Hannibal, Mo. | Cheers in a chapel service greeted the announcement that an independent agency that accredits degree-granting institutions in the United States has removed Hannibal-LaGrange University from probation.
An assessment team with the Higher Learning Commission noted the efforts of the Missouri Baptist Convention-affiliated school, HGLU reported. Those steps included “diligent work toward financial health, improved enrollment strategies, and responsible endowment management.”
“HLGU has implemented the difficult corrections to create a more balanced budget, to manage cashflow, to begin repaying endowment borrowing, and to return HLGU enrollment to growth,” the assessment team said in a statement shared by HGLU. “These efforts have resulted in a successful turnaround.”
The school’s board of trustees took steps in March 2022 to address $690,000 in debt and keep the university operational through the end of that year. In its recent statement, HGLU leadership pointed to the “rigorous improvement plan over the past two years” that focused on budget and building student enrollment.
“This decision by the [Higher Learning Commission] is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our administration, faculty, and staff,” said Robert Matz, president of Hannibal-LaGrange University. “Our entire campus community has been deeply committed to putting HLGU on a stable financial foundation that supports our mission of academic excellence and faith-centered learning. We are grateful to everyone who contributed to this successful turnaround and look forward to a future of growth and opportunity.”
The Commission cited significant improvements in relation to the board and governance and the sufficiency of faculty. While acknowledging improvement in financial management and short-term planning, the Commission urged the university to work on its long-term planning.
HGLU was in crisis mode at the time its previous president resigned, soon afterward announcing the need to make cuts and fundraise to cover $2.2 million dollars in order to reopen for the fall semester in 2012.
Matz announced that probation was lifted in a chapel service.
“There was a loud cheer from everybody,” Matz told the Courier-Post. “Folks were really excited, really encouraged, because, this has been a long season in a lot of ways, and to be able to put these things in our rear view mirror and look towards the future, is exciting and encouraging.”
Enrollment was 452 in 2022. Matz said incoming classes have increased by 20% over each of the past two years. “We’re really excited to be emerging from this season of challenge and emerging into a new season of health,” Matz said.
Matz took office two years ago. He was an administrator and faculty member at Midwestern Theological Seminary for ten years.
–Baptist Press, Courier-Post