January 15, 2001
Golden Gate blames Texas for cuts
___MILL VALLEY, Calif.--The administration of Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary is blaming Texas for preventing its faculty members from getting a salary increase this year and for causing the elimination of four staff positions.
___The cutbacks are necessary to anticipate projected reductions in funding from the Baptist General Convention of Texas, said seminary President Bill Crews.
___In October, messengers to the BGCT annual session approved a plan to redirect money away from the six Southern Baptist Convention seminaries, saying the SBC schools no longer teach in accordance with the beliefs of most Texas Baptists and have become the tools of advancing a fundamentalist agenda.
___At its most severe, the loss to Golden Gate Seminary is projected to be $514,000, about 8 percent of the seminary's annual budget. But in reality, no one yet knows what the actual reduction will be. That depends on how Texas churches react to the funding changes and which of the BGCT's several giving plans they choose.
___Most observers close to the situation predict the actual financial loss to the SBC seminaries will be less than the maximum possibility, but the actual trend probably won't become clear for another six to 12 months.
___Crews had warned last fall that Golden Gate would make budget adjustment in anticipation of the Texas funding shift. To wait until an actual decrease in funding showed up would be too late, he said.
___"We are saddened by the necessity of these organizational decisions, but our stewardship responsibility mandates that we plan, staff and implement the work of the seminary in accordance with the resources provided by our denomination's system of financial support," Crews reiterated in January.
___The seminary has eliminated four full-time positions in the business affairs office, the information technology department and the institutional advancement office.
___A planned 3 percent salary increase for faculty and staff also has been scuttled.
___"While we regret the necessity of these staff reductions, we remain confident in the mission God has given Golden Gate Seminary to shape effective leaders for the churches of tomorrow," Crews said.
___Based on a Baptist Press report
Get printer-friendly version of this story
Send this story to a friend
Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!