$0 Our Goal $0 Raised $0 Remaining Your Investment Will Endow tuition assistance to eliminate price as a barrier to enrollment. We will invest in access to ensure opportunity. Modernize and renew campus facilities to reflect the demands of a contemporary education and our commitment to learning excellence. We will invest in the power and purpose of place. Fund teaching excellence to attract, retain, and reward the very best faculty. We will invest in our teachers because great teaching is the beating heart of great learning. Our Time is now! Invest FAQ Our School Support the Future of Catholic Benedictine Education Name(Required) First Last Email(Required) Enter Email Confirm Email Phone Δ We rely on donations and investments from our generous supporters to provide our students with the highest quality education possible. If you'd like to contribute, please complete the Letter of Intent found here. If you would like to learn more, please contact Aaron Miller, VP of Advancement @ 320-363-2098 or amiller001@sjprep.net or provide your contact information and a member of the Advancement team will reach out to you. FAQ Why are you conducting a comprehensive capital campaign now? Driven to continue providing extraordinary experiences for the next generation of thinkers, discoverers, doers, and leaders, we have embarked on an ambitious plan of renewal, relevance, and growth. Ever grateful to the monastic community, families, and friends who have supported Prep for generations, we look forward to providing our students with the tools, experiences, and values they will need to navigate new challenges in a changing world. The Prep Forward: Our Time is Now campaign will support financial assistance for new Preps in new times, advance our best-in-class learning experience, and renew and revitalize the school learning environment. What is the Prep Forward fundraising goal? The goal of this multi-year campaign, the largest comprehensive campaign in our history, is $10,000,000. The Prep Forward: Our Time is Now campaign will transform the Prep experience through two key objectives: Securing $5,000,000 in cash gifts and multi-year pledges to support teaching excellence (faculty salaries and faculty professional development), the first phase of facility improvements, and student financial assistance. Securing at least $5,000,000 in planned giving commitments to establish or increase endowed scholarships to support financial assistance for students and to support teaching excellence. Who determined these priorities? We engaged a broad cross section of over 420 stakeholders in our community – students, current parents, alumni, parents of alumni, faculty, and staff – to gather insights and interests through surveys, one-on-one meetings, and small group listening sessions. Framed by the strategic plan approved by the Board of Regents in 2021, we shaped a campaign case for support built on the above priorities. The Board finalized and approved the campaign in January 2024. How did you set the campaign fundraising goal? Prospect research and data analysis of our entire constituency led us to establish this “stretch” but achievable goal: $5,000,000 in cash and multi-year pledges plus $5,000,000 in estate and planned gift intentions. The “5+5” approach establishes a comprehensive campaign goal that is in addition to all other fundraising we typically secure each year (via the Prep Annual Fund, Grand Tour of Nations, etc.) through our Advancement Office. Who will benefit from the Prep Forward campaign? The Prep Forward: Our Time is Now campaign focuses on students and the student experience. Fueled by our commitment to extraordinary experiences inside and outside of the classroom, it represents an extraordinary investment in their future. And because they graduate prepared to make the world a better place, it benefits all of us. How will my campaign gift be used? An unrestricted gift provides the greatest flexibility for your gift to be used where it is most needed. However, you may designate your gift for a specific purpose that has particular meaning for you. Naming opportunities – of endowed funds or of a campus space or facility – are available for many gifts. Ultimately, whether for unrestricted or designated purposes, all gifts to the Prep Forward: Our Time is Now campaign will change lives by expanding access or improving the learning experience. Do I need to pay 100% of my gift now? No. You can choose when and how to fulfill your commitment. You may choose to make an outright gift or set up a pledge with a payment schedule that works best for you. How will the capital building projects be funded? Will you “pay as you go” or take on construction financing against written pledges? We do not intend to take on any long-term debt to fund the capital improvement projects identified in our plan. Much like bridge financing, when we reach the total pledges required for a capital project, we will borrow funds against those pledges to begin renovations and improvements in a timely manner. What is the best way to make my gift? Your support of our students’ future is tax deductible.