Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) is a
private Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
university in
Mequon, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the
Concordia University System operated by the
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
(LCMS).
The university is organized into six constituent schools in arts and science, business, education, health professions, nursing, and pharmacy. The university had an enrollment of about 5,000 undergraduate and graduate students in 2022.
It is accredited by the
Higher Learning Commission
The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) is an institutional accreditor in the United States. It has historically accredited post-secondary education institutions in the central United States: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa ...
.
History
In the spring of 1881, the Wisconsin, Illinois, and Minnesota
districts of the LCMS decided to open a
''gymnasium'' in Milwaukee. The resulting school was opened that September at
Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in downtown Milwaukee. Classes were taught in the basement of the building, with only 13 students in attendance. A year of instruction was added each year through 1890, making a total of four years. Students had to transfer to
Concordia College in
Fort Wayne, Indiana
Fort Wayne is a city in Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 at the 2020 census ...
, for their fifth and sixth years.
One year after opening, the college, known then as Concordia College, purchased approximately nearby to erect a permanent facility.
The college was located between 31st and 33rd Streets and State Street and Highland Boulevard in Milwaukee until 1983. That campus is now owned and operated by the
Forest County Potawatomi Community (the owners of the
Potawatomi Hotel & Casino).
In 1887, the three districts transferred ownership to the LCMS itself. The fifth and sixth year of instruction were added in 1890.
For the first 83 years, from its inception to 1964, the college featured a classical education with a pre-theology emphasis. Its main mission was to prepare young men for pastoral careers in the LCMS. Originally, graduates matriculated to
Concordia Seminary in
St. Louis, Missouri, for an additional four years of divinity studies, leading to ordination within the Lutheran Church.
Prior to the fall of 1964, the combination high school and junior college operated as a male-only institution. Even after women students were accepted in the junior college program for the first time that fall, the high school and the pre-seminary program continued to restrict admissions to men.
Growth
Under the direction of President Wilbert Rosin, the college requested four-year institution status from the LCMS for its programs, and in 1978 the request was approved. R. John Buuck became president in 1979. In 1982, the former campus of the
School Sisters of Notre Dame in
Mequon, Wisconsin, was purchased and now has become the permanent home of CUW. In 1996, the original Milwaukee campus was turned over to the Native American Educational System of Wisconsin, which teaches tribal youth about their culture and language as the Indian Community School of Milwaukee.
As construction on the modern campus continued throughout the 1980s, the college petitioned its board of regents for full university status on August 27, 1989, and the request was approved for the fall 1990 term, making it the first among the ten Concordia University System campuses to achieve that standing. During his 17-year tenure, Buuck led the university to unprecedented growth. With the introduction of programs such as business, nursing, adult education, physical therapy, occupational therapy, etc., the university grew rapidly to become the largest Lutheran college and university in North America in 1996.

CUW doubled in total enrollment from 3,719 in 1995–96 to 7,485 students in 2010–11. Adult education programs were also expanded, thereby topping the list of the largest such programs in
higher education
Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education.
The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...
for the Lutheran Church. CUW's enrollment makes it the largest Lutheran university in the United States.
Since 2000, CUW has added several new buildings. In the summer of 2011, construction of a School of Pharmacy building was completed. The School of Pharmacy program was launched in the fall of 2010 and is a four-year professional pharmacy program designed to prepare students for a variety of careers within the pharmacy profession. By adding a School of Pharmacy, CUW has become one of three schools in the state of Wisconsin to offer a Pharm.D. degree. The building includes many amenities: clinical practice labs to develop patient care skills, state-of-the-art educational technologies, faculty research space, lecture halls, and faculty offices.
On July 1, 2013,
Concordia University Ann Arbor (CUAA) merged with Concordia University Wisconsin. This merger was due to a lack of financial strength and cash flow at the Ann Arbor Campus. CUW became the administration for both campuses, with Ann Arbor considered a satellite campus to the Mequon campus.
