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Let's pray that a Bradley U. sized cutback isn't coming in the next few months.  Weasel words in headlines such as "new Beacons" typically mask a problem.

Since I rarely post and mostly lurk here, just to reintroduce myself, I'm a VU alum and current Bradley parent. With a vested interest in the success of both institutions, I'm always interested in discussions about both as the obvious peers they are.


I certainly hope VU isn't looking at a BU type of cutback, but I'm not optimistic after seeing VU's census figures. I agree that that type of language is often used to mask issues.


The BU announcement took many people associated with the university by surprise. Everyone knows it's facing the same headwinds as its peers, but all indications were that it was at least faring better than many and had some modicum of relative stability. There had been some cuts a few years ago, but the situation had seemed to have stabilized.


BU hasn't released its 10 day census yet, but according to the article I mention below, first year students may be down as much as 18% from last year. That's after several years of small declines and essentially flat numbers from what I've seen of BU's data. With the BU cuts announced so close to the beginning of the academic year, it was clear this fall's numbers would be bad.


BU has indicated campus visit numbers for next year's incoming class are breaking records. Hopefully VU is seeing a similar trend with campus visits. I don't know if VU has publicly indicated how things are going on that front.


I can't post external links, but the article I mentioned above is entitled 'Local Colleges Remain Hopeful as Enrollment Numbers Dip' from centralillinoisproud.com (WMBD TV in Peoria), posted on July 20, 2023.

The details on Bradley led me to peruse the Bradley U. website and get a sense of how they landed that huge $100 million commitment.  No luck on that front yet.

I found a Peoria Journal-Star article entitled "Bradley University unveils new, $100 million business-engineering building" dated November 1, 2019 about the Bradley BECC dedication. It adds a bit more info about funding.

The project had the most individual donors of any in Bradley's history up to that point. Fourteen donors gave at least $1 million each, totaling $28 million between them. Local state legislators also worked to provide some state funding. The article did not state how much state funding went toward the building, nor did it state the sources of the remaining funds.

I'm still not able to post external links, but the article is easily found searching for the title in Google. It doesn't appear to be paywalled.

From a previous post Caterpillar is not leaving Peoria, just the corporate headquarters is leaving Deerfield. That being said, Bradley is going through similar issues as Valparaiso.

Longtime lurker and first time poster here. I also have some perspective as a VU alum who's a parent of a current Bradley student. I'm also quite familiar with the Peoria area through personal ties.

This is absolutely correct about Caterpillar and Peoria. Peoria didn't really lose anything more than the C-suite. While it's a blow to the city's prestige, the economic hit likely hasn't been all that significant. Cat still has a large presence in the area with thousands of employees. As far as I know, Cat is still a heavy hitter in local philanthropic efforts.

I'll disclaim my next thoughts by saying that I'm not in higher ed, and that my impressions are from general information I've found.

I agree that Bradley faces the same pressures as VU, but I don't think conditions at Bradley have been as challenging. Enrollment at Bradley has declined, but not seemingly to the extent VU has seen. Financially, Bradley seems to be in what the president of the university terms "OK". I'm comfortable with where things are at Bradley given the current environment facing higher ed, particularly private schools.

My student at Bradley is an engineering major and did briefly consider VU. Bradley opened a $100 million business and engineering convergence center (The BECC) in 2019. That's a draw for Bradley that is likely to VU's detriment since both schools seem to draw from a similar pool of students.

I can't post external links, but searching for Bradley President Stephen Standifird's 2022 State of the University address is worthwhile for anyone interested in seeing how one of VU's closest peers is faring.