Monday, December 31, 2012

Concordia U. System - Another Node in the Higher Education Crisis

All we ask is that you support the professors in luxury while
they scramble to do as little real work as possible.
God bless...

bruce-church (https://bruce-church.myopenid.com/) has left a new comment on your post "LCMS Seminary Cost Scandal: Fabulous Costs To Supp...":

Concordia U System took the LCMS to the cleaners. Instead of the LCMS helping establish the system until it could be independent, the CUS used the LCMS offering plate as a permanent source of operating funds, and the necessary endowments never occurred because professors kept demanding higher salaries. Worse still, the seminary professors demanded higher salaries based on the idea that their salaries ought to be competitive with the CUS professorships, and talk about inter-generational sustainability was ne'er heard, since it was assumed that no institution would ever need to outlast the Baby Boomers. That's similar to how Washington has run up a great debt since, after all, doesn't life end with the Baby Boomer generation?:

http://steadfastlutherans.org/?p=25787


You mean Steadfast UOJ!


....The synod at its 2013 convention will need to talk about financial support for its universities. The latest Reporter describes some of that discussion and new proposals for a “CUS 2.0″ (see reporter.lcms.org). We also need to keep in mind the latest LC-MS Treasurer’s Report, which states “When the CUS was formed, it was not specifically provided with any funding mechanism to allow it to accomplish the last of its goals (i.e., capitalizing the schools and the System)” (see Lutheran Witness 131 #11 (Nov. 2012): 24; also Reporter 38 #11 (Nov. 2012): 8; and online here). I thought that when the CUS (version 1.0) was originally introduced, the primary purpose was to provide a funding mechanism for capitalization of the schools and the system. I’d say that the synod “got taken to the cleaners” on that promise. Proper capitalization of the CUS and “living within its means” is way overdue.

Although some restructuring, down-sizing of individual campuses, down-sizing of the number of campuses, consolidation, or expense-reduction to match revenue may certainly be in order, the synod should not abandon its universities or let them “run free” of synodical oversight. We have, over the years, invested too much in their campuses, faculties, congregational relations, and other tangible and intangible assets to just let them “wither on the vine” or sever their connections to the LC-MS altogether. As to what should get restructured, cut, merged, expanded, or reduced I can’t say and won’t guess. It is a complex problem for the LCMS Board of Directors and CUS administrators to figure out.


Don't take treasure from the dragon Smaug.