I know a little bit about this situation. Each year, the school submits requests for tuition assistance from the Department of Education on behalf of its students. There are a series of submissions, the first for about 250 students, then a later one for 2,000 students. Each student profile contains up to 25 or 30 different documents, so you can imagine the enormity of preparing those submissions.
The DOE rejected those submissions, saying that some exhibits were missing and some were simply incorrect. The MCU team asked DOE to send an official to the campus to vet the exhibits. DOE did so, but the missing and incorrect documentation was too much to overcome.
That meant MCU could not unlock about 10 million dollars in federal funds sitting there waiting. The university's budget was around 22 million, so the implications are obvious.
MCU had several million dollars in the bank, and had to dip into it to make payroll, etc. Those funds are now used up. Some property was sold to generate some operating money. It's about gone.
Many faculty and staff continue to work without pay, and we owe them a great debt of gratitude But they can't do that very long. They have to find jobs.
Graduation is on May 10, thanks to some generous donors.
The trustees will meet on May 13 to consider the next steps.
This has been a traumatic time for all involved. God has a purpose for all this, but one cannot help but wonder what it is. As somebody once said, "God, I can't track you but I trust you." But there's no question that recent events have put that trust to the test.
By the way, I know a little bit about this situation because I serve as chairman of the MCU trustees. We need your prayers for wisdom and insight--and, if He wills, a miracle.
