CUAA Future

No. Concordia Ann Arbor will continue to offer a variety of degree options in 2026-27 and beyond.

The decision to sell the Geddes Road property followed an extended period of careful analysis, prayerful discernment, and consultation with university leadership, the Board of Regents, and leaders across the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod.

Since assuming responsibility for the Ann Arbor campus in 2013, Concordia University Wisconsin worked to support and strengthen the university’s presence in Michigan. Over time, however, it became clear that maintaining two large residential campuses was not financially sustainable. The Board of Regents ultimately determined that continuing to operate the Geddes Road property would require resources that could not be responsibly sustained over the long term.

Rather than ending Concordia’s presence in Ann Arbor, the university chose to focus its work at the Plymouth Road campus, which houses Concordia’s graduate healthcare programs—including Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, and Physician Assistant Studies—as well as online graduate programs serving teachers and school leaders throughout Michigan and beyond.

While the sale of the Geddes Road property represents a significant change, Concordia remains committed to its mission in Michigan and continues to serve students in Ann Arbor through programs that are growing and preparing graduates to lead and serve in their communities.

Here is a list of the programs that will continue to be offered at our Plymouth Road campus.

Concordia University has invested significantly more in sustaining the Ann Arbor campus than the sale of the Geddes Road property will return. Since assuming responsibility for the Ann Arbor campus in 2013, Concordia University absorbed many years of operating losses in Ann Arbor in order to continue supporting the university’s mission in Michigan. The decision to sell the Geddes Road property was made after careful analysis and prayerful consideration by the Board of Regents as part of a long-term strategy to faithfully steward the university’s resources.

Concordia’s mission in Ann Arbor continues at the Plymouth Road campus. This step allows Concordia to remain present in Ann Arbor while focusing resources on programs that best serve students and the Church.

The proceeds from the sale will help Concordia University carry forward its mission of Christ-centered higher education by shaping programs and learning environments around the needs of today’s learners across CUWAA.

For more than a decade, Concordia University invested substantial resources to sustain the Ann Arbor campus and its programs in Michigan. The sale of the Geddes Road property allows the university to redirect resources toward the programs where Concordia is actively educating and serving students today and in the future. In Ann Arbor, that work continues at the Plymouth Road campus. By focusing resources in this way, Concordia can continue equipping students for lives of service in the Church and the world.

Fundraising plays an important role in strengthening universities, supporting scholarships, and investing in new academic opportunities. However, philanthropy alone cannot sustain the ongoing operating costs of a university. Like any institution, a university must maintain a financial model where revenues support the costs of operating its programs, facilities, and student services. After many years of financial challenges at the Geddes Road property, the university determined that the existing model was not sustainable. The Board of Regents ultimately concluded that focusing resources on programs where Concordia can serve students most effectively was the best path forward for the university’s mission.

No. The university spent significant time exploring ways to sustain operations at the Geddes Road property. Over many years, Concordia University invested significant resources and attention into sustaining the Geddes Road property and strengthening its programs, student life, and overall campus experience. These efforts reflected a deep commitment to maintaining a vibrant Concordia presence at the Geddes Road property. Despite those efforts, it ultimately became clear that the financial and structural challenges facing the Geddes Road property could not be overcome in a sustainable way.

With the Geddes Road property now under ownership of the University of Michigan, the future stewardship of the Chapel of the Holy Trinity, the Manor, and other facilities will rest with the University of Michigan. During the University of Michigan Board of Regents discussion approving the transaction on May 21, university leaders expressed their intention to preserve both the Chapel and the Manor, recognizing their historic and community significance. We are encouraged that the property will continue to serve educational purposes well into the future.

CUWAA’s 2024–2028 Strategic Plan is a comprehensive, four-year roadmap built around four pillars that guide the University’s work and priorities. The plan is designed to ensure financially self-sufficient campuses, strengthen mission impact, and position Concordia for long-term stability, growth, and service to the Church and the world. The pillars include:

1. Live Our Mission: Strengthening and articulating Concordia’s Lutheran identity across teaching, hiring, formation, and campus life. This includes maximizing mission impact for students, the Church, and the world.
   
   
2. Create Transformational Student Experiences: Advancing academic quality, student success, advising, program innovation, general education, and retention so that students flourish in mind, body, and spirit.
   
   
3. Secure Resources for Mission: Prioritizing enrollment growth, fiscal discipline, philanthropy, alternative revenue streams, and long-term financial sustainability to secure Concordia’s future.
   
   
4. Enhance the CUWAA Strategic Model: Aligning the University’s organizational structure, systems, policies, and use of space to allow both campuses—and the University as a whole—to thrive. This includes efforts to share the CUWAA story effectively, recreate space and place for the future, and achieve financially self-sufficient campuses.

The sale of the Ann Arbor Geddes Road property connects specifically to Pillar 4: Enhance the CUWAA Strategic Model, which calls the University to reimagine space, steward resources faithfully, and create a sustainable operating model for both campuses long into the future.

The Board of Regents appointed a Task Force to explore this option, and it was determined that it was not viable.

The Michigan District, LCMS and Church Extension Fund (CEF) – Michigan District, LCMS offices, located at 3773 Geddes Road, are not included in this sale. Both entities will continue operating in their current location without interruption as a result of this transaction.

Concordia has been intentional about stewarding these resources in a way that continues to support Lutheran education and ministry. Rather than allowing useful materials to sit idle, we have distributed many items to Lutheran schools and partner institutions throughout Michigan and beyond, extending their life and impact. This reflects our ongoing commitment to faithful stewardship and partnership across the LCMS educational network.