Future of Division III

[Ron Boerger]

Middlebury's endowment increased from $1.6B in June '24 to $1.73B in June '25; it'll be interesting to see what they do with the proceeds of this sale.  The balance sheet is strong with $2.4B in assets and $539M in liabilities, of which $372M (edit: not B!) is long-term debt.   

[ziggy]

It seems to me any school carrying debt has a fairly obvious target for funds that are otherwise unallocated.

[jknezek]

It seems to me any school carrying debt has a fairly obvious target for funds that are otherwise unallocated.

Not really. Nothing wrong with having some debt. It's cheap money for most of these high quality schools.

[WUPHF]

It seems to me any school carrying debt has a fairly obvious target for funds that are otherwise unallocated.

Say you have never worked at a college or university without saying you have never worked at a college or university.

[ziggy]

It seems to me any school carrying debt has a fairly obvious target for funds that are otherwise unallocated.

Say you have never worked at a college or university without saying you have never worked at a college or university.

My perspective is admittedly driven by more of my approach to personal finance than the operational norms of institutions of higher learning.

[WUPHF]

My perspective is admittedly driven by more of my approach to personal finance than the operational norms of institutions of higher learning.

I am joking of course.

I could have said say you were smart enough not to work at a college without...

[WUPHF]

It was also mentioned Drake would be an option, but the Des Moines area already has the Des Moines University College of Osteopathic Medicine.  With med schools in Dubuque, Iowa City, and Des Moines, I would think a school like Morningside in Sioux City would be the next best option in the state. 

I was aware of the other osteopath school in Des Moines, a major city that could very easily support two medical schools.  My point was that the go-to is typically private research universities.  Santa Clara, Lehigh, etc. 

The decision by all involved to establish a medical school at the University of Dubuque in the 21st century is paradigm shift.

Here is a game-changing idea for the state...

The Archer Daniels Midland School of Dentistry at Coe College.

[Gregory Sager]

A decade and a half ago there was a heavily-recruited 6'9" high school senior who announced on social media that he was going to play basketball for Augustana because it had a great medical school. He apparently meant that he'd heard that it had a great pre-med major, or that Augie biology majors had a good track record for doing well on the MCAT and getting into med school, but on the CCIW board we had loads of fun with his declaration. (As it turned out, he left the Augie basketball team halfway through his career there, and he ended up graduating from Augustana with a B.A. in communications.)

His enthusiasm about Augustana's medical school is the first thing I thought of when I read the words "Archer Daniels Midland School of Dentistry at Coe College," because back then we joked about the "John Deere School of Medicine at Augustana College."

[mr_b]

Your postscript about sports and graduation raises an interesting and timely issue, FDF. It's been a tradition at North Park for decades to hold a separate graduation ceremony for senior student-athletes in spring sports whose teams have qualified for postseason tournaments or meets that will take place on Commencement Saturday. It's always held on the Tuesday of Commencement Week in the small and intimate Isaacson Chapel in Nyvall Hall, the seminary building on North Park's campus. It's usually a function that serves North Park baseball teams that have qualified for the CCIW baseball tournament, although sometimes (as happened this year) the softball team also qualifies for their CCIW tourney and thus has its seniors receive their diplomas in the Tuesday graduation ceremony in Isaacson as well. The tradition used to be that the baseball players would wear their North Park baseball caps in lieu of the usual flat-topped and tasseled mortarboard graduation caps, but this year they abandoned that tradition and went with the standard mortarboards...

The first time this happened -- in 2010, I think -- I was the lone faculty member who was able to participate.  I was even pressed into service as marshal for the event. I was happy to do that because I worked closely with the team (as statistician) and knew most of the players very well.  It was a rather short ceremony (which I appreciated!), and each of the players and their families got lots of photo time with the president, provost, teammates, and coaches.  We had a group photo taken in which everyone (including the president) donned a North Park baseball cap.  Then we went outside Nyvall Hall to continue the photo fest, surrounded by all the beautiful flowers and shrubbery.

Subsequent early graduation ceremonies have included graduating softball players when their team qualified for the CCIW tournament.  More faculty members joined in, too, usually invited by the coaches at the request of the players.  It was always a very nice event, and an apt reward for student-athletes who qualified for post-season play.

[WUPHF]

A decade and a half ago there was a heavily-recruited 6'9" high school senior who announced on social media that he was going to play basketball for Augustana because it had a great medical school. He apparently meant that he'd heard that it had a great pre-med major, or that Augie biology majors had a good track record for doing well on the MCAT and getting into med school, but on the CCIW board we had loads of fun with his declaration. (As it turned out, he left the Augie basketball team halfway through his career there, and he ended up graduating from Augustana with a B.A. in communications.)

His enthusiasm about Augustana's medical school is the first thing I thought of when I read the words "Archer Daniels Midland School of Dentistry at Coe College," because back then we joked about the "John Deere School of Medicine at Augustana College."

There is nothing else quite like Division III basketball.