* There are a variety of ways to invest in Saint John’s Prep. We invite you to participate in one or more of them. Investments through a Deferred or Planned Giving Vehicle. Planned gifts are a key source of funding for the long-term financial health of Saint John’s Prep. Life insurance, annuities, trusts, or investing through your will or estate are excellent ways to make a lifelong testimony to the profound impact of the Prep experience. Investments of Cash. Cash commitments may be paid over a period of up to five years. Spreading out the payment terms, with the option of making annual, semi-annual, quarterly, or monthly payments creates flexibility and might help you consider a higher level of support. Investments of Stocks or Securities. Gifts of stock – one-time gifts or multiple gifts over a period of years – are an ideal giving vehicle for both you and Saint John’s Prep. Gifts of appreciated stock avoid capital gains taxes, receive the full benefit of a charitable contribution, and provide us with a significant and immediate gift. Investments through Donor Advised Funds. If you prefer to give through a Donor Advised Fund, the Saint John’s Prep Advancement Office can provide assistance in maximizing your gift’s impact and tax benefits. After we reach our goal, what’s next? The three components identified in our initial priorities – renovating and modernizing our campus, increasing endowment for tuition assistance, and increasing funding for teaching excellence – remain the pillars of our long-term vision for Saint John’s Prep. As we surpass $5,000,000 in cash and pledges as well as $5,000,000 in planned gift intentions, we will continue to seek funding for the next phase of facility renovations and upgrades (these long-term facility projections exceed $10 million) as well as endowment. The Board of Regents will shape the next set of funding priorities within these components as we approach attainment of our initial campaign funding goals. Who can I contact to learn more about the campaign? Please contact Aaron Miller, Vice President of Advancement, at either amiller001@sjprep.net or at (320) 363-2098 for more information about the Prep Forward: Our Time is Now campaign and how you can participate. Summer 2024 Total Enrollment On the 10th day of enrollment in September of 2024, Prep enrolled 277 students in grades 6 through 12. Upper School enrollment totaled 191; Middle School enrollment totaled 86. Geography We enrolled students from 12 countries as well as Red Lake Nation. Regionally, we enrolled students from 28 different communities in Minnesota. International students made up 23% of total Upper School enrollment. Students from Minnesota comprised 81% of all Prep students – the largest number from St. Cloud (62), Saint Joseph (45), Cold Spring (24), and Sartell (22). Race/Ethnicity American students of color represent 19% of all domestic students in grades 6-12 at Saint John’s Prep this fall. One-third of students of color identify as two or more races. An additional third identify as Hispanic of any race (25%). In total, Prep is the most geographically and culturally diverse school in Central Minnesota.. Boarding 57 students reside in Saint Michael Hall this fall, including 3 Austrian students and 3 Japanese students. Ten residential students are domestic boarders. Gender Girls make up 51% of total enrollment across all grades. In total, we enrolled 140 boys and 136 girls in grades 6-12. Academics Nearly 6 in 10 Upper School – including 95% of all seniors and two-thirds of all juniors – enrolled in at least one Advanced Placement or Honors course. Almost half (45%) enrolled in three or more AP or Honors courses. In addition, 20% of all juniors and seniors (19 students) also enrolled in collegiate classes at the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University. Instructional Excellence The average course section size is 15; our student-to-faculty ratio is 10:1. More than three-quarters of our faculty hold a master’s degree. We retain more than 90% of our students from year-to-year. Recognition Prep is ranked by Niche as the top Catholic school in Minnesota and among the top 50 Catholic schools in the U.S. Niche also ranks us among the top private college prep schools in the country and one of only four Minnesota schools among the top 500 public and private schools nationally for STEM education. Finance The budget for fiscal year 2024 totals $7.5 million. Nearly 80% of all expenditures directly support student learning or the student experience (e.g. co-curricular experiences). Salary and benefits make up 60% of total expenditures and three-quarters of all instructional and academic support expenditures. Tuition and fees, net of financial assistance, provide 75% of total operating revenue. Annual fund-raising and endowment provide 20% of all operating dollars. Endowment The endowment at Saint John’s Prep currently totals $15.6 million, or $55,400 per student. Endowment per student at Prep ranks at or among the top of all Catholic schools in Minnesota. The total endowment is more than twice the school’s annual operating budget. With the additions from the Prep Forward: Our Time is Now campaign, the endowment will grow to nearly three times the budget, a standard of excellence for independent schools. The Board seeks to limit the annual draw for operations from endowment to 5% of total endowment value. Financial Aid Saint John’s Prep is and has always been a school of opportunity, enrolling students of all incomes. In fiscal year 2024, two-thirds of our students qualified for need-based financial aid. We awarded nearly $1.6 million in financial aid in 2023-24. The Prep endowment and restricted scholarship funds currently support 38% of all financial aid awarded. Growing this endowment by an additional $5 million (one of the three goals of the Our Time is Now campaign) will allow Prep to fund $1,000,000 in aid, or 63% of the qualified need. Facilities Completed in 1962, many of Prep’s original facilities require renovations and upgrades. Though still a visually arresting building, both our learning and community spaces now require investment and updates. An initial investment of $3 million, will allow for total classroom revitalization, community space upgrades, and school-wide lighting and infrastructure upgrades. Faculty The demand for excellent teachers, and the nationwide shortage of teachers qualified to teach at a premier school like Prep, require an increase in funding for faculty compensation. We seek to compensate our faculty at 90% of the St. Cloud public school district faculty pay. In 2023-24, three-quarters of our faculty had reached this level. Median pay among all Prep faculty currently totals $60,400.