I recently came across a very interesting chart which gave the cost of educating a student in the accrediting association of which we are a member (KMBC is accredited by ABHE, Association for Biblical Higher Education). KMBC’s cost per student was about 30% less than other schools our size! This is remarkable! How is it possible to provide a quality education for 30% less than your competitors? The answer is fairly simple. KMBC has developed a network of tremendous buying connections where we can get food, cleaning supplies, tools, and building supplies for free or greatly reduced prices, resulting in savings of about $100,000 a year. Another major factor that lowers our cost is the many volunteer work team friends who donate their labor. We have about 15 teams that come each year, resulting in a savings of thousands of dollars. The college is deeply grateful for these friends who help us so much!

The biggest factor that reduces the cost of running the college is that our faculty and staff are willing to live sacrificially and work for less compensation than they would get at most colleges. Their commitment is huge and saves the college many thousands of dollars in salaries. I am deeply grateful for the talented people on staff who are so committed! The sacrificial and frugal lifestyles of our people provide tremendous role models for our students. What better way to learn commitment and good money management than seeing it lived every day in the lives of your teachers?

These charts also show that compared with other schools our size, KMBC’s financial numbers are very strong. Our total assets are 2½ times larger than other schools of our size. KMBC’s net value, based on our annual audit, grew last year (2017) by $441,000 whereas other schools our size only grew about $50,000. Our endowment, though not huge, is about 3 times the size of similarly sized schools.

I am very pleased to report that KMBC is conscientious, frugal, and efficient in the use of its financial resources. The financial data shows that KMBC knows how to stretch a dollar more than most colleges. Donors can be pleased that a dollar contributed to KMBC goes a lot farther and accomplishes a lot more!