Economic Limits as Academic Limits: The Problem of Accessibility

Abstract

Many Christian youth who would prefer to attend a Christian college cannot afford to pay—or aren’t willing to pay—the increasingly high costs of doing so. The Christian colleges that have grown in popularity, prosperity, number, size, and quality during the past generation may have reached a peak in their enrollment capabilities with the traditional delivery model. The 2012 Bain and Company study, “The Financially Sustainable University,” found much of higher education inefficient, overextended, and badly in need of reform. “Approximately one-third of colleges are spending more than they can afford.… Change is needed, and it’s needed now.” The colleges that the Bain brief sees as being at risk include many Christian colleges. Perhaps even more alarming is the assessment of Robert Andringa, former president of the CCCU. Andringa has identified approximately 900 currently or historically faith-related colleges among the 1,600 private institutions of higher education, and of the 900 he finds only 100 “whose financial foundations should make them competitive for decades to come.” While “there remains a steady, dependable student market for distinctly Christian institutions,” there currently exists an oversupply of institutions to serve this need. Affordability has become a major agenda item on the meetings of Christian college trustees.¹