The Florida-Georgia District is committed to the belief that the Concordia House of Studies provides  means to increase the number of professional church workers.  A number of factors led to this conclusion:

 

1. Even as the Florida-Georgia district embarks on an enhanced program of mission outreach and growth to meet the needs of the 23,000,000 residents of the two states, there is a shortage of clergy and teachers for Lutheran churches and schools;
2. The number of students from the Florida-Georgia district attending schools of the Concordia University System (CUS) is limited by the long distances to CUS schools;
   
    
3. The concept of a House of Studies offers an attractive, reasonable means of bringing quality training for professional church workers to this region.  The CHS will provide coursework for professional church workers in a setting adjacent to local college or university campuses.  The state university provides the general or specialized secular education needed by the student for the baccalaureate degree. 
   
    
4. The CHS will help to overcome the barrier of distance that prevents some students from going into a church work program.  This means offering quality religious education that prepares people for church vocations relatively close to where students live.  Research studies done by colleges and universities around the country indicate that the overwhelming majority of students desire to attend a school that is more than 150 miles from home, but less than 300 miles from home.  Most students from Florida-Georgia have attended CUS schools in Bronxville, New York and Austin, Texas.  Both of these schools are more than 1100 miles from central Florida.  By offering courses in Orlando, the Concordia House of Studies overcomes the barrier of distance; 
   
    
5. The CHS will help to overcome the barrier of dollars. This means keeping the cost of education as low as possible for church work students.  The Concordia House of Studies does this by offering only the courses that are needed for church work certification.  The state university provides the remainder of a student's education including the bachelor's degree.  In the case of teacher education students, the state university also awards the student's state teacher certification.  The Florida-Georgia district underwrites the cost of CHS via contributions made through Forward Together Servants in His Mission.  Schools in the Concordia University System must offer the whole range of course options in addition to church work programs plus all of the capital costs. This makes their cost of education substantially higher.  The Concordia House of Studies is able to overcome the barrier of dollars by using the resources of the state university to provide the student's general education.