Since the two campuses merged, enrollment at the Ann Arbor campus has nearly doubled: in 2012, it enrolled 667 students and in 2022 it enrolled 1,203 students. However, enrollment on the Wisconsin campus has significantly decreased over the same time period: in 2012, it enrolled 7,751 students and in 2022 it enrolled 4,988 students. In early 2024, university president Erik Ankerberg notified employees that the institution would need to cut some staff and sell property and equipment for the university to remain financially viable. The university has had budget shortfalls from 2017 to 2021.
Presidents
The following people have served as president of CUW:
* Carl Huth (Director), 1881–1882
* Emil Hamann (Temporary President), 1882–1885
* Christoph H. Loeber, 1885–1893
* Max J.F. Albrecht, 1893–1921
*
G. Christian Barth, 1921–1934
* Leroy C. Rincker, 1936–1953
* Walter W. Stuenkel, 1953–1976
* Wilbert Rosin, 1977–1979
* R. John Buuck, 1979–1996
*
Patrick T. Ferry, 1997–2021
* William R. Cario (Interim President), 2021–2023
* Erik P. Ankerberg, 2023–present
Of those presidents, all were ordained ministers in the
LCMS excluding Carl Huth, William Cario, and Erik Ankerberg. Barth, Stuenkel, Rosin, Buuck, Ferry, and Ankerberg held doctorate degrees.
Concerns of wokeism and suspension of Gregory Schulz
One of Concordia's tenured professors, Gregory Schulz, published an article criticizing the school for its use of terms such as "diversity", "equity", and "inclusion" in its search for a new president, among multiple other issues on campus which he collectively named "Woke dysphoria". On February 18, 2022, he was indefinitely suspended by Interim President William Cario, banned from campus, and locked out of school accounts for demonstrating "conduct unbecoming a Christian", among other accusations from the school administration.
Letters defending Schulz were sent to the university by the
Foundation for Individual Rights in Education and the
Academic Freedom Alliance. The suspension gained media coverage in various forms, as well as a petition which amassed nearly 6000 supporters.
Schulz's article, suspension, and subsequent events sparked widespread theological concern about the university (and the entire
Concordia University System) among conservative Lutherans. The president of the LCMS,
Matthew Harrison, made plans to conduct an in-person visitation on March 23–25, 2022. The university welcomed Harrison's visitation team, who gathered information from administration, faculty, staff, and students.
On May 9, 2022, a letter from Harrison to the Board of Regents called out issues such as breaches of bylaws, encroachment of secularism and
Critical Race Theory
Critical race theory (CRT) is an academic field focused on the relationships between Social constructionism, social conceptions of Race and ethnicity in the United States census, race and ethnicity, Law in the United States, social and political ...
, and general disregard for ecclesiastical authority. The letter also proposed various reforms for the university's presidential search process as well as for the university at large as a confessional Lutheran institution.
On June 12, 2022, the convention of the
South Wisconsin District of the LCMS resolved to limit the power of members of the Board of Regents and to ensure their upholding of synod bylaws. On June 13, the convention further resolved to "identify and eliminate the promotion of social justice, or woke, ideology from the Concordia University System", e.g. "critical race theory, D. I. E. (diversity, inclusion, and equity) initiatives, and other social justice activism".
On January 1, 2024, Schulz published the book ''Anatomy of an Implosion,'' which addressed the issue of "Woke Marxism in Lutheran Higher Education", in addition to dealing more specifically with the related matters at Concordia.
Campus
The university is located at 12800 North Lake Shore Drive in Mequon, Wisconsin, a city north of
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
with about 23,000 residents. The university owns a campus with over of indoor walkways, better known as "tunnels". These "tunnels" connect all academic and residence halls on campus except for the Concordia Center for Environmental Stewardship. The university and its 10 Concordia Centers are home to more than 7,900 undergraduate and graduate, traditional, as well as non-traditional students from 46 states and 34 countries. The university offers 70 undergraduate majors, 22 master's degree programs, and doctoral degrees in pharmacy, physical therapy, educational leadership, business administration and nursing practice. There are also a variety of accelerated evening and e-learning programs.
Athletics
180px, Concordia Falcons wordmark
Concordia Wisconsin teams (nicknamed the ''Falcons'') participate in the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
's
Division III and are members of the
Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference
The Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC), formerly the Northern Athletics Conference (NAC), is an intercollegiate athletic conference. It participates in the NCAA's Division III and began its first season in the fall of 2006.
