be handled under new ownership.

Even without structural changes, this is a high-risk window for data loss or compliance gaps.

What about Anthology Student, Finance, and HR under Ellucian?

The Enterprise and ERP divisions of Anthology (including Student, Finance, and HR) are being sold to Ellucian, the company behind Banner and Colleague.

For most advancement leaders, this won’t really affect daily work. But for IT and operations, it’s a big deal. 

That’s because the overlap between Ellucian’s existing ERP platforms and Anthology’s enterprise systems suggests there may be some consolidation in the future.

That doesn’t mean immediate product sunsets, but it does mean your team should anticipate changes in how those systems integrate with advancement CRMs, data warehouses, and reporting pipelines.

What this means for you:

• Confirm which entity will hold your SIS or ERP contracts post-sale.
• Ask for updated documentation on security certifications and data-handling policies.
• Review any data pipelines that feed advancement systems to avoid downstream disruption.

Key Risks for Institutions During Anthology’s Bankruptcy and Transition

For teams currently using Anthology, staying the course through the restructuring might feel like the “safe bet” – but in reality, it could be the biggest liability.

That’s because unpredictability can introduce some serious long-term risks that your organization needs to start anticipating.

Here are some of the biggest risks teams might be facing if they stick with Anthology through the restructuring:

1. Product stagnation

With new R&D paused until 2026, innovation among teams relying on a now static Anthology could come to a screeching halt.

That leaves your team at risk of being outpaced by competitors who are embracing and adopting new AI-driven, data-connected tools.

2. Vendor fragmentation

By 2026, the products that once worked together under Anthology will belong to three different companies. 

That means each will have separate billing, support, and development cycles – all of which can introduce serious headaches to organizations who aren’t prepared.

3. Contract uncertainty

The next time your team looks to renew your contract, you could be dealing with three separate businesses – meaning new terms, new considerations, and potentially new pricing models that can introduce some serious complications without a clear roadmap.

4. Data continuity

It’s critical for your organization to confirm that your constituent data, donation history, and communication archives can be exported securely during the transition. Otherwise, you could risk gaps in data (or worse: total loss of critical information).

5. Integration and compatibility

For teams whose advancement or enrollment stack depends on Anthology’s APIs, expect disruptions as Encoura and Ellucian refactor systems. 

If you’re not anticipating potential integration and connection disruptions between data, you should.

6. Innovation gap

If you’re not maintaining momentum around innovation moving into 2026, there’s a huge chance you’ll be outpaced and potentially limited due to paused development cycles.

How Higher Ed Leaders Should Respond to Anthology’s Bankruptcy

This is a defining moment for higher education technology, and one that could have some seriously long-lasting impacts for teams considering their options and the best path forward.

If you’re considering the best next steps for your organization, here’s a practical framework for what to do next:

Step 1: Conduct a tech stack audit

Document every integration and dependency related to Anthology products. Identify which systems (donations, CRM, alumni data, payment processing) are critical.

Step 2: Assess data control

Request data export options and backup schedules now. Ensure your institution has full access to historical donor and alumni records.

Step 3: Evaluate contract timelines

If your renewal window falls in 2026, start conversations now about continuity options.

Step 4: Review vendor transparency

Ask your account representative or Encoura/Ellucian contact for product roadmaps, staffing plans, and post-transition SLAs.

Step 5: Begin exploring alternatives

Look for unified, CRM-agnostic platforms designed specifically for advancement and alumni engagement… not retrofitted from enrollment tools.

What questions should you ask before choosing a new advancement platform?

• Who owns the company, and how long have they been in the market?
• Is the product actively developed with a visible roadmap?
• Does it integrate with your CRM or require replacing it?
• What kind of support and onboarding do they provide during transition?
• How is AI or automation used to improve donor engagement?
• How does the platform ensure data security and compliance?

Your goal isn’t to replace everything. It’s to ensure continuity while evolving your institution’s engagement strategy.

Anthology vs. Gravyty: Best Alternatives for Advancement & Alumni Engagement in 2025

After months of uncertainty, higher ed leaders are starting to look beyond Anthology’s bankruptcy and ask a more practical question: what comes next? 

For advancement and alumni teams, that means deciding whether to hold out for clarity (and all the risks that entails).

But there is also an alternative: taking this opportunity to partner with a platform that’s already built for stability and innovation.

This is where the difference between Anthology and Gravyty becomes clear. While Anthology’s tools are entering a long period of transition (split across multiple owners and paused development) Gravyty’s advancement suite continues to grow, evolve, and integrate seamlessly with the systems colleges already rely on.

In other words, institutions choosing continuity don’t have to wait for 2026 to move forward.

Here’s how Gravyty and Anthology stack up, and why higher ed teams might want to take this opportunity to make the switch before things get even more complicated.

Category	Anthology (2025–2026)	Gravyty
Product Status	Split into 3 entities; R&D likely paused until 2026	Unified, AI-powered advancement suite
Ownership	Encoura (engagement), Ellucian (ERP), Anthology (Blackboard)	Single, stable ownership with active investment
CRM Integration	Commonly integrated with Microsoft Dynamics 365	Integrates with multiple leading CRMs (including Salesforce and Blackbaud RE NXT), ensuring connection without requiring a full system replacement.
Innovation	Frozen	Continuous AI-driven product development
Support Model	Fragmented across entities	Dedicated transition and success teams
Alumni Engagement	Basic directories and events	Deep community building, mentoring, belonging
Fundraising Tools	Manual pipeline management	Automated donor prioritization and outreach
Future Outlook	Ownership transitions in 2026; near-term roadmap clarity depends on post-sale communications.	Roadmap-driven, secure, innovation-focused

In short: Anthology’s platforms will keep the lights on, but innovation and roadmap clarity are on hold until new ownership structures take shape. That means advancement and alumni teams could spend the next year maintaining systems that no longer move their mission forward.

Gravyty, on the other hand, offers a clear, stable path ahead: a unified, AI-powered suite that doesn’t require a CRM overhaul or downtime. It’s built for advancement teams that can’t afford to pause donor engagement, campaign planning, or alumni connection while the market reshuffles.

If Anthology’s story is one of fragmentation, Gravyty’s is one of focus. That means continuity without disruption, connection that doesn’t halt, and confidence through transition.

What Anthology’s Bankruptcy Means for Higher Ed Advancement in 2026 and Beyond

Anthology’s restructuring isn’t just a company story; it’s a lesson in how institutions can balance innovation with risk.

Over the next 12 months, we’ll see more clearly how this bankruptcy impacts advancement and alumni programs. We’ll see whether they emerge stronger by evolving their technology, or stagnate under outdated tools.

For higher ed leaders, this is the moment to reassess partnership to help ensure you’re protecting your organization’s data continuity, and aligning the technology you trust with your organization’s mission.

Big picture: stability doesn’t mean standing still. It means choosing a partner who moves forward with you.

Gravyty was built to help advancement teams avoid disruption and maintain connection. Book a demo today to see for yourself what that looks like in practice.