Keeping the 'value' in education

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average, inflation-adjusted cost to attend college has increased by 180 percent since 1980, from $10,231 to $28,775 per year. The price jump is even more noticeable among those attending private institutions of higher learning: private college attendees paid an average of $48,965 in 2019-2020 as compared to $21,035 for a public university. 

Federal grant money has not kept pace, meaning many students and their parents must borrow far more money today to cover the cost of education. This results in more than half of college graduates today graduating with debt, with the average debt load at $28,400 in 2020. 

The cost of college has affected Catholic universities as well. Catholic University of America lists its 2023-2024 undergraduate tuition, fees, and room and board at $74,444; Georgetown and Boston College run slightly higher. 

Smaller, lesser-known Catholic colleges tend to be less expensive, and administrators work creatively to keep the cost of education down. Presidents of three smaller colleges recently discussed their efforts to keep education affordable for their students. 

‘MARIAN MIRACLE’

In the past two decades, Marian University in Indianapolis has been dubbed the “Marian Miracle,” as enrollment has grown from 1,000 to 6,000 students and its endowment from $2.9 million to $129 million. 

The school’s “sticker price” of $40,000 annually is high, conceded Marian president Daniel Elsener, a member of Legatus’ Indianapolis Chapter, but a strong fundraising effort has allowed the school to offer discounts to many low-income families. While medical students — who can expect to command high salaries when they graduate — pay full tuition, the school heavily subsidizes students who plan to enter Catholic education and ministry.

“It is our goal to serve a diverse population and ensure that our students do not graduate with a lot of debt,” Elsener said.

Marian is careful to run an efficient operation, which includes having a large enough student population to provide essential services and to ensure classes are full. The school keeps true to its Catholic mission, he noted, investing in philosophy and theology faculty and campus ministry.

Keeping costs affordable at a smaller Catholic college is a challenge, Elsener admitted, as larger universities have more government funding and bigger endowments. “The cost of personnel is a key driver in education,” he explained. “If they pay a certain wage, I have to [pay it as well].”

Elsener said his association with Legatus has been helpful in securing financial advice for keeping Marian on solid financial footing, and many trustees have been Legatus members. “It is essential that a college have a really good board of trustees who can help you develop a solid business model behind your mission,” he stated. “Without this model, you will fail.”

SMALL BUT MIGHTY

Ryan Messmore is president of Magdalen College in Warner, NH, which serves some 60 students across four academic majors: philosophy, theology, history, and literature. He described the school as “a faithfully Catholic liberal arts college focused on offering a transformative education of the whole person.”

Students and faculty at Magdalen, now in its 50th year of existence, enjoy close relationships due to the small size of the school. It has a strong sacred music program in which all students participate. Magdalen’s polyphony choir goes on tour and produces music CDs, and students are asked to stay on campus for the Triduum and sing for Holy Week services. “It culminates with the singing of Handel’s Messiah,” said Messmore. “It’s beautiful. Hearing it will give you chills.”

Cost of education at Magdalen is about $34,500 annually. Like Marian, Magdalen relies on fundraising to reduce student costs. “We are lean and mean, focusing on providing a high-quality undergraduate degree in liberal arts,” explained Messmore.

Students work on campus, toiling in the kitchen and cleaning dormitories to reduce payroll expenditures. Work-study positions are also available. 

Messmore encouraged prospective students to begin saving early, especially through summer jobs in high school. He recommended seeking out unique grants and scholarships, such as Magdalen’s scholarships for those who study Latin or play the organ.

FUTURE-MINDED SAVINGS

Manor College in Jenkintown, PA, was founded by the Ukrainian Catholic Sisters of St. Basil the Great in 1947 and serves nearly 700 students. At an annual cost of $27,000 for resident students, it is among the most inexpensive private colleges in the state. 

The school can offer this lower-cost education because “we run our operation efficiently and effectively, with a fiscally conservative approach,” said Manor president Jonathan Peri, a member of Legatus’ Philadelphia Chapter.

Many similar area colleges carry substantial debt and operate at a deficit, but Manor has far lower debt and has operated at a surplus the past eight years, said Peri. The school’s buildings are newer and have lower maintenance costs. While comparable colleges’ costs are increasing at 3.5 percent annually, he continued, Manor’s are only rising 3 percent annually.

Peri recommends that parents begin saving for their children’s education from the time of their birth, taking advantage of a 529 College Savings Plan. He disagrees strongly with those today who downplay the importance of a college degree. 

“There is clear proof that with a college education your lifetime family income is substantially greater,” Peri asserted, “far better than the alternative.”