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LCMS Convention Workbook St. Louis, Missouri — 2026, Page 83

Scan: The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod

Transcription machine transcription, uncorrected

OFFICER, BOARD, AND COMMISSION REPORTS
R14

Concordia University System
Established by the 1992 Synod convention, the Concordia University System (CUS) unifies the universities of the Synod around
our central mission to educate students for godly vocations in the
Church and the world, with a biblical foundation and the Lutheran confession of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The 2023 convention
further refined this role by relieving CUS of operational responsibilities, allowing us to focus on our universities’ Lutheran identity
and mission. CUS, under the leadership of its board of directors and
new staff, has taken up the challenge of this mission and made great
strides toward an established, lasting approach that implements the
Synod’s convention decisions while honoring the academic freedom and autonomy of our institutions. CUS, as a synodwide corporate entity, serves as a buffer between corporate Synod and the
five Synod universities, implementing the directions of the Synod’s
conventions while maintaining the degree of separation required by
national accrediting boards for our institutions.
CUS accomplishes this delicate task through a system of visitation in accordance with Synod Bylaws and the best practices of
the Lutheran educational tradition. Under the direction of our board
of directors, the CUS staff has diligently maintained open lines of
communication with our institutions and demonstrated the Synod’s
care for our universities through extensive visits and financial support. Throughout our history, the Synod has entrusted us with the
stewardship of a large endowment comprising many funds to support our institutions and student scholarships. The CUS staff also
facilitates coordinated efforts among our universities to promote
Lutheran higher education, recruit students, and drive collaborative
improvement.
CUS maintains a small staff to handle assigned tasks. The Rev.
Dr. Dean O. Wenthe retired after ten years of service to CUS in
2024. Following the restructuring after the 2023 Synod convention,
the CUS Board of Directors called the Rev. Dr. Jamison Hardy to
serve as president, the Rev. Dr. Douglas Spittel to serve as vice-president, and the Rev. Dr. Paul Philp to serve as executive director of
Concordia University System Education Network (CUEnet).
CUS has completed the formal visitations to the universities. All
have received the highest affirmation that CUS can give its schools.
This first round of formal visitations has gone very well, and our
schools are in a strong place regarding the Lutheran Identity and
Mission Outcome Standards (LIMOS).
In 2024, we overhauled our website, cus.edu. Visitors to the site
now have access to information about all our universities; links to
admissions departments; protocols, policies, and procedures governing our work; news from across the system; scholarship applications; and a donor portal. This report references several documents
available on the website. Readers are encouraged to visit the site.
CUS has successfully awarded 120 $5,000 scholarships to
LCMS church work students in 2025. This effort has been an excellent new step towards funding church work education throughout
the system. We are also seeking to expand our endowment funds
to increase the number of scholarships we award. CUS staff have
completed a new asset allocation across the portfolio with the
LCMS Foundation to maximize returns on endowment funds. We
are now working with the LCMS Foundation to expand our asset
class and investment opportunities.

CUS, in partnership with Set Apart to Serve, held its first admissions summit at Concordia University Chicago in October. This
event was grant-funded and brought together representatives from
all the CUS schools and both seminaries. This event was highly
productive and demonstrated the importance of the CUS operating
more as a system rather than as a collection of independent universities in affiliation. Many great ideas and next steps emerged from
the summit, and we will follow up on them.
We continue to find ways to sponsor church events to gain recognition and build partnerships. CUS is now a sponsor of KFUO
Radio’s The Coffee Hour, the Higher Things summer youth conferences, various district youth conferences, and the theological
symposia at both of our seminaries. These sponsorships provide us
with visibility among youth, pastors, and members of our beloved
Synod. This has been a very successful endeavor. We look forward
to the opportunities ahead in the coming triennium. We are working
with all the universities on the CUS exhibit area for the Synod convention. Delegates and guests are invited to visit us.
CUS has held discussions and conducted district visits to explore micro-campus options for church worker preparation. This is
a district initiative through which we serve as a conduit for cooperation with the universities. We have worked with the Iowa East,
Mid-South, Southern, and Southeastern districts to investigate sites
and partnerships. This initiative is progressing well, and opportunities are increasing. We are focusing specifically on the “desert”
areas of the country where we have no university campuses.
Representatives from CUS met with Luther Classical College
officials and the Wyoming district president to continue discussions
on a potential partnership and CUS membership. Currently, Luther
Classical College has articulation agreements with two of the five
Concordia universities, allowing graduates to complete their education and certification at a CUS school. We are encouraging them
to sign agreements with all CUS schools. CUS staff have also met
with other independent educational start-ups to encourage adherence to the Synod’s biblical and confessional standards and engagement with the Synod’s existing system of universities and seminaries for the education of our rostered church workers.
Since the 2023 restructuring, renewed collaboration and partnerships between CUS and the university presidents have emerged.
Our presence on campus, through visits and participation in
meetings and events, has produced significant results in relationship-building and the growth of trust. The new visitation process
is fully implemented, and we are already seeing positive results.

A. Convention Actions
A.1. Res. 7-03, “To Call Concordia University
Texas Leadership to Repentance”
The CUS Board of Directors sent a letter to President Donald
Christian on September 19, 2024, reiterating Resolution 7-03 and
calling on Concordia University Texas “to reverse course and undo
the damage it has done to itself and the countless faithful individuals and congregations that founded, prayed for, attended, and
selflessly supported the school over these many years” and to “be
reconciled to the church that mothered, nurtured and sustained you
for so many years.” No response was received.
CUS President Jamison Hardy has met with Texas District President Jon Braunersreuther to discuss the matter and seek ways to
diffuse the situation.
2026 Convention Workbook