Greetings from Concordia University, St. Paul, where we proclaim God’s love for the world in Christ Jesus as we live, learn, and serve together as a university of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. As I returned to my alma mater and began my tenure as president of Concordia University, St. Paul (CSP), in January 2020, I could not have envisioned the opportunities and challenges of the past three-plus years. However, I’ve experienced much joy in serving at this Christ-centered Lutheran university and working alongside talented faculty, staff, regents, and constituents to serve our dynamic and diverse student population.
A. Introduction Established in 1893 to prepare young men for the pastoral ministry, Concordia University, St. Paul, is today a comprehensive master’s university that currently serves more than 5,500 students and offers more than 100 academic programs from the associate’s through the doctoral levels. As we have over the past 130 years, CSP is committed to raising up workers for the LCMS and offers the following church work tracks and certifications: pre-seminary, pre-deaconess, Director of Christian Education, Director of Christian Outreach, Director of Parish Music, and Lutheran Classroom Teacher.
B. Goals Concordia University, St. Paul, is guided by a comprehensive strategic plan titled Vision 2024. This plan contains the following elements: Mission: The mission of Concordia University, St. Paul, a university of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod, is to prepare students for thoughtful and informed living, for dedicated service to God and humanity, and for enlightened care of God’s creation, all within the context of the Christian Gospel.
Vision: The vision of Concordia University, St. Paul, is to be a Christ-centered, nationally prominent Lutheran university known for excellence and innovation that fosters success for all students. Promise to students: Concordia University, St. Paul, empowers you to discover and engage your purpose for life, career, and service in a dynamic, multicultural, urban environment where Christ is honored, all are welcome, and Lutheran convictions inform intellectual inquiry and academic pursuits. Strategic Goals: 1. Grow enrollment 2. Increase persistence to graduation 3. Maintain quality, relevant curriculum to strengthen transition to job or graduate school 4. Grow net assets 5. Accent our Christ-centered purpose as a Lutheran university
C. Performance Analysis Our performance around the five goals of our strategic plan follows. It highlights areas of note for the congregations and members of the LCMS.
C.1. Grow enrollment Over the last triennium, Concordia University, St. Paul, has seen continued success in growing our enrollment. As many of our peer institutions struggle with changing demographics, the economy, the COVID-19 pandemic, and other challenges, we have seen a tremendous response to our efforts to provide a Lutheran, Christ centered, high-quality, and career-focused higher education. • Fall semester enrollment increased from 5,139 in 2019 to 5,502 in 2022, driven primarily by growth in the number of master’s and doctoral degree students.
- International student enrollment increased from 199 in 2019 to 577 in 2022.
- Church work enrollment increased from 56 students in 2019 to 67 students in 2022, an increase of nearly 20 percent.
- After the closure of Concordia University Portland, in the spring of 2020, CSP incorporated its accelerated bachelor of science in nursing (ABSN) program. That program served 389 students in 2022 and is the second-largest provider of nurses within the state of Oregon.
- CSP launched CSP Global in January 2023 as a new division that houses online and hybrid undergraduate and graduate programs and allows for further growth in emerging markets.
rect ion of Dr. Lessing—to provide ongoing training and resources for clergy, commissioned workers, and laypeople; the Center has served nearly 400 people from 33 LCMS districts as well as other confessional Lutheran church bodies
C.2. Increase persistence to graduation Concordia University, St. Paul, staff and faculty work diligently to ensure students can continue their studies until they complete their chosen degrees. We celebrate that we’ve seen an increase in the total number of graduates from 1,510 in the 2018–19 academic year to 1,831 in the 2021–22 academic year. We recognize that we need to continue working hard to remove barriers to increase the rate of retention for new freshmen and transfer students. Our retention of LCMS new freshmen and transfer students remains strong.
C.3. Maintain quality, relevant curriculum to strengthen transition to job or graduate school Concordia University, St. Paul, continues to add new academic programming that aligns with what learners desire and employers are looking for. Examples of new programs added in the past four years include the following: • AAS in Sonography
- ABSN (in St. Paul and Portland)
- BA in Digital Marketing
- MS in Data Analytics
- MA in Trauma and Resiliency
- Ed D and Ph D in Kinesiology
As we continue to track the data on the success of our graduates, we celebrate their successes in launching the next phase of their careers or education. Our most recent data is from the class of 2020–21, where nearly 95 percent of CSP undergraduate students and nearly 97 percent of master’s and doctoral students report successful transitions to career or graduate school. We also see similar success with our church work population, where we have a 100 percent placement rate for geographically mobile graduates as well as a growing number of students matriculating to seminary following graduation.
