Christian higher ed will fail because it has squandered the profound talent of so many people willing to do the good and lifelong work of community building for so little compensation... 1/9

people who put their whole being into their work, who sacrifice lucrative employment elsewhere for a vocational, communal good, produce research on shoestring budgets, teach 4+ classes a semester, serve on committees, draft policy/curriculum, mentor, etc. 2/9

I cannot foresee another time in the history of American Christianity when so many young Christian scholars will actively chart their courses for such institutions. These weren't our fallbacks, they were our first choices. That era has passed. 3/9

The real tragedy? It would have taken only the smallest acts of good faith from schools to foster loyalty from these amazing people bc they've never expected grand things. Small acts of love & appreciation. Transparency. Basic decency. 4/9

And many faculty remain loyal despite the absence of good faith from institutions. But that charity is quickly eroding. The saturation point has been reached. The rhetoric of faith, sacrifice, and vocation falling on increasingly deaf ears. So many people of faith feel duped. 5/9

And there is anger. How can there not be? The resounding message faculty hear is mutually incompatible: "faculty cost too much," "faculty are our greatest asset." We are both burden and necessity. This message breaks our hearts. 6/9

To leaders in Christian higher ed: get to know your faculty. Seek to understand the milieu that formed them into people who desire this vocation. Stop fighting culture wars. Start investing in the people who shape your institution's culture. Not every investment is monetary. 7/9

And if, as a leader, your response to the fear/uncertainty/anger/disappointment of your faculty is judgment/condescension/defensiveness/dismissiveness, I would humbly suggest a reevaluation of your own calling. What is needed from you is empathy/honesty/collaboration/humility 8/9

Perhaps the only path forward for Christian higher ed is one in which the mounting divide bw board/cabinet/faculty is erased. If these entities can't collaborate in meaningful ways, what does that say abt the faith each group has in the other to accomplish mission and vision? 9/9