In recent months, several Southern Baptist Convention-affiliated institutions and agencies have announced cost-cutting measures in response to financial pressures from the worsening economy.
To date, GuideStone Financial Resources, the North American Mission Board, three of the SBC’s six seminaries, Woman’s Missionary Union and LifeWay Christian Resources have announced budget cuts.
GuideStone Financial Resources announced Jan. 27 a workforce downsizing of 10 percent through projected attrition and a hiring freeze as part of a reduction of its 2009 budget. “The downturn in the global economy and the subsequent reduced value of securities in our investment funds has impacted the fee revenue that funds our budget,” O.S. Hawkins, president of the Southern Baptist entity, said in the news release. Other reductions in operating expenses, according to the news release, include a salary freeze and “delaying some purchases such as additional computer equipment, reducing travel, delaying some professional development and reducing the amount of printed materials by providing more materials on GuideStone’s Web site.”
On Jan. 19, New Orleans Baptist Seminary announced it would cut its budget in anticipation of a loss of more than $1 million in income from the Cooperative Program, tuition, gifts and investments. The seminary will not lay off any employees but has enacted a hiring freeze and temporary salary reductions of 5 percent for all faculty and staff members, except some part-time employees who will lose medical coverage under another part of the budget reduction. Senior administrators’ salaries will be reduced by 7 percent; NOBTS president Chuck Kelley’s salary by 10 percent. The base teaching load will be increased by three hours, as will the maximum load, for at least 18 months. Additionally, a freeze has been enacted on non-essential operating expenses, purchases, travel and professional development.
On Jan. 15, Southern Baptist Seminary announced it will reduce its administrative staff by 35 positions (20 full-time and 15 part-time), effective Jan. 30, but that no faculty members would be released. The downsizing, combined with $1.7 million in travel and other budget cuts made in December, are designed to close a projected $3.2 shortfall in the seminary’s $30 million budget. Tuition for the 2009-10 academic year will increase by just under 10 percent according to current projections, akin to the tuition increase for the current academic year. Work will continue on capital projects that already have been contracted and funded, but no new projects will begin until economic conditions improve.
On Jan. 8, NAMB president Geoff Hammond asked NAMB team leaders to operate at 90 percent of their approved budgets during 2009. However, Hammond said funds committed to God’s Plan for Sharing (GPS), the denomination-wide evangelism emphasis, would not be affected. State cooperative budgets also will operate according to normal state funding practices.
Southwestern Baptist Seminary announced Dec. 16 that it will be cutting its budget by approximately 10 percent, or $3.5 million to $4 million. Among reductions being made to the budget are “temporary suspension of many overseas travel programs and adjustments to campus facilities.” SWBTS president Paige Patterson was quoted in a seminary news release as saying, “The administration is doing the best it can to find ways to cut spending that do not involve the release of existing faculty or the students employed by the school.” The news release then stated that Patterson “went on to say that current economic trends would make this goal difficult to achieve.”
On Dec. 10, Woman’s Missionary Union announced it was enacting measures to reduce its 2009 budget by $1.4 million. Some of those steps included reducing team expense budgets in areas such as travel, projects and activities; implementing four weeks unpaid furlough for each staff member between January and August 2009; a hiring freeze on vacant positions; reducing employer contributions to retirement plans; freezing merit pay increases; and eliminating incentive bonuses in 2009. The organization’s revised budget for 2009 is $9.6 million.
On Aug. 1 of last year, LifeWay Christian Resources president Thom Rainer told employees the ministry was reducing its workforce by 5 percent and cutting expenses throughout the organization. He cited the pinch of economic tough times leading to lower discretionary spending by consumers, resulting in lower-than-projected revenues for LifeWay, which receives no Cooperative Program support and is completely funded through the sale of its resources. Those whose jobs were deleted received severance pay, some benefits and outplacement services. In addition, a number of employees were able to take advantage of retirement benefits.
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