A Letter From the President

Dear Alumni and Friends,

We welcomed the second-largest incoming class in Saint Mary history this fall. It is wonderful when the campus comes back to life after the quiet of summer. Our student headcount has reached almost 1,600. We have a new record of 1,588 students. As we continue to grow, we also continue to upgrade our facilities and invest in our fabulous faculty.

The need for nurses continues to grow, and we are doing our part to prepare top-notch, compassionate nurses. We are finalizing plans to move our Simulation Lab from neighboring Saint John Hospital back to campus. Simulation labs have become increasingly important in the education and training of our nurses, physical therapists, and occupational therapists. The new interdisciplinary Simulation Lab will ensure our health care workers are trained for the increasingly high-tech world.

Saint Mary prides itself on being a teaching university. Our outstanding faculty are not only experts in their academic fields, they are also excellent instructors – studying and integrating the latest research on how students learn. Saint Mary faculty strive to provide hands-on learning experiences. Examples include simulated crime scenes for criminology students and a student-run coffee shop for the business and marketing students.

Amid the stormy waters in higher education today, Saint Mary remains fiscally strong with only $3 million in structured debt on a residence hall. We balance our budget each year and practice the same fiscal responsibility we teach our students. Saint Mary is well-positioned financially to continue to thrive and grow.

The Board of Trustees has formed a search committee to find the university’s next leader. I trust their wisdom and the grace of God that they will find the one to lead Saint Mary into the future. Thank you for your ongoing support of our beloved Saint Mary.

Blessings,

Sister Diane Steele, SCL, PhD, C’83
University President