My View

I am eager to report that since the release of the most recent distribution of The Beacon last March, St. John’s Northwestern Academies has made significant strides in many key areas to advance our Academies. Through the hard work of the dedicated staff, and the tireless involvement of SJNA’s Board Chair, Mike Henn, we have been able to progress forward on several goals we charted for my first year at SJNA. Outlined below is a brief summary for those successes:

• We began the 2021-2022 academic year with 181 students on campus. This is the first increase in starting enrollment in several years and is up from 163 students from the end of the previous year.

• Retention of students from last year remained consistently strong at an 80% retention rate.

• We effectively implemented cost containment strategies, which provided a net gain within our financial assistance. These measures led to almost 20% net benefit in savings for the Academies.

• We made significant gains in the operational improvement within the Academics. Led by BG John Hanley, we were able to increase our AP offerings, realign our academic schedule to maximize 8 classes per day, and provide more robust offerings to the benefit of our students.

• The Annual Fund reached over the $1M milestone for the third consecutive year. • We successfully launched and exceeded expectations for

The Rick Leone Challenge Match Campaign, raising $3M for the Military Academy.

• Major facilities and infrastructure upgrades were and continue to be addressed including the Gerber Pool Annex, roof repairs throughout campus, and replacement of new boilers throughout several buildings.

• Preliminary work began on the long-anticipated barracks renovation project within Scott Johnston.

I am encouraged by the size and scope for all that we were able to achieve in a very short period of time. Yet, there is still much to accomplish over the next several years. Our focus over the next 12 months will remain steadfast on these four areas:

• Continue to grow our student body. We have set an aggressive goal beyond 200 students for this upcoming 2022-2023 school year. Additionally, we have raised our retention benchmark to 85%.

• Advance our fundraising to exceed high watermarks in the annual funding and launch a new capital campaign.

• Complete the first phase of the barracks renovation in Scott Johnston.

• Continue to assess and enhance our Resident Life department to match the needs and complexities of an evolving student population.

I maintain my optimistic assessment for a bright future! With your support in these key areas, along with the continued efforts of our dedicated faculty and staff, we will achieve the standards of excellence we have set forth. I thank you for your allegiance to SJNA and value your steadfast resolve as we continue onward and upward.

Respectfully yours,

Office of the President St. John’s Northwestern Academies

Paul Edwin Lima Major General, U.S. Army (Retired)