Concordia University Wisconsin (CUW) is a
private Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
university in
Mequon, Wisconsin
Mequon () is the largest city in Ozaukee County, in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, and the third-largest city in Wisconsin by land area. Located on Lake Michigan's western shore with significant commercial developments along Interstate 43, the comm ...
. It is part of the eight-member
Concordia University System operated by the
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), also known as the Missouri Synod, is a traditional, confessional Lutheran denomination in the United States. With 1.8 million members, it is the second-largest Lutheran body in the United States. The L ...
(LCMS).
The university is a
coeducation
Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...
al institution 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 ...
, offering 78
undergraduate
Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-le ...
majors and minors, 17
graduate programs, eight accelerated adult education programs, and three doctoral/professional programs, as well as accelerated evening and e-learning programs. Doctoral degrees are offered in pharmacy, physical therapy, and nursing practice. CUW also has 10 classroom centers providing community outreach with full adult education and post-graduate programs. CUW's School of Pharmacy is one of three pharmacy schools in Wisconsin—the others being
University of Wisconsin–Madison
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...
and
Medical College of Wisconsin
The Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) is a private medical school, pharmacy school, and graduate school of sciences headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The school was established in 1893 and is the largest research center in eastern Wisconsi ...
.
The university is organized into five schools or colleges: the School of Education, the School of Business and Legal Studies, the School of Human Services, the School of Arts and Sciences, and the School of Adult and Continuing Education.
In 2013, Concordia University Wisconsin merged with
Concordia University Ann Arbor
Concordia University Ann Arbor (CUAA) in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is a campus of Concordia University Wisconsin, a private Lutheran university in Mequon, Wisconsin. Its campus sits on the banks of the Huron River, about ten minutes outside downto ...
(CUAA) to be collectively known as CUWAA.
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
Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church is a Victorian Gothic-style Lutheran church built in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1878 - then claimed to be "the finest church edifice within the Missouri Synod." Today it is listed on the National Register of Hi ...
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 and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. 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 as of the 2020 Censu ...
, 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 Forest County Potawatomi Community ( pot, Ksenyaniyek) is a federally recognized tribe of Potawatomi people with approximately 1,400 members as of 2010. The community is based on the Forest County Potawatomi Indian Reservation, which consi ...
(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
Concordia Seminary is a Lutheran seminary in Clayton, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS). Founded in 183 ...
in
St. Louis
St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...
, 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
School Sisters of Notre Dame is a worldwide religious institute of Roman Catholic sisters founded in Bavaria in 1833 and devoted to primary, secondary, and post-secondary education. Their life in mission centers on prayer, community life and m ...
in
Mequon, Wisconsin
Mequon () is the largest city in Ozaukee County, in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, and the third-largest city in Wisconsin by land area. Located on Lake Michigan's western shore with significant commercial developments along Interstate 43, the comm ...
, 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
Higher education is tertiary education leading to award of an academic degree. Higher education, also called post-secondary education, third-level or tertiary education, is an optional final stage of formal learning that occurs after compl ...
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
Concordia University Ann Arbor (CUAA) in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is a campus of Concordia University Wisconsin, a private Lutheran university in Mequon, Wisconsin. Its campus sits on the banks of the Huron River, about ten minutes outside downto ...
(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.
By 2018, CUAA had nearly doubled in enrollment, successfully started a School of Nursing, built a new football stadium, and completed extensive renovations to 75% of the classroom buildings.
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
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), formerly known as the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, is a non-profit civil liberties group founded in 1999 with the aim of protecting free speech rights on college campu ...
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 a cross-disciplinary examination, by social and civil-rights scholars and activists, of how laws, social and political movements, and media shape, and are shaped by, social conceptions of race and ethnicity. Goal ...
, 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".
Campus
The university is located at 12800 North Lake Shore Drive in Mequon, Wisconsin, a city north of
Milwaukee
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...
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, and nursing practice. There are also a variety of accelerated evening and e-learning programs.
Athletics
Concordia Wisconsin teams participate in the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athlete, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic sports, ...
'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 a college athletic conference. It participates in the NCAA's Division III and began its first season in the fall of 2006.
The NACC sponsor ...
(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 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 Milwau ...
and
Bob Uecker
Robert George Uecker ( ; born January 26, 1934) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) player and current sportscaster, comedian, and actor.
