The academic environment in higher education has forced many higher educational institutions into drastic change plans like academic mergers as a means for survival. The climate for higher education necessitates an understanding of when there is a need to engage in an academic merger and how to plan for the success of the merger. The business industry provides over a century of learned practices from mergers and acquisitions that may be applied also in higher education mergers. Research has found that employees drive the success of change and they should be included throughout the merger process. The theoretical framework for this study is based on change management and organizational development. A problem exists when faculty are not included in communication or the planning of academic mergers with administration. A sample of 12 faculty members from 12 different higher education institutions participated in the case study. The purpose of the study was to understand faculty perceptions and how they were engaged in a merger of a higher education institution. The qualitative research data was collected using asynchronous email interview questions and analyzed for emergent themes. The developed themes for faculty perceptions and experiences during an academic merger were: 1) communication for buy-in, 2) planning for success and 3) the emotions of disruption. The results of the study identified several recommendations for administration of a higher education institution working with faculty during an academic merger. Future research to improve on the study would be to interview multiple faculty participants within one institution to gain a broader base of experiences. Additional studies could also research student perspectives as stakeholders in academic mergers. This study learned examples from faculty about strategies that can be used to collaborate with administration during an academic merger in higher education.