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NAIA can still offer scholarships while D3 cannot. Concordia Ann Arbor is NAIA and is one of the fastest growing universities in enrollment in Michigan.

Sure thing. Bet you are looking forward to watching their games on ESPN. Oh wait...never mind.

Also why would Padilla say wrong enrollment figures.

It wasn't Padilla, it was Provost Johnson.  Still a valid question however.

One of President Heckler's accomplishments that will hopefully add to the town/gown thinking, was the acquisition of the hospital site, 17 acres. Where would the new arena thinking be if instead, we had a cheesy Super 8 motel on that site?

You remember, when he thought he caught lightning in a bottle by partnering with the world's most oppressive communist government

Once again our friend wh likes to overlook the fact that Valpo was far from alone in welcoming a Confucius Institute.  In fact, there were 118 in the US alone and featured at schools like the University of Chicago, Indiana University and many other Big Ten institutions.

The concept was sound, in recognizing that the world of the future wouldn't be limited to America's shores, but more likely an international conglomeration including the world's second largest economy. Yes, it BECAME controversial but it started out with sound thinking.

Had a chance to watch part of the opening convocation. Enrollment was announced at 600 freshman and transfers and 200  grad students, from 45 states and 11 foreign countries.

President Padilla made one heck of a speech. Good stuff on an apparently pretty warm day.  Heck it was 105 again here in Texas. 

[Put your future into motion by applying to Valpo. The application is quick and free, plus you'll automatically be considered for scholarships up to $30,000 per year when you submit your application.]

s anyone else getting Facebook notices like this? 
Valpo guarantees an $25,000 tuition grant for a 3.0+GPA and with no test sccores required. The private college tuition model is insane and Valpo must be desperately seeking applications. The revenue per student is officially capped. 

I did see the following posted today:

Put your future into motion by applying to Valpo. The application is quick and free, plus you'll automatically be considered for scholarships up to $30,000 per year when you submit your application.

The VU72 comments on Heckler need to be revised.  Yes, several buildings were built under Heckler.  But the huge union project was raised by Alan Harre!  With NO FINANCING! And Harre completed the turf, softball, turf, track, and lighting even though he gets a bad rap on athletics. He was not a great speaker, but they guy got things done.

Wonder how much money Heckler actually raised from donors for his buildings? We could find that in one of these forum threads. Put the rest on the credit card, please.    -- Mark Heckler

What I said was Heckler FINISHED the Union.  As for the other things mentioned, I'll just quote the Athletics site as follows:

"On October 11th, 2014 — the 95th anniversary of the Brown and Gold's first victory on the gridiron — the Warren G. Hoger Track was dedicated".

"Lights were added as well in 2010".

"The facility underwent a number of substantial upgrades prior to the 2011 campaign. An aluminum grandstand structure was built, stretching behind the backstop from dugout to dugout. The middle section features chairback seating, while other sections provide bleacher seating". "A large scoreboard which was updated prior to the 2017 season to feature the program's league championships and NCAA Tournament appearances"

"Hilltop Gym underwent a two-year renovation, including the installation of air conditioning and new lighting, which was completed in 2018". 

Heckler was President from 2008-2020.

During the Heckler regime, a lot of people blamed the board for not being willing to invest in a new or revamped ARC, saying things like they're not interested in athletics, they have their own pet projects, etc. And yet, that same board signed on to President Padilla's strategic plan where a new bb venue is front and center. Heckler was a disgusting president on so many levels. Add this to the list.

That a lot harsh!  During President Heckler's time on campus a lot got done.  For example, the new Chem/Bio building, the completion of the Union, the Arts and Science building, the Welcome Center, Beacon Hall, the Sorority complex, The Helge Center, the launch and large progress toward the Forever Valpo campaign, and I believe, the addition of the student fitness center as well as other stuff like the addition of new programs like physician assistant and bio engineering. As for athletics, during his tenure, Brown Field got artificial turf and lighting, the track was installed, significant upgrades to the softball complex and the upgrades to the basketball practice facility including air-conditioning.

So I guess maybe, just maybe, disgusting might be a little harsh.  It was a different time with different challenges.  A lot of facility challenges faced Heckler and the Board.

In addition to the recent Bradley news of a $12M, add the large deficit of $56M faced by DePaul, a very large urban university. 

CoVID was a black swan event. But the whole country overreacted to the risks. Data was exaggerated and dissenters shamed.  Higher education (largely an esoteric idealistic and fearful group) reacted just as badly as the teachers' unions.  CoVID led to the discovery that remote learning was viable even if less desirable and it led to government coddling of universities financially at a point in 2020-2021 in a way that masked their business model flaws.

You could not pay me 20% more than I earn to move to the financial hell hole that is Illinois.   

And now, back to basketball! 

