Fundie College (NIU) shutting it's doors.

[PurpleSheepleEater]

They tried to rebrand and give themselves to the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary but it backfired, all the fundie churches pulled support, not enough enrollment for next year, too much debt.

http://www.ni.edu/news-events/grad-unde ... ling-back/

[PrairieGirl]

Wow, this is going to make huge waves in the fundy community in which I grew up.

But good. Another one bites the dust. See ya.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

Mid-continent University (Bible College) in Kentucky closed last year as well.

[salex]

I am not surprised, since more and more Fundies and ultra conservatives are on the "Higher Education is Horrible" train.

[IReallyAmHopewell]

There will be more when they are forced to have openly gay faculty and students to receive financial aid.

[apple1]

I am not surprised, since more and more Fundies and ultra conservatives are on the "Higher Education is Horrible" train.

I suspect that may be the lip service, but more likely it is money. Many variations of Fundy U are significantly more expensive than attending an in-state secular university - plus, the usually-useless-diploma-from-unaccredited-school offers no ROI.

Although the "higher education is horrible" tale does have its share of proponents - but I might argue that the whole reason for that ever being taught was to develop an excuse for the (more practical) money thing.

[Jezebel]

There's a wider trend in which small,private, four-year colleges that rely mainly on tuition and fees to cover operating expenses, and have small endowments, are closing. Sweet Briar, a women's college in Virginia, is one of the most notable recent schools to announce it's closing.

Women's colleges, traditionally black colleges, and lots and lots of small Bible colleges are really struggling, right now, and many have closed or been bought out by bigger schools. And those are, more often than not, accredited schools.

I agree with apple1 that much of that decline is because these schools are too expensive, and degrees from them don't offer a good ROI. I'm now seeing more college-aged kids who either have chosen not to go to college (picking a vocational school or some other form of job training), or are finding cheaper, more flexible ways to earn a degree (community colleges, online courses) while working. It used to be that a college degree had some value--it would help you get a good entry-level job, and lead to a career. Now? Not so much. So small private schools that by necessity must charge higher tuition than state schools, but without the wider name recognition, and that don't offer degrees in in-demand fields? They're a bad bet, their enrollments are declining, and more and more of them will close in the years to come.

So I expect to see a lot of small, unaccredited Bible colleges shut down in the not-too-distant future, and I can't say that's a bad thing.

[KittenMitten]

Hi Jezebel. Very important question I've been wondering for several months. Who is the woman in your avatar?

[Naga Viper]

Not Jezebel, but that would be the one and only Callista Gingrich. (Skip to #11 in the slideshow if you want to see the full photo.)

[KittenMitten]

Not Jezebel, but that would be the one and only Callista Gingrich. (Skip to #11 in the slideshow if you want to see the full photo.)

Thanks very much. I was guessing a fundie, but did not recognize her. I've been wanting to comment for months, but held off in the very off chance it was Jezebel, herself, or a family member and did not want to be mean. As it ok to be mean to Mrs Gingrich...

Hi Jezebel, of all the avatars I've seen here, that one scares me the most! The eyes almost glow and the smile is sinister. The lipstick looks like blood. Maybe I will be Mrs Gingrich for Halloween :twisted: :stir-pot: . But I wouldn't want to scare children too much.

BTW, I love your user name and avatar together. You are so cool.

[Jezebel]

Oh, LOL--Fortunately, I look nothing like Callista Gingrich. In fact, I'm kind of fascinated by her "look" because she's roughly the same age as me and yet that immovable helmet-head hair and heavy makeup are what I associate with our mothers' generation; my mom actually looked somewhat like that in the early '80s.

Obsessively overgroomed as DC politician's wives are known to be, Callista has a heavier coat of lacquer than most. Add to it those crazy-crazy eyes, and she's kind of a marvel, a freak show minus the tent.

I recently considered changing my avatar to Jill Rodrigues, with her troweled-on makeup and scheming, greedy eyes--but she's a weak amateur when compared to Callista. :lol:

[Cleopatra7]

I think that the purpose of all fundie "colleges" is to act as a finishing school of sorts for young adult fundies so they don't question their faith or decide to leave. The college years are a time when many people question their faith, whether through taking classes that challenge pre-conceived notions or simply meeting other students from different religious backgrounds. Simply not being at home and being forced to attend religious services can impact a student's religiosity. At fundie "colleges," however, students are in a monoculture where everyone thinks, dresses, and acts alike. The discipline may be even more severe than what they are used to at home. Critical thinking is discouraged, and access to information is limited, whether in the form of books, music, or internet access. Most of these "colleges" are unaccredited, so they only places they will be able to find employment will be at other fundie institutions, which forces young people to stay in the fundie universe even if they want to have a more secular life.

The push towards extreme sheltering that we see among Protestant fundies is probably what's motivating the closure of these schools. On the one hand, one less fundie "college" is surely a good thing, but on the other hand, that probably means that many young people are probably barely leaving their front yards, especially girls/women.

[Ralar]

Michael Pearl's alma mater, Victory University (previously Crichton College) closed last May. Mike Huckabee was the schools Chancellor and a major fundraiser. One of my relatives, a conservative Christian, but not a fundy worked there and said the school was a joke and it was an oppressive work environment.