Quaestus is a student-led journal from Concordia University Wisconsin's Batterman School of Business and Concordia University Ann Arbor's Haab School of Business presenting ideas about Liberty, Virtue and Economics, from a Christian perspective, to promote human flourishing. Our vision is to inspire the next generation of Christian thought leaders by addressing global issues with sound economic and moral principles.
Because it will be most conducive to clear communication, I’m going to take this opportunity to be somewhat informal. Quaestus (Kway-stus) is basically a group for students who want to get people to talk about important topics. Together, we form an editorial board of between five and seven undergraduate or graduate students, led by Dr. Scott Niederjohn with Dr. Daniel Sem as an advisor. We run two writing contests, one in the fall and one in the spring. Student editors are either chosen from the winners of these contests or invited by the current editorial board after demonstrating writing ability.
Quaestus serves two main functions. First: we publish two periodicals a year, one in the fall and one in the spring. The fall periodical involves transcriptions from speakers at CUW’s annual Liberty, Faith, and Economics summit. The spring periodical includes articles by students, faculty, and Quaestus editors. Any CUW student or faculty member can publish articles through Quaestus, although they must be accepted and peer-reviewed by the editorial board. The idea is that people can read the fall periodical for inspiration, then write articles for the spring periodical based on the themes of the fall periodical. Themes generally relate to free speech, economics, healthcare, and politics.
Second: we develop and lead forums to promote conversations on contentious topics. Our general model is to select one or more experts to speak on an issue. If we can, we will invite speakers with opposing perspectives. Our speakers will present publicly on the topic, demonstrating to the student audience that a healthy and productive conversation on this topic is possible. Students always get a chance to question our speakers at the end of the forum. In the past we have led forums on racial relations, Roe v. Wade, educational issues, and the like. This spring our topics will be climate change, gender and feminism, and religious freedom. Expect one forum each month of February, March, and April.
For the members of the editorial board, Quaestus serves as an excellent opportunity to practice writing, editing, and publication. We experience the peer-review process, develop strategies for marketing our publications, and learn to sharpen our thoughts. There are also opportunities to interact with leading experts in various fields, as well as chances to attend and present at conferences.
The following periodical includes transcriptions from the fall Liberty, Faith, and Economics (LFE) Summit at Concordia Wisconsin. This event is run by the Concordia Free Enterprise Center in association with the Action Institute, an American think tank focusing on religion and liberty. The summit is held annually and has drawn numerous high-profile speakers including this year’s keynote, Yeonmi Park. The focus of this year’s LFE summit was freedom under pressure. A second periodical will be published in the spring including student and faculty articles related to this topic.
Ultimately, our goal as an institution is to practice fruitful conversations and careful thought. Quaestus, which means profit in Latin, has a special emphasis on things that are profitable for us to be thinking about and discussing. As you read the following transcriptions, we hope you will be inspired by them into further questioning of our world, conversations about truth, and perhaps even to step into publication yourself.
Isaiah Mudge
Senior Editor
The Quaestus Journal Contest is an essay contest hosted by Quaestus in the fall semester of each year. Students who submit essays have a chance to win various monetary prizes, be published in the Spring edition of the Quaestus Journal, and join the editorial board.
The Fall '23 Essay contest has closed.
Quaestus Conversations provides monthly audio content designed to spark conversations beyond our Concordia audience, and showcase our student contributors' exceptional work. Click here for the latest episode and archives on Spotify.
Editor in Chief
Harrison Hulse, Class of 2024, Applied Theology & Theological Languages
Business and Marketing Editor
Anna Young, Class of 2024, Marketing with MBA in Business Scholars Program
Publication Editor
Ella Mudge, class of 2025, Nursing & Studio Art
External Affairs Editor
Samuel Boehlke, Class of 2024, Mass Communication
Research Editor
Jonathon Weir, Class of 2027, Economics
Senior Editor
Isaiah Mudge, Class of 2027, Master of Divinity at Concordia Seminary Saint Louis
Senior Editor
Eleanor (Ellie) Mroczenski, Class of 2025, Lutheran Secondary Education and Natural Sciences
Senior Editor
Ambrose Shaltanis, Class of 2024, Theological Languages and Philosophy
Legalize Marijuana
Date: March 19, 2024
A civil discourse and panel discussion surrounding cannabis, legalization, and adverse health effects
Delete TikTok Now
Date: February 15, 2024
As Congress considered a bill to force TikTok out of the United States, Quaestus brought a panel of national and local speakers together to discuss data privacy and the consequences of mass data collection by foreign governments. Jake Denton, a Tech Policy researcher at The Heritage Foundation, provided a national and legal overview of the situation. Concordia's own Professor John Fields then discussed the consequences of mass data on individual privacy. Questions from the audience allowed students to explore their own concerns and interests as these broad issues affect their lives
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Date: November 14th, 2023
With the outbreak of war in the Middle East, Quaestus invited an inter-disciplinary panel of speakers to discuss the context and nuances of the Israel-Palestine conflict. Dr. Patrick Steele, Professor of History at CUW, detailed the broad history of the conflict and major turning points in Israel-Palestine relations in the last century. For a theological perspective, Rev. Kevin Parviz discussed the LCMS views on Israel and Zionism as well as the Christian response to war. The modern political circumstances of the Israel-Palestine conflict were described by Dr. Lamont Colucci, Political Science Professor and Director of the CUW National Security and Space Center. Together, the historical, theological, and political perspectives provided a framework for understanding and reacting to the Israel-Palestine conflict
Three Perspectives on Climate Change
Date: February 6th, 2023
In order to push past the surface level limitations of the common debate surrounding climate change, Quaestus invited a panel of thinkers across disciplines to discuss the various perspectives which surround our response to environmental catastrophe and growing concern about the future of our planet. Dr. Angus Menuge, Mr. Steve Einhorn, and Dr. Joseph Jacobsen, representing the fields of Philosophy, Business, and Environmental Science respectively, shared their take on the matter and dialogued in response to one another and questions from student listeners in an insightful exploration of our ideal response to the climate change question.
The Value of Higher Education: Kevin Sheridan, Scott Niederjohn, William Cario, Dr. Gonzalez-De Jesus
Date: November 8th, 2022
Students wondering about the worth of their tuition dollars in light of recent conversations about “student loan forgiveness,” “falling enrollment numbers,” and the like came to hear a panel of informed economists and university administrators discuss the value of higher education from their respective backgrounds. Dr. Scott Niederjohn is a Professor of Economics and the head of the Concordia Free Enterprise Center here at CUW and Mr. Kevin Sheridan is the director of Financial Aid at CUW. Together, they tackled the economical angle of this conversation by bringing together statistical details and important insights from trends in the field. On the other hand, Dr. William Cario, then Interim President of CUW, and Dr. Naydeen Gonzalez-De Jesus, Executive Vice President of Student Success, gave a great reminder of the intrinsic, lasting value that higher education has for the mind and the soul of the young American citizen today
The Hong Konger Viewing Party
Date: October 25th, 2022
CUW students came together to watch Acton Institute’s new film The Hong Konger, which describes the harrowing journey of Jimmy Lai, a young, scrappy businessman from Hong Kong who roused a wave of revolution unlike any other seen in this generation as China grew increasingly hostile to the freedoms of his fellow citizens. To find out more about this modern-day hero, follow this link.
Spring 2024 Issue 5 NO. II
Fall 2023 Issue 5 NO. I
Spring 2023 Issue 4 NO. II
Fall 2022 Issue 4 NO. I