I thought Bradley was doing well.  So this is a shock.  Sadly, these issues are going to be a tidal wave across most midwest universities other than flagships and other publics.

https://www.wcbu.org/local-news/2023-07-31/bradley-university-looks-to-slash-costs-by-10-as-institution-runs-a-13-million-budget-shortfall

I'm guessing (hoping) that Valpo got out in front of these necessities with cuts done over previous years.  Lets certainly hope so.

It can't be spread over four years.  The posted cost of attendance is $62,700 with an estimated average scholarship (discount) of $38,000.  It has to be per year for the $25,000.  I get a lot of stuff on Facebook from Valpo but haven't seen that one.

https://www.valpo.edu/student-financial-services/tuition-fees/

Well, seeing that move-in day is next Saturday, my guess is someone has an idea as to how the enrollment numbers are shaping up!

Scrimmage is scheduled for Saturday, Aug 12 from 4:00-7:00 PM at Brown Field.  What do you want to see?  What questions need to be answered?

Oline, Appel and the running game.  Could Jashon Butler be "the guy"?  Overall impressions.

I do like that Dr. Small is working with local radio stations to get some energy back that was lost from President Heckler's misappropriation of resource to the community that our athletics program was and would be. I hope this leads to more local radio stations wanting to tap into WVUR for VU Men's Basketball radio coverage, or even football coverage in the coming years.

Valporun, I resume you are happy about the addition of Coach Walker, as the records seem to be falling at a pretty regular clip.  Obviously, those records, for the most part, don't measure up to the Valley standards, but the program is clearly moving in the right direction.

Thanks for re-posting this.  I think it focuses on what wh and moe had in mind.

Toward the goal of more regional focus on board selections cited by WH and me, I do see one indication of this emphasis.

They hired a new VP of Advancement who appears to have much more regional non-profit experience in NW Indiana than leadership roles in private university leadership.  Marie Foster-Bruns appears not be an alumna of VU.  Not that this should be required by any means.

So for better or for worse the fork in the road has been chosen. Padilla opted for someone whose perspective is solely a regional one to lead charitable giving.  Read her background and see if you agree.

https://www.valpo.edu/news/news-archive/?type=post&site=239&id=13131

I think is will be a great hire.  She has loads of alumni experience and her regional contacts could well lead to stronger ties to corporations and hopefully to a naming partner for the new arena.  Agree that she doesn't need to be an alumna as neither was Lisa Hollander, her predecessor.  The new director of admissions is an alumna however and I think this is a wise choice.

So, let's compile a list of the guest speakers VU has hosted on the campus in the last 4-5 years

I found a couple from 2022:

Featuring: James K.A. Smith
October 18, 2022, 6:00 pm
Location: VUCA, Duesenberg Recital Hall

James K.A. Smith is professor of philosophy at Calvin University and serves as editor in chief of Image journal, a quarterly devoted to "art, mystery, and faith." He is the award-winning author of a number of books, including Who's Afraid of Postmodernism?, How (Not) To Be Secular, You Are What You Love, On the Road with Saint Augustine, and, most recently, How to Inhabit Time: Understanding the Past, Facing the Future, Living Faithfully Now. His essays and criticism have appeared in LitHub, America, Christian Century, and the Los Angeles Review of Books, as well as the Wall Street Journal and New York Times.

Featuring: Danté Stewart
November 17, 2022, 6:00 pm
Location: VUCA, Duesenberg Recital Hall

Danté Stewart is a writer and speaker whose voice has been featured on CNN, The Washington Post, Christianity Today, Sojourners, The Witness: A Black Christian Collective, Comment magazine, and more. He is the author of the debut memoir Shoutin' in the Fire. As an up and coming voice, he writes and speaks into the areas of race, religion, and politics. He received his B.A. in Sociology from Clemson University. He is currently studying at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University in Atlanta, GA.

Previous Pathways to Purpose speakers cover a wide range of disciplines and interests. Past guests include:

James Clarke, Director of Ghana Programs for Unite for Sight
Catherine Deamant, Director of Palliative Care Services for Cook County Hospital
Mike Del Ponte, Social Entrepreneur and Founder of SOMA Water
Anna DeLuna '11, Director of Business Development for Edovo
Rebecca Deng, Author of What They Meant for Evil
Robert Egger, Founder of LA Kitchen
Derrick Feldmann, Lead Researcher and Creator of The Millennial Impact Project
Nicole M. Garcia, Counselor and Trans Activist
Jason Greer '96, Employment and Diversity Consultant and Writer at The Good Men Project
Pamela Hack '84, Foreign Service Officer & Chief, U.S. Consulate, General in Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Rozella Haydee White, Public Theologian
Larry James, community organizer and Founder of CitySquare
David King, Director of the Lake Institute on Faith and Giving
Kristin Kobes Du Mez, History Professor and Author of Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation
Matt Kramer, Co-CEO of Teach for America
Evan Narciss, Author of Rise of the Black Panther
Andy Nunemaker '91, Philanthropist and CEO of Dynamis Software Corporation
Francis Su, Author of Mathematics for Human Flourishing
Jemar Tisby, President of the Witness: A Black Christian Collective
Jim Walker, Founder and Executive Director of the BigCar Collaborative
Taj Weekes, Grammy-Winning Reggae Artist and Humanitarian
Carolyn Woo, President & CEO of Catholic Relief Services
Aaron Yazzie, Engineer in NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Andrew Whitehead, Co-Author of Taking America Back for God: Christian Nationalism in the United States
Rev. Alexia Salvatierra, Author of Faith-Rooted Organizing: Mobilizing the Church in Service to the World
Lydia Dugdale, Author of The Lost Art of Dying: Reviving Forgotten Wisdom
Fr. Greg Boyle, Founder and Director of Homeboy Industries
Christine Emba, Columnist at the Washington Post and Author of Rethinking Sex: A Provocation
Anne Snyder, Editor-in-Chief of Comment magazine
Michael Lamb, Director of the Center for Leadership and Character at Wake Forrest University
Katelyn Beaty, Editor at Brazos Press and author of Celebrities for Jesus: How Personas, Platform, and Profits are Hurting the Church