Facetiously dubbed "Mr. Baseball" by TV talk show host Johnny Carson, Uecker has served as ...
. 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 the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that ...
. 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 will become 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
Clubs and organizations
The university has more than 70 student organizations in various fields of interest.
Student government
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.
Campus activities
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.
LGBT prohibition
Concordia policy for students prohibits
same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
, same-sex sexual contact, and all sex outside of marriage. The LCMS regards homosexuality as
sin
In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. 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 immoral, selfish, ...
ful. A pre-seminary student who came out of the closet 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 alumni
*
David Benke
David Benke is a Lutheran pastor and the former president of the Atlantic District of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod, or LCMS.
After the 9/11 attacks, Benke participated in an interfaith event with people of other faiths, including Muslims ...
, tenth president of the
Atlantic District of the
Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod
The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), also known as the Missouri Synod, is a traditional, confessional Lutheran denomination in the United States. With 1.8 million members, it is the second-largest Lutheran body in the United States. The L ...
*
Bernard Bull, president of
Concordia University Nebraska
Concordia University, Nebraska is a private Lutheran university in Seward, Nebraska. It was established in 1894 and is affiliated with the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod as one of seven schools in the Concordia University System. The universi ...
*
André Carson
André D. Carson (born October 16, 1974) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for since 2008. A member of the Democratic Party, his district includes the southern four-fifths of Indianapolis, including Downtown Indiana ...
, U.S. Representative, second Muslim elected to Congress
*
David Clarke, Sheriff of Milwaukee County
*
Ralph W. Klein
Ralph Walter Klein (1936 – December 29, 2021) was an American Old Testament scholar. He was Christ Seminary-Seminex Professor Emeritus of Old Testament at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
Klein was born in Springfield, Illinois, an ...
, Old Testament scholar and professor at
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago
The Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (LSTC) is a seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Chicago, Illinois
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Ma ...
*
Richard Lischer
Richard Alan Lischer (born November 12, 1943, in St. Louis, Missouri) is an American author, memoirist, preacher, practical theologian, and professor emeritus at Duke Divinity School.
Duke Divinity School
After serving as a Lutheran pastor for n ...
, theologian and professor at
Duke Divinity School
The Divinity School at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, is one of ten graduate or professional schools within Duke University. It is also one of thirteen seminaries founded and supported by the United Methodist Church. It has 39 regul ...
*
Martin E. Marty, theological scholar and philosopher
*
John Scardina
John Scardina is an American former professional football player. He played in the National Football League for the Minnesota Vikings in 1987 as a tackle
Tackle may refer to:
* In football:
** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms o ...
,
NFL
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the maj ...
player
*
Kurt W. Schuller
Kurt W. Schuller (born June 21, 1955) is the former State Treasurer of Wisconsin and a restaurateur from Eden, Wisconsin.
Biography
Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Schuller graduated from Concordia University Wisconsin with an associate degre ...
, Wisconsin politician
*
Louis J. Sieck
Louis John Sieck (March 11, 1884 – October 14, 1952) was a Lutheran minister. He was the president of Concordia Seminary in St. Louis from 1943 to 1952.
Early life and education
Sieck was born in Erie, Pennsylvania, on March 11, 1884. His fa ...
, president of
Concordia Seminary
Concordia Seminary is a Lutheran seminary in Clayton, Missouri. The institution's primary mission is to train pastors, deaconesses, missionaries, chaplains, and church leaders for the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS). Founded in 183 ...
in St. Louis
*
Walter Wangerin
Walter may refer to:
People
* Walter (name), both a surname and a given name
* Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968)
* Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 19 ...
Jr., award-winning American author and educator
*
Norman Wengert, political scientist
*
Theodore Dammann
Theodore Dammann was a politician from the U.S. state of Wisconsin. He was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on November 4, 1869. The son of a Lutheran pastor, he attended Concordia College, at the time located in Milwaukee, now known as Concordia U ...
, 23rd Secretary of State for Wisconsin
References
External links
Official websiteOfficial athletics website
{{authority control
Universities and colleges in Milwaukee
Private universities and colleges in Wisconsin
Education in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin
Educational institutions established in 1881
1881 establishments in Wisconsin