It was 2006, and Temple Israel of Sharon, like so many Reform congregations across the country, was shrinking. The Sharon, Massachusetts, congregation, which had reached a peak of around 750 members in the last century, was down to 600. But where some people might have seen only decline and despair, Rob Carver, a professor of business statistics and the temple’s lay leader, saw a math problem.
“We were starting to notice that every year we would raise dues, increase the price, and actually bring in less revenue than the prior year,” Carver said.
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