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Endowments

Support > Endowments

Since the founding of Concordia Seminary in 1839, alumni, friends and congregations have provided a means to ensure the mission of the Seminary. Endowment funds provide perpetual funding that sustains our historic excellence. The significance of estate gifts for an endowment is key.

Concordia Seminary is grateful for all of its supporters, many of whom choose to make a gift that establishes a permanent endowment. The Seminary currently has more than 500 endowments. The vast majority have been established to honor esteemed pastors, faculty or family members, and to provide tuition aid and assistance for students. The Seminary also is blessed with a student aid endowment to which anyone may make a gift of any size. Collectively, these funds provide the resources for the Seminary to assist students in paying a very sizeable portion of their tuition expense.

The Seminary’s vision is to be the world leader in Lutheran ministerial formation, scholarship and theological resources. In our quest to achieve this vision, the endowment of the Seminary will be strengthened through additional gifts, wise investment policies and the careful stewardship of earnings.

Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we are funding operations — including generous amounts of student aid — through current giving and endowment income, with the intent to grow total endowment to $200 million by 2025.

Increasing the size of our endowment will provide blessings not just for this generation, but also for generations to come. Special gifts and bequests are blessings that will sustain the mission of the Seminary to prepare pastors and leaders who effectively proclaim Christ’s salvation beyond today.

Why give to an endowment?

  • Leave a legacy
  • Honor or remember a loved one
  • Honor or remember a pastor

Endowment funds are created for the purpose of generating perpetual earnings and ongoing, increasing worth. The original gift to the “corpus” — the total of the original gift amount — will never be spent. Gifts deposited in the endowment will be treated as permanently restricted funds. Only the earnings will be eligible for distribution at a rate determined by the Seminary’s Board of Regents.

FUND $1-$24,999 $25K-$99,999 $100K-$1.9M $3.5M+
Helping Hands Operational Endowment (Unrestricted) ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓
Student Financial Aid Endowment Fund ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓
Other existing funds ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓
Named endowment ✓ ✓ ✓
Faculty chair ✓

Endowed Faculty Chairs

An endowed chair is one of the highest academic honors that a college, university or seminary can bestow upon a faculty member. It reflects the donor’s desire to continue to see excellence in teaching and research in a specific area.

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Operational Endowments

Donors may choose to establish an endowment to support Seminary operations or may make a gift to existing operational endowments. Distributions from such funds are considered unrestricted income to support the mission of Concordia Seminary and will be used where needed most as determined by the Seminary’s Board of Regents.

  • The Rev. Dr. Dale A. and Diane C. Meyer “Helpers of Joy” Operational Endowment

    Dr. Dale A. Meyer and his wife, Diane, established The Rev. Dr. Dale A. and Diane C. Meyer “Helpers of Joy” Endowment as a testament to their love for the Seminary. Meyer served as Seminary president from 2005-20. Your gift to this endowment is a tribute to the ministry of Meyers and will ensure that future generations will always have the opportunity to know of their remarkable leadership and loving, servant hearts.

  • Helping Hands Operational Endowment

    Marilynn Peters, a long-time friend and supporter, established the Helping Hands Operational Endowment to enable people to give endowed gifts at any level. Anyone can contribute to this fund at any time, in any amount.

  • Other operational endowments

    Donors may choose to make gifts of any size to any of the Seminary’s other established operational endowments. For more information, please contact Seminary Advancement at 800-822-5287 or advancement@csl.edu.

Alumni Endowments

Concordia Seminary is blessed with many class and individual alumni endowments. These gifts are one way alumni demonstrate their support for the mission of Concordia Seminary. Each new class endowment and every single gift added to an established alumni endowment helps the Seminary to better meet the needs of students, church and world.

  • John E. Meyer Memorial Alumni Book Endowment Fund

    The John E. Meyer Memorial Alumni Book Endowment was established in 1998, after the Seminary’s Alumni Council initiated the endowment to help provide theological study materials for students. The endowment is named for Rev. John E. Meyer, the Seminary’s director of alumni activities from 1996 to 2003.

  • Class of ’62/’63 Endowment

    This alumni endowment was established on Dec. 15, 2006, as the class gift on behalf of the graduating class of ’62/’63 and the senior college class of ’59. The endowment functions as a student assistance fund. By God’s grace, it will grow and provide further support for a graduate student fellowship, advising or guest professorship and, ultimately, an endowed faculty chair as gifts are added.

  • Other alumni endowments

    To date, additional alumni-founded endowment funds include:

    • Class of 1963 Endowment
    • Class of 1981 Financial Aid Endowment Fund
    • Class of 1987 Financial Aid Endowment Fund
    • Class of 1988 Scholarship Endowment Fund
    • Class of 1989 Scholarship Endowment Fund
    • Class of 1998 Student Emergency Aid Fund
    • Class of 2007 Endowment
    • Class of 2008 Alumni Endowment
    • Class of 2017 Alumni Endowment

If you would like more information about Endowments, please complete the form below.

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