In my first three years as president, I have crisscrossed the nation and the globe speaking with hundreds of Wittenberg alumni. As I reflect on my travels, I am struck by the consistency of the stories I have heard – stories of wonderful professors, close friends
and enduring passion for Wittenberg.

Those stories continue to be written today in the hearts and minds of our undergraduate students. Wittenberg is a great place. We have more Ohio Professors of the Year than any other public or private four-year college in the state. We rank 14th in the country among liberal arts colleges in the percentage of students who join the Peace Corps. We
rank in the top 10 percent of colleges that send students on to Ph.D. programs. For the second year in a row, we have two Fulbright Scholars in our graduating class, and the list goes on and on.

While we tell the story of our successes quite well, I don’t think we have been as forthcoming with you, our alumni and friends, about the real challenges and opportunities we face. As a result, some of you have told me that you don’t think Wittenberg needs your financial support. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Three sources of revenue ensure the financial strength and long-term success of our university: tuition and fees, endowment and annual fund support. Beginning with the last element, a strong annual giving program – current unrestricted support through The Wittenberg Fund – represents the difference between just “getting by” vs. being able to seize opportunities that ensure excellence. It allows us to support student scholarships, faculty development, and important and innovative initiatives.

Tuition and fees provide the greatest revenue toward our annual budget. With the cost of tuition just north of $30,000, I suspect that most of you imagine that Wittenberg is awash in tuition dollars. Oh, I wish that were so. The reality is that we reside in arguably the most competitive liberal arts college market in the country. Like our closest competitors, we provide generous financial aid to enhance access and attract the best and the brightest students, which means the actual average net tuition per student is closer to $15,000.

Finally, our endowment presently stands at $120 million. I thank all of you who have helped build this endowment. Please know, we continue to invest it wisely, earning an 18.6 percent return last year. However, while $120 million sounds like “a lot of money,” it pales compared to some of our closest private college competitors, which have endowments ranging from $250 to 650 million. Because of their endowments, these schools will begin next year with a significant advantage in annual support for their faculty and programs. The difference between our endowment ($120 million) and $650 million translates into an annual infusion of $26.5 million to the bottom line. What is amazing is that we compete very well despite this disparity. Imagine what we could do if we closed that gap!

With that in mind, I hope you will respond to the next phone call or letter you receive from Wittenberg asking for your support. As one of our new board members, Wes Bates ’70, the CEO of Stanley Steemer, recently told me, “I plan to invest in Wittenberg because the need is real, and the impact will be great.” I hope you will follow Wes’ lead. The bottom line is we are a great place, on the move, developing exciting new programs and transforming the lives of young people, and to do so, yes, we need your support!

— Mark Erickson, president