The vision of Yellowstone Theological Institute is to change how the world understands God and how Christians embrace the mission of Jesus. This is accomplished through engaging our local community and training men and women for ministry.
YTI is dedicated to keeping our tuition, fees, and housing costs low. As a private, religious educational organization, we are not privy to government funding. Most seminaries and divinity schools pass this cost along to their students. YTI is committed to just the opposite. We rely upon our donors to support the educational program of YTI, so that students can actually afford graduate seminary education without taking out student loans. It is a tall order—one that our board, the faculty, administration, and you, the friends of YTI, take very seriously.
Faculty Chair Campaign 2020-2021
The vision of Yellowstone Theological Institute is to change how the world understands God, and how Christians embrace the mission of Jesus. This is accomplished through engaging our local community, and training men and women for ministry. Additionally, we are dedicated to keeping our tuition, fees and housing costs low. As a private, religious educational organization, we are not privy to government funding. Most seminaries and divinity schools pass this cost along to their students. YTI is committed to just the opposite. We rely upon our donors to support the educational program of YTI, so that students can actually afford graduate seminary education, without taking out student loans. It is a tall order. One that our Board, the faculty, administration and you, the friends of YTI, take very seriously. This requires a special kind of faculty member; one who understands, and embraces our vision and mission; one who has the required academic credentials; one who can teach in several different subject areas; and, one who has quality experience in ministry.
We are asking for your help in funding our faculty for the 2020-2021 school year and beyond. Many schools seek to “endow” their faculty positions. This is an expensive endeavor. It takes approximately $2,000,000.00 to endow one position. However, we believe that a lot of smaller donors can make a big difference; we also believe that there are businesses in our community, state and nation would support our vision, mission and faculty.
Here is the breakdown:
| Average Faculty Position Annual Cost | $90,000 | |
| 1) | Salary | $60,000 |
| 2) | Benefits (health & retirement) | $20,000 |
| 3) | Professional Allowances | $10,000 |
| • Professional Memberships | ||
| • Book Allowance | ||
| • Travel to Conferences | ||
Funding Strategy 1: Endowment
- Requires a minimum gift of $1.5 million
- Trade is a “named chair” — e.g. “The Johnson Chair of Pastoral Theology”
Funding Strategy 2: Community Funded
- Requires a minimum five-year commitment on the part of the donor (Contract provided by YTI)
- A minimum donation of $5,000 per year
- Donations of $60,000 or more per year qualify for annual “named” chair—e.g. “The Burke Co. Veterinary Hospital Chair of Pastoral Theology”
- All donations are tax deductible for the individual or business.
If you are interested in this opportunity for your family or business, please contact Dr. Jay Smith, President of YTI at (406) 404-1600, or jsmith@ythi.org.
Scholarship Campaign 2020-2021
In order to keep educational expenses low for students, many of whom carry a large student loan burden from their undergraduate education, YTI follows a three-stage strategy:
1. Reasonable Tuition: Currently, YTI charges $250 per credit, for a total of $750 per course. This is far less than many seminaries and divinity schools.
2. Limited Full-Time Faculty: Faculty is the largest expense of any educational organization. YTI has focused on hiring only the faculty absolutely necessary for teaching, each of whom can teach a variety of courses and assist with other responsibilities at the institute. YTI has four full-time members (Smith, Desper, Keena, and Long) and five adjunct or part-time faculty (Denton, Fowler, Jernigan, Rose, and Chambers).
3. Affordable Housing: YTI is in the process of building affordable housing for students. The housing completion process is projected for 2022-2023. One, two, and three-bedroom units will be available to the student for 30-40% less than other units in Bozeman.
4. Flexible Curriculum Scheduling: YTI has a pool of 89 courses in its catalog. Each term, 8-10 courses are offered, or 24-30 courses per year. After the student has completed his or her prerequisites, he or she can easily take 12-15 courses per year and complete the MA degree in 18 months to three years, and the MDiv degree from two to five years. This allows the student time for family, education, mentored ministry, and work.
Regardless of our best efforts, it still takes committed friends to donate towards our scholarship funds. The load for a full-time student is nine credits per term or 27 credits per year. Adding the student fees, this totals approximately $8,000 per year. Understanding the need, there are several levels at which you can make a difference.
| • General Scholar Fund | any amount |
| • Yellowstone Scholarship | $1,000 per year |
| • Presidential Scholarship (full-tuition) | $8,000 per year |
| • Named Scholarship | $200,000 |
| (one time-endowment) |
It is our prayer that you will find a means by which to support these future ministers. Of course, all donations to Yellowstone Theological Institute, a 501(c)(3) educational corporation, are tax deductible.