- Instituting the Church Work Tuition Guarantee, which caps tuition for all church work students at a maximum $6,000 per academic year (before congregational, district, or other outside financial aid); pre-seminary and pre-deaconess students pay $0 tuition per year
- Appointing the Rev. Dr. Mark Koschmann as Associate Vice President of Faith and Ministry to lead our goal five initiatives; Dr. Koschmann works closely with the LCMS and the Rev. Dr. James Baneck on the Set Apart to Serve initiative
- Hosting weekly lunches for church work students with CSP faculty and staff for conversations on Christian vocation, service, and ministry; 40–50 students attend each week
- Sponsoring participant Bibles for the 2022 LCMS Youth Gathering
- Visiting LCMS congregations for Concordia Sundays, where one of our theology faculty or I preach and lead a Bible study
- Piloting a deeper integration of theology coursework into the non traditional undergraduate curriculum as part of CSP Global
- Reshaping our Lutheran Identity Seminar into the Lutheran Higher Education Seminar, which allows new faculty and staff to explore the richness of Lutheran theology and how it shapes their vocations at CSP
- Engaging the Rev. Dr. Phil Brandt to serve part-time as a pastor to students in Portland
- Hosting an event on campus called “Confessio: A Retreat on the Lutheran Confessions” to celebrate the 500th anniversary of Luther’s Baptismal Booklet as well as the confessional Lutheran doctrine of Baptism in relation to the life of the church
- Attending numerous district conventions and pastors conferences throughout the eight-district region that surrounds CSP
- Partnering with CUS presidents and interacting with the 7-03 Task Force to provide insight and leadership in the decision-making processes
C.4. Grow net assets Over the past four fiscal years (2019–2022), total net assets grew by 31 percent, from $107 million at the end of 2018 to $140 million at the end of 2022. Growth was achieved through positive operating results, reduction of long-term debt, and increased value of invested assets and property.
C.5. Accent our Christ-centered purpose as a Lutheran university Our newest strategic goal, adopted in 2020 by our Board of Regents, is a continuation of the work the university has done to remain a faithful Lutheran university and adds some measurable outcomes and additional accountability to that work. Accomplishments during the triennium in this area include the following: • •
- Cultivating an understanding of Christian vocation and mission amongst CSP students through the CUS-wide Beautiful Feet Mission Conference and a CSP-specific winter vocation retreat
D. Conclusion As you can see, God has richly blessed Concordia University, St. Paul, throughout the past four years as we continue to “prepare students … in the context of the Christian Gospel.” While we celebrate our successes, we also take note of the challenges that lay before us. Below is a SWOT analysis that summarizes where we are in 2023 as we look forward to our next 130 years under God’s grace.
D.1. Strengths
Calling the Rev. Dr. Reed Lessing and the Rev. Dr. Joshua Hollmann to serve on our theology faculty, Mr. Michael Thom (Commissioned Lutheran Classroom Teacher) to serve as Chief Diversity Officer, and Dr. Norman Piatti (DCO) to chair our sociology department
- Lutheran identity
- Enrollment growth
- Fiscal strength
- Decade of successes
Establishing the Center for Biblical Studies—under the di-
- Global reach
- Talented and faithful faculty and staff
B. Church Work
- Strong board of regents and executive leadership team
As the numbers above indicate, CUWAA continues to promote and prioritize its church work programs. In order to support the students enrolled in those programs, the university is continually evaluating and enhancing its commitment to our church work scholarship program and seeking new ways to partner with the church broadly.
D.2. Weaknesses • Student persistence to graduation
- Reliant primarily on tuition revenue
- Historic lack of philanthropic support
- Landlocked campus in St. Paul
D.3. Opportunities • Demand for workers in healthcare, business, and technology
- Expansion of Pell Grants and state of Minnesota financial aid programs
- Preparation of a new generation of church work students in the urban context
- Dynamic location of physical campus and real-world opportunities for students
D.4. Threats
C. Health Professions Overall, our various healthcare studies programs remain a strength of the university. Since 2019, we have added graduate healthcare programs to our offerings on the CUAA campus to attract highly qualified students and strengthen their academic reputation and financial position. We have acquired the North Building, approximately 1.5 miles from the main campus, to house our healthcare education programs, including Nursing, Athletic Training, Physician Assistant Studies, Occupational Therapy, and Physical Therapy. In Fall 2022, the CUW campus opened a new pro bono on-campus clinic that allows hands-on learning opportunities for students and provides treatment services to members of the local community at no cost.
- Cultural headwinds
D. Plaster Building
- Public policy and legislation
- Student demographic challenges
- Economic conditions
- Increased higher education competition
Since 2019, the Mequon campus has made good use of the new Plaster Building, which houses the Batterman School of Business. The Plaster Building also houses the university’s Free Enterprise Center and the CU Ventures program, two efforts to encourage CUWAA students and others to explore and gain experience with innovation opportunities.
As we look forward to our goals for the coming triennium, we continue our work to fulfill each of our five strategic goals. In addition, our executive leadership team is in the process of developing our next strategic plan with our Board of Regents to commence following the completion of Vision 2024. Concordia University, St. Paul, thanks and praises God for all those who support through their prayers, philanthropic gifts, time, and referral of students. As we walk together in our common mission and confession, may we continue to point to Jesus Christ, crucified and risen to bring forgiveness, life, and salvation to all who believe. Respectfully submitted,