I thought you would be interested in a letter that I sent today to the Benedictine community, Board of Directors, faculty, staff, administrators, alumni, donors and other members of the Saint Vincent College community.

Yesterday we announced that tuition and fee increases for 2009-2010 will be kept below 3% - the smallest increase in 40 years. This letter outlines the College’s plan for dealing with the changes in the economy and our response to them. Let me know what you think, ok?

February 3, 2009

Dear Members of the Saint Vincent College Community:

I write to bring you up to date on the efforts we are making to move Saint Vincent College forward during this time of economic uncertainty.

The downturn in the economy has clearly affected the College, as it has all of higher education. Recently we have witnessed a significant drop in the value of our endowment, an increase in the number of students seeking emergency financial aid, and a growing reluctance within our donor community to make further commitments until the financial markets have settled.

Notwithstanding these trends, I am very confident about our future. Saint Vincent entered this difficult period in excellent financial condition, thanks to the solid foundation laid by my predecessor Jim Will, the efforts of our college community, and the generosity of our donors. Further, our overall “fall to spring” retention numbers this semester were strong, and our 2009-10 applications are near the record levels set last year.

Sound management principles demand, however, that we plan a responsible budget for next year that maintains our College’s momentum while acknowledging the stark economic realities. To address requirements of the new financial landscape, the Board of Directors in its December meeting approved a plan that included budget cuts, a freeze on some vacancies, and a delay in a number of capital improvements. These steps allowed us to create a fund to benefit families confronted with sudden unemployment, home foreclosure or medical emergency. In January, thirteen students returned to campus for the spring semester supported by this additional financial aid.

The challenge that lies ahead will be to maintain academic excellence and the quality of the student experience while keeping the costs of tuition down and workforce reductions as an option of last resort. I believe our Catholic, Benedictine values compel us to do no less.

Vice President for Finance and Administration Dennis Thimons will meet with all constituencies of the College in the weeks ahead to develop a 2009-10 budget that:

• Increases tuition, room and board by less than 3%

• Increases financial aid significantly

• Provides emergency assistance to students whose families are the hardest hit

• Funds new faculty hires and maintains traditional faculty-student ratios

• Consolidates administrative positions where feasible

• Covers all necessary capital improvements and deferred maintenance, and

• Continues to reduce the cost of operating the College

These and other goals can be met without departing from the College’s strategic plan or undermining our recent, hard-earned gains. Saint Vincent was very fortunate to receive over $23 million in grants and contributions for our science complex construction and renovation project, and we look forward to the official groundbreaking of this ambitious endeavor in April. The state-of-the-art facility will be named after Herman and Sis Dupré and house the Herbert W. Boyer School of Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Computing.

The College will continue to raise resources for this important project, and caution demands that each phase of construction be fully-funded. At a time when many of our peers are postponing or cancelling major capital projects, we can be proud that Saint Vincent is in a position to move ahead and immediately improve our facilities and academic offering. We also will be upgrading our antiquated database system so that our campus technology can meet current and emerging demands.

In this year in which we commemorate the bicentennial of the birth of our founder Archabbot Boniface Wimmer, we are mindful that the Lord continues to be with Saint Vincent College and this important mission of the Church and Archabbey. Following the Benedictine maxim of “Ora et Labora,” we will rely both on grace and the hard work of the entire Saint Vincent community to sustain the College in this, our 163rd year.

Please continue to support us with your prayers, loyal collaboration, and financial assistance. It is an exciting time to be at Saint Vincent and a challenging one, too. We need your support and engagement now more than ever. God bless you.

Kind regards,

Jim Towey

President