Who We Are

The Concordia University Foundation was established in 1980 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization to carry out exclusively educational, religious, and charitable purposes in and for the benefit of Concordia University in Portland, Oregon. Original members of the Foundation’s Board of Directors who participated in the incorporation of the organization were Duane Bartsch, Robert Hilken, Kenneth Lien, and Edward Maier.

Specific purposes of the Foundation as outlined in the original articles of incorporation are:

  1. to promote and further the development of Concordia College of Portland, Oregon;
  2. to receive and administer funds for education, religious, and charitable activities for the benefit of Concordia College of Portland, Oregon;
  3. to distribute property for such purposes in accordance with the terms of gifts, bequests, or devises to the corporation for educational, religious, and charitable purposes in accordance with the determinations by the Board of Directors and pursuant to the articles of incorporation and corporation bylaws; and
  4. to do and perform such acts as may be necessary or appropriate in carrying out the purposes of the corporation and to exercise the powers granted to nonprofit corporations by the Oregon Nonprofit Corporation Law consistent with the corporation’s status as an organization; (I) exempt from federal income tax under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, (II) to which contributions are deductible under Section 170 (c) (2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, and (III) qualifying under Section 509 (a) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.

Over the years the organization’s name has evolved to the Concordia University Foundation but our purpose remains the same—to support the mission and ministry of Concordia University through increased funding and marketing that directly and positively impacts the goals and vision of the university. Housed in the Hagen Campus Center building on the Concordia campus, the Foundation’s commitment to the university remains strong and centered on the university’s mission of preparing leaders for the transformation of society.