# LCMS Convention Proceedings_St. Louis Missouri_1944_S456
# Machine transcription, uncorrected — CHI Digital Archive (demonstration)

456: Report of Board for Higher Education

transferred to sister institutions—14 to Oakland; 14 to St. Paw?
_ Milwaukee, or Fort Wayne. ‘In addition, 5 undergraduates tran
.ferred to.River Forest (2), Springfield (1), Bronxville (1), and Fo
‘Wayne (1). Of course, not: all of these transferred students co
tinued their pretheological training, .Consequently, the contribution
of Portland to the supply. of pretheological candidates is very small
averaging about two per year. oO

. Undoubtedly it is true that a more modern plant and better instr
tional facilities would have increased the enrollment, the holding
power, and the Portland contribution to the supply of St. Louis
“ graduates, ‘ a ~
: . . a»
' ; Costs ar

| The Portland institution is uneconomical to maintain. The costs,
in the past have been low when measured in terms of annual operat
ing costs of an educational institution, but annual costs have shown
a steady increase in the last decade. They now stand at about

- $10,000.00 per year. (To the operating figures reported by Mr. Hugs
- ~-$7,753.78 for 1941-42—-must be added tentals paid to professors.
who owned their homes—-$1,296.00 for 1941-42—and miscellaneou:
expenses for repairs, synodical administration, etc.) Plant deprecia+
tion and loss of interest on invested funds obviously increase the cos
appreciably.

However, ‘the actual criterion of economical operation is not t
total annual cost, but the cost to Synod for preparing a theologica
candidate. Since the institution averages about two or three theo-:

, logical transfers to the college freshman class at sister institutions, :
the costs for the first four years of high school training for a theologica

candidate at Portland is between $3,000.00 and $5,000.00 each. This
is an unreasonably high cost. ‘ :

Ofcourse, it may be objected that general students and teacher
training students are also receiving an education in this school. Th
latter group is so insignificant a minority and so few continue to th
normal colleges that they need not concern us in this cost estimate:
The general student’s education is not-for Synod to.finance.

Viewed in terms of the future, the -cost Situation is even more

adverse.. Synod has not in the past provided adequate educationa

. facilities. This school should not be permitted to train pastors in the
future unless it receives adequate equipment and facilities to do

‘effective piece of educational work. Of necessity, then, the

already exorbitant costs will increase considerably if the institution
is maintained. :

Behind these considerations lies the very real and pressing need

~The. costs of a new building to Synod are problematical, but in

event will they likely be less than $100,000.00. Deterioration of plan:
and loss of ,

interest on such an investment would approximate’