Kerux: a portfolio of Calvin Theological Seminary - Volume 43.5 - 27 Mar 2009

Seminary Reacts to $500,000 Budget Short Fall

Two perspectives on recent layoffs

by Nate Van Denend, co-editor in chief

"You can’t bend math," stated Vice President for Administration Duane Kelderman in a recent interview with Kerux. In light of the current state of the economy and budget shortfalls in churches across the denomination, seminary revenues from ministry shares are projected to be down 15%. Ministry shares account for 43% or $3 million of the seminary’s $7 million annual budget. The shortfall is projected to be about $450,000. In addition, other revenue streams have slowed. All in all the projected shortfall for the 2009-10 fiscal year is about $500,000.

In order to compensate for this shortfall, President Plantinga stated in his email to the student body on February 25, 2009, "I’ll announce faculty and staff contractions as well as across the board compensation reductions." A few weeks after this email, two of these staff contractions were announced. These announced staff contractions were actually the second and third staff contractions. The first was the elimination of the Administrative Assistant to the Making Connections Initiative and Academic Office position. This position was eliminated in late 2008.

In addition to reductions in staff positions, the possibility of a reduction in faculty positions remains on the table. Some changes in the faculty have already been announced, including Prof. Mary Hulst’s move across the pond to the college and the retirement of Dr. Henry De Moor. Neither Vice President Kelderman nor the faculty members interviewed for this article would comment on the ongoing discussions amongst the faculty regarding the possibility of faculty position elimination or the possibility of faculty compensation cuts.

Other efforts to cut costs include four day work weeks for administrative assistant staff during eight weeks of the summer and an across-the-board compensation cut for all employees to be implemented once the pertinent decisions are made with respect to the faculty. Unnecessary travel and hospitality have also been cut from the budget.

On the revenue side, efforts are being made to increase donor contributions to the seminary. This process is a two-phase process. The first phase includes contacting donors who may be willing to match funding raised in churches and by individuals. The second phase will be to contact churches and individuals with the promise that the money they raise will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the donors. The first phase of this fundraising effort is nearing completion. The second phase will begin shortly.

Currently there are no plans to pass the burden of the budget shortfall to the student body. Tuition will not be raised for 2009-10 but will remain at the 2008-09 rate. In addition, scholarship monies will remain roughly the same as last year. This is because these monies are distributed based on a three-year rolling average to allow for market fluctuations.

While math cannot be bent, the emotions of individuals caught up in the reality of financial contractions do bend. In an interview with Richard Eppinga, Senior Development Officer, these emotions were expressed. With regard to the recent layoffs of Amy Vander Slik and Karen Obits, Eppinga stated, "I am bitterly disappointed. I gave my best advice [to the administration on how to avoid layoffs]. It seems to me that the seminary could have done better. People would have sacrificed for dedicated people to stay on.... What about voluntary days off? What about everyone taking a hit?" Eppinga openly wondered if it was necessary to let go of these two dedicated employees.

He did not feel adequately informed regarding the process leading up to the layoffs, which in turn led him to question the necessity of them. "People just get told this is the way it is," he said. "While I love my seminary, I don’t feel good about it because of this process."

Kelderman’s view of the staff cuts was different. "The number one piece of advice [the administration received from those it consulted] was to make the necessary cuts, not avoid the hard decisions and kill the organization by a thousand little razor blade cuts." With regard to Amy Vander Slik and Karen Obits, he stated, "Both were really appreciated and these were really tough decisions to make.... You got a $500,000 problem. After consulting the development committees, we realized there could be no ’sacred cows.’ Staff was one of those areas that needed to be cut."

As to Eppinga’s issue regarding not feeling adequately informed about the process leading up to the layoffs, Kerux raised this issue with Vice President Kelderman, although from a different perspective. Kerux wanted to know what students could learn from the seminary’s response to its current fiscal situation. In particular, what concepts should students take into the pastorate when revenues are down and staff cuts are being considered? Kelderman responded that it would be a good idea to have a panel discussion to explain the steps and the decisions which had been made.

The panel discussion is anticipated to take place before the end of this academic year.

The interviews with both Kelderman and Eppinga ended on conciliatory notes. Kelderman stated that if the board disagreed with the decisions made by the administration, then the board has the authority to redirect the administration or, for that matter, appoint a new administration. But it seemed clear to him that the administration is actually implementing the board’s directives. Eppinga concluded, "I would be happy to be proven wrong [about my misgivings regarding the process and necessity of laying off Vander Slik and Obits]. And I would apologize."