[Kuiper]

Baldwin Wallace Announces Another Round of Program and Budget Cuts

Baldwin Wallace is downsizing yet again.

And the university doesn't have much of a choice according to president Lee Fisher, who wrote faculty and staff last week with the news following a board meeting on May 8 that finalized the school's budget for the next year.

To reach "financial stability," the school will have to phase out and cut some 35 programs—28 majors and minors, along with seven grad programs. Ten faculty will be let go as a result.

Majors that will no longer be offered include Community Health Education Promotion, Economics, Human Resources, International Business, Mild/Moderate Educational Needs, Music Theory, Physics, Sociology, and Sustainability.

The decision to slash those programs, Fisher urged his staff to understand, was made "only after extensive review and thoughtful consideration."

"At the same time, we must also be clear about why we are making these decisions," he wrote. "They are grounded in our commitment to ensuring that BW remains strong, sustainable, and able to deliver on our promise to our students today and in the years to come."

A university spokesperson said that while the majors themselves are being eliminated, much of the same coursework and instruction will still be available as part of other programs.

Colleges and universities are dealing with an enrollment cliff that economists see as a reflection of declining birthrates during the Great Recession. From Kent State to Lakeland Community College to Notre Dame in South Euclid, the numbers are getting harder to pencil. A 2018 study from Carleton College in Minnesota found that 19 states in the Midwest and Northeast will suffer a 15% drop in students from 2012 to 2029.

BW has already gone through previous cuts and trims. At the end of 2024, BW laid off or offered buyouts for 35 faculty and staff, or about seven percent of its teaching base.

BW's budget woes —an initial estimate of a $3 million deficit that grew to $20 million— have been exceptionally public as have accusations from faculty, staff and students that leadership has bungled day-to-day operations in addition to the bigger picture.

"I don't like to talk bad about anybody, but it was the most toxic environment I've worked in in my life," one former faculty member who wished to remain anonymous told Scene. They cited HR complaints not being followed up on, a my-way-or-the-highway mentality in the administrative staff and secretive reasoning around letting go "competent people."

Including those in the recent line of layoffs.

"I mean, how can you call yourself a liberal [arts] college or a conservatory when you cut Music Theory?" the former faculty member said. "Everything's been cut. Why would anyone go there?"

A BW spokesperson countered those arguments.

"The reduction in faculty positions is not a reflection of their competence – they are all excellent professors. It is a change based on student and market demand for those programs. BW conducted a thorough review of every program and of our ability to recruit, retain, and graduate students in these programs, along with the demand for graduates in the workplace, which led to these changes."

They added: "Under President Fisher's leadership, we have made rebuilding our culture through transparency, communication, and follow-through a centerpiece of BW's transformation. That work is visible to anyone who spends time on our campus today, and we are proud of the progress our faculty and staff have made together. We respectfully decline to respond to anonymous characterizations."

[CNU85]

Interesting informtion. I hope BW successfuly comes through this. Also intersting that Economics was eliminated. Hopefully they still offer some courses. I believe it is important for every student to at least be introduced to it. So does ACTA when they evaluate institutions. I know at CNU, every student has to take at least one Econ class, it might be 2.

[IC798891]

Interesting informtion. I hope BW successfuly comes through this. Also intersting that Economics was eliminated. Hopefully they still offer some courses. I believe it is important for every student to at least be introduced to it. So does ACTA when they evaluate institutions. I know at CNU, every student has to take at least one Econ class, it might be 2.

"A university spokesperson said that while the majors themselves are being eliminated, much of the same coursework and instruction will still be available as part of other programs."

[y_jack_lok]

Interesting informtion. I hope BW successfuly comes through this. Also intersting that Economics was eliminated. Hopefully they still offer some courses. I believe it is important for every student to at least be introduced to it. So does ACTA when they evaluate institutions. I know at CNU, every student has to take at least one Econ class, it might be 2.

What is ACTA? Requiring students to take one or two economics courses wasn't part of the RMC curriculum back when I attended in the 1960s. Nor was it a requirement at Fordham U in New York City where my son graduated in 2009. Is it something recent?

[Ryan Scott (Hoops Fan)]

Interesting informtion. I hope BW successfuly comes through this. Also intersting that Economics was eliminated. Hopefully they still offer some courses. I believe it is important for every student to at least be introduced to it. So does ACTA when they evaluate institutions. I know at CNU, every student has to take at least one Econ class, it might be 2.

What is ACTA? Requiring students to take one or two economics courses wasn't part of the RMC curriculum back when I attended in the 1960s. Nor was it a requirement at Fordham U in New York City where my son graduated in 2009. Is it something recent?

I suspect so.  My daughter enters HS next year and the 10th grade social studies requirement went from 1 of 5 options covering a variety of topics to just either micro-economics or macro-economics.  I believe this is a statewide push.  They've also massively pumped up the portion of her middle school social studies curriculum that covers economics.

It could be a distinctive of Delaware (where we live), but our state tends to follow trends, rather than set the, so I'm guessing it's a nationwide push.