Strategic Priority: Finances

Do you remember when we actually used paper road maps to get somewhere instead of asking google directions? Before taking a trip I used to get out the map and chart what I hoped would be the best course. I even had a special gadget for measuring the distance of a specific path. It had a little wheel you rolled on the map and it told you the distance you had traveled.

Last week I posted about WAC's 2018-2019 Strategic Plan. Our strategic plan, like a road map helps us to know where we are going and the best route to get there. During our planning we settled on 5 Top Priorities:

• Internships
• Finances
• Enrollment
• Volunteers
• Location

Earlier I talked about Internships and their importance to the overall plan. Today I will discuss Finances.

In 1 Timothy 6:10 Paul wrote that the love of money was the "root of all kinds of evil." I have never been one who is driven by money, but I do know that you can't run a college without a lot of it and the lack of money can lead to a lot of struggles.

I wish it were as simple as just having a curriculum and some teachers and opening the door to the excited rush of students waiting to take our courses. But the truth is that there are many expenses to running a college. Some are obvious, like salaries, general administration expenses, rent, etc. Some are less obvious like software, scholarships, licensing, memberships and accreditation fees.

Here's the bottom line: We will need to increase our income from $20k to over $170k in order to reach our goals.

Most of this will come from increased income from tuition, but we will also need to increase our donation base from approximately $18k to $80k.

So, how can we accomplish this dramatic increase in finances? Here are four of our top action steps to help accomplish this task:

1. Prayer. If you have been following our posts for very long you know that we believe God's power is necessary to accomplish our goals. Please pray that God would abundantly supply our needs. If you would like to join our prayer team, simply send me an email asking to be added to the team or make a comment to this post.
2. Increased Enrollment. We are continuing to work to increase our enrollment. Our focus on internships will hopefully help to draw more full time students.
3. Corporate Sponsorships. We are looking at a new way to increase our income through business sponsorships. If you would like to help contact businesses or deliver our sponsorship brochures, please let me know.
4. Scholarship Donations. In the future, most of our requests for donations will focus on scholarships to help students afford to attend WAC. We feel it will be more rewarding for the donor to know that their moneys are going directly to help a student.

You can help in multiple ways:

1. Pray. I know - I already said this, but I really believe your prayers will make a difference, so join with us in asking for God's financial blessing.
2. Volunteer. There are many ways you can help us to raise money. If you are interested in helping, please let me know.
3. Partner. If you would like to partner with us financially, please go to our giving page.

by Dr. Jerry Wyrick
President, Worship Arts Conservatory
worshiparts.net