Should Small Colleges Exist?

The following is a first-person account by President Michael Schneider documenting a conversation with two of McPherson College’s largest donors, Harry and Myron Stine.

The college has a long history with many of its donors, and I’ve beenlucky to work with several of them for the past two decades.

So, it isn’t unusual that I find myself driving through Iowa corn fieldsto visit with Harry Stine ‘63 and Myron Stine ’94, long-timesupporters and alumni of the college.

What is unusual about this visit is that for some time Harry has been skeptical about the future of small colleges. Not many people challenge the idea of a small college like Harry. On my last visit several weeks ago, I asked Harry about signing The Giving Pledge. If you aren’t familiar with this program, it invites select billionaires to pledge at least half their fortune to charity. Given McPherson College is one of the Stines’ top charities, I wanted to ask Harry about his plans. His answer: “I’m not sure small colleges should exist.”

I’ll spare you the details of the rest of that conversation. What do I say as the president of a small college to a donor who has the capacity to change the trajectory of the institution but who questions whether there is a place in higher education for a small college like ours?

So, I’m back for more punishment and to make another effort to convince him McPherson College is a good investment. This time Myron Stine joins us, and Harry agrees to go on the record to document the conversation.

As we start the conversation, it becomes clear that Harry has a couple major issues. First, we are not efficient. The fact that we continue to raise prices, raise scholarships, and raise student debt is not a sustainable business model, he says. Not to mention there are endless cost metrics we could improve.

I share our vision for moving away from the model nearly everyone in higher education uses and for focusing our model on reducing student debt. Yes, media like to talk about price and small colleges market big scholarships, but at the end of the day everyone is worried about student debt. A key component of our Student Debt Project model is the commitment students make to working while attending college. On this point, Harry and I see eye-to-eye.

“Students should be working part-time,” Stine says. “I don’t think students should be going in and building up large debt when they don’t have any financing at all. They should work part-time in school so that their debt would be relatively less.”

We do have to find a way to help families and students manage college debt. The Student Debt Project at McPherson College is aimed at making college education affordable, not by lowering tuition or fighting the tuition discount battle like many other small colleges opt to do, but by giving students an opportunity to pay as they go and by offering a financial literacy education that will benefit them long after they leave.

Harry is right to be concerned about the accelerating number of colleges closing each year across our country. Between 2004 and 2014, on average, eight colleges (most small like McPherson) closed or merged. In the years since, approximately 20 colleges each year are estimated to close or consolidate.

It doesn’t take long for us to get to Harry’s second big issue. Liberal arts colleges are not as attractive to students today and need to change.

“I think in part it’s because students and families are not seeing the return on investment in a college education anymore,” Harry says. “If you can’t find a job after four years at college, why bother?”

There is no question we agree on this point. In fact, higher education started for a very vocational goal—training preachers. Three hundred years ago, when the first liberal arts college was founded, professions looked a lot different, and a pure liberal arts education made a lot of sense. As land grant institutions were founded and the needs of an exploding economy became greater, more practical subjects became popular, and the liberal arts began its decline. Liberal arts institutions generally have not come around to the idea that they need to change. Clearly there is value in our type of education, but we have to find a way to reinvent it.

At MC the idea of a broad-based education and vocational training is not an either/or proposition. We’ve proven this in our automotive restoration program where students can not only train for specific jobs but also take classes that ensure diverse and long careers. The best part of this degree program is not the car, rather it is the broad-based education. This concept of career preparation, paired with a broad education, is a model MC uses across its entire curriculum.

Although Harry has doubts about the quality of education provided at some colleges, he has never doubted the quality of education he received at McPherson College, and he appreciates the broad-based education that students receive at MC.

“I took some graduate work at Iowa State University,” Stine says. “As I thought back on it, I learned more per month or year at McPherson College than I did at Iowa State. The business classes I took at McPherson College, which were outside of my major program, provided a foundation that enabled me to succeed in my own business.”

According to Harry, MC was good for him and it was good for Myron.

I remind Harry and Myron about our placement rates. In the past few years, MC has seen career placement success with 98 percent of our students in jobs six months out of school. Even more impressive is that 77 percent of our students were placed in their field prior to graduation, which is two times the national average.

Myron was a big part of driving our career-oriented approach when he was a board member. And he supports Harry’s thoughts on both jobs and the importance of reinventing the liberal arts.

“A broad-based education will win in the long run,” Myron says, “as long as it doesn’t come at the expense of students getting jobs or getting into graduate school.”

Both Harry and Myron agree that we need to make big changes in order to be relevant in the market.

“The only way a small college will survive is to become more efficient and adapt to the changing marketplace,” Harry says. “Part of what it will take is growing more resources, not only more students—although that is necessary—but also more efficient financial resources.”

This is good advice. Higher education talks a lot about change, but when you really think about it, not much has changed with the model. And we have a fiduciary responsibility to our students and alumni. The more efficient we are, while providing a great student experience, the more sustainable the model. This applies to business and colleges.

I’ve shared our strategic plan Community by Design with both Stines, and we agree a lot of change is in order. But back to the original question. Should a small college like McPherson exist? And, what will it take for the Stines to be a part of it?

“All your points are very well taken,” Harry says. “Any organization, business, or school needs to do things differently. If they don’t constantly change, they aren’t going to survive.”

I’m not sure if I completely changed Harry’s mind, but Myron said it best.

“Not all small colleges should exist, but this one should.” He went on to add that, “McPherson College needs to be a model for the future of small colleges, and that means changing and bringing innovation to higher education.”

And he didn’t stop there as he issued a challenge.

“I’d challenge you to figure out what those changes ought to be. We’d like to be a part of that future.”

I think a small college like MC that sets a new trajectory for its future will not only exist but will lead the way for others. I always appreciate my conversations with Harry and Myron. This one in particular sets a new bar for us, and I’m optimistic that if we can be that model for higher education, the Stines will be right there supporting us.

To be continued.

Who is Harry Stine?

Harry Stine is a true entrepreneur. He is CEO and founder of Stine Seed Company in Adel, Iowa, the largest domestic, privately owned seed company in the United States. He made his fortune licensing corn and soybean genetics to multinational conglomerates such as Monsanto and Syngenta, and his research in the area of seed genetics and production continues to develop high-yielding soybeans and corn hybrids for growers. His company holds more than 800 patents, most concerning soybeans, and employs 600 people.

His entrepreneurial roots can be traced back to McPherson College. He graduated with the class of 1963 and says the broad-based education he received serves as the foundation for much of what he has accomplished in business.

A Forbes Magazine article from 2014 said Stine revolutionized agriculture by being the first to patent self-pollinating crops like corn and soybeans. The article went on to say that as early as the 1970s, Stine, “who had taken one business law class at McPherson College, a small liberal arts school in Kansas, was stipulating in contracts the royalties companies had to pay for using his seed.”

Stine came to McPherson College because of its affiliation with the Church of the Brethren and because—at the time—it had an agriculture program. But it was in business classes where he started to develop his negotiating and business writing skills.

“There are very few companies where the CEO is going to write the actual agreement, but he does,” his son, Myron Stine ‘94, president of Stine Seed Company, said. “He learned some of that at McPherson College. The broad-based education he received at McPherson was pivotal for him and his future business success.”

When it was time for Myron to look for colleges, he was encouraged by his father to attend McPherson College. “Obviously there is something in my father’s heart for McPherson College,” Myron said. “He encouraged me to go there because he thought it was as good as any school that I might want to attend.”

Stine is a significant benefactor to McPherson College. His matching gift challenge in the late ‘90s ultimately raised more than $20 million for capital projects.