Speakers include:

Robert Egger: "Feeding the Soul: The Interaction of Food, Policy and Potential," Sept. 6. As founder and president of L.A. Kitchen, Robert Egger and his company work to recover locally sourced, cosmetically imperfect fruits and vegetables to fuel a culinary arts job training program for women and men coming out of foster care and older women and men returning from incarceration.

Beverly Schultz '65: "Recoding Expectations: A Woman's Pioneering Journey in High Tech," Sept. 27. Beverly Schultz '65 is the author of "Skip the Typing Test — I'll Manage the Software: One Woman's Pioneering Journey in High Tech," in which she explores her unique success as a female engineer in a male-dominated field. Schultz received the President's Award from Mitsubishi Electric, and her team created one of the first 3D chips that won seven awards at COMDEX.

Kam Buckner: "Athletics and Justice: Translating Leadership from the Field to Your Community," Oct. 18. Kam Buckner, executive director of World Sport Chicago and former manager of government and neighborhood relations for the Chicago Cubs, works to further his organization's mission of supporting resiliency and strengthening community by increasing access to youth sport.

Beth Kreppin: "When Headlines Are Your Baseline: Serving in Crisis Scenarios," Nov. 1. As a special agent with the FBI, Beth Kreppin has collaborated with Chicago Division's Joint Task Force on Gangs and the Chicago Division Crisis Negotiation Team and was named the Chicago Division's Crisis Management Coordinator in 2016.

Rozella Haydée White: "The Road to Empowerment: Finding Purpose Outside of Institutions," Nov. 6. In addition to her role as owner of RHW Consulting, Rozella Haydée White serves as the Houston City Director for Mission Year and is a consultant with LEAD, an organization focused on empowering Christian leaders, transforming faith communities and influencing the world.

If our current students were "triggered" by  the reality of the 2016 election result then that is ridiculous

Well, living in a state with similar voting results to West Virginia and Alabama might be a little depressing! 

if they make at least Valparaiso average gross salary $48,000.

I think you are assuming only one income.  In today's world that is almost unheard of.  If you double it to 96,000 the payment is very manageable.

Excuse me, but how are we getting these. Incredible golfers to come to, of all places, NW Indiana? 

I'm pretty sure it's  the weather!

Are both Anthony and Caleb returning next year?  What about the rest of the team?

Yes. The only player lost is Yanni Kostouros, who played #3.  We've added a couple of freshman, the best of which seems to be Elliott Lee, who won the Oregon high school championship each of the last two years.

I don't see the giant freshman kid from Evanston on the roster.

The sports players also bring some regional diversity to the student body, since sometimes they are willing to come from the non-Midwest for the chance to play sports.

I recently took the time to look at each sport and what state the players came from.  I found that Valpo athletes hail from 33 different states and five foreign countries. Football alone has players from 21 different states.

There are 96 players on the Valpo men's football team, and they are led by one head coach and 10 assistant coaches. As an interesting note on their academic performance, the team's APR is 956.

Valpo brought in $1,243,116 in revenue from its football program while paying out $1,158,267 in expenses. So, the program was a moneymaker for the school, bringing in $84,849 in net profit. Mark this down as a good thing.

https://www.collegefactual.com/colleges/valparaiso-university/student-life/sports/#:~:text=There%20are%2096%20players%20on%20the%20Valpo%20men%E2%80%99s,football%20program%20while%20paying%20out%20%241%2C158%2C267%20in%20expenses.

3. The now-established and very concerning dynamic of young men stuck in a "failing to thrive" mode, e.g., not pursuing post-secondary opportunities that have been traditional door-openers to economic success, including college, trade school, or military service.

All the more reason to perhaps add back a men's soccer team or LaCrosse team.  A school like Evansville, which dropped its football team years ago, would not doubt love to have an additional 120 men on campus. At present Evansville is showing 60.36% of students are female while Valpo is not much better, showing 58% female.