The N ...
(NACC). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, shooting, soccer, tennis, track & field and wrestling; women's sports include acrobatics and tumbling, basketball, cheerleading, cross country, dance, golf, ice hockey, lacrosse, shooting, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field, volleyball, field hockey and wrestling.
In April 2012, CUW opened its new baseball field, Kapco Park. The field is home to both CUW's men's baseball and the
Lakeshore Chinooks, a local minor league baseball team part-owned by
Robin Yount
Robin R. Yount (; born September 16, 1955), nicknamed "the Kid" and "Rockin' Robin", is an American former professional baseball player. He spent his entire 20-year career in Major League Baseball as a shortstop and center fielder for the Milwauk ...
and
Bob Uecker. Kapco Park has the maximum capacity for 3,000 fans in various seating areas throughout the facility including reserved seats, fan decks, general admission and grass seating, all with beautiful views of
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan ( ) is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and depth () after Lake Superior and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the ...
. This ballpark has a synthetic turf field, except the pitchers mound, for consistent play throughout the year. It also has a fully functioning press box, dugouts, concession area and restrooms. The park sits on the northeast corner of the campus, located on the shores of Lake Michigan.
In 2013, CUW announced the addition of acrobatics and tumbling, the university's 24th sport with a competitive championship. CUW was expected to begin its first season of competition during the spring of 2015 with an approximate roster of 30 to 40 student-athletes. The official competition season is February–April. The Falcons became the 12th school to sponsor the emerging sport, in association with the National Collegiate Acrobatics & Tumbling Association.
Mascot
CUW is represented by Freddy the Falcon. The school's athletic colors are royal blue, white, and grey.
Student life
The university has more than 70 student organizations in various fields of interest.
CUW's Student Government Association (SGA) oversees all student organizations on campus. It is made up of resident senators from each dormitory, commuter senators who live off-campus, organization senators who represent campus organizations, and the executive board. SGA receives its funding from the $40 Student Government Program fee that full-time students pay. SGA works with the students, faculty, campus ministry, and the administration to represent the students in all aspects of life at Concordia.
The CUW Campus Activities Board coordinates, markets, and facilitates activities for the entire campus throughout the year. These events include Homecoming, An Evening at the Lounge, Casino Night, Winterfest, and many new and traditional events.
CUW's student policy prohibits
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...
, same-sex sexual contact, and all sex outside of marriage. The LCMS regards homosexuality, homosexual thoughts, and homosexual actions as
sin
In religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law or a law of the deities. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered ...
ful. A pre-seminary student who came out as gay during his junior year was told by the university that he had no future in the Lutheran church (the LCMS does not ordain homosexual people as ministers).
Notable people
Alumni
*
David Benke, tenth president of the
Atlantic District of the
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
*
Bernard Bull, president of
Concordia University Nebraska
*
André Carson, U.S. Representative, second Muslim elected to Congress
*
David Clarke, Sheriff of Milwaukee County
*
Theodore Dammann, 23rd Secretary of State for Wisconsin
*
Ralph W. Klein, Old Testament scholar and professor at
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
*
Richard Lischer, theologian and professor at
Duke Divinity School
*
Martin E. Marty, theological scholar and philosopher
*
Tim Polasek, College football coach
*
John Scardina, professional football player
*
Kurt W. Schuller, Wisconsin politician
*
Louis J. Sieck, president of
Concordia Seminary in St. Louis
*
Walter Wangerin Jr., author and educator
*
Norman Wengert, political scientist
Faculty
*
Rebecca Ehretsman, eighteenth president of
Wartburg College
Wartburg College is a Private college, private Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, Lutheran Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Waverly, Iowa.
History
Wartburg College was founded in 1852 in Saginaw, Michig ...
References
External links
*
Athletics website
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Universities and colleges in Milwaukee
Private universities and colleges in Wisconsin
Education in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin
Universities and colleges established in 1881
1881 establishments in Wisconsin
Council for Christian Colleges and Universities