2024 Legacy Updates

Preserving the Legacy Accomplishments

A Year of Collaboration, Commitment and Community

This collaborative effort focused on long-term sustainability and remaining true to the College’s mission.

The College leadership took immediate action to reduce its operating budget by nearly $12 million, a significant but necessary step to ensure the financial viability of St. Norbert College. This reduction was achieved through a combination of cost-cutting measures and strategic reallocation of resources. Despite these financial challenges, St. Norbert College made significant strides in advancing its mission and addressing expected and unexpected financial challenges in 2024.

The plan emphasizes operational excellence by managing tuition dollars, reducing costs, making strategic investments, and pursuing new approaches to enhance academic quality and student success.

These accomplishments reflect the College’s commitment to transparency, collaboration, shared governance, and the values of the Norbertine tradition: communio, stewardship, and service.

Accomplishments

Balanced Budgets : In its February meeting, the Board of Trustees directed that the College leadership advance balanced budgets for the coming years.

Personnel and operating cuts were necessary to balance the FY24 budget, balancing the FY25 budget (June 1, 2024 to May 31, 2025) again necessitates reductions.

Preserving the St. Norbert Legacy : Our work to protect our institution’s legacy, itself part of the 900-year legacy of the Norbertine Order, involves immediate and long-range efforts, including:

General non-personnel expense reductions
Strategic use of endowment drawdown funds
Improved annual fundraising results
Savings from health plan design adjustments
Increase in the Norbertine endowment distribution
Personnel savings, including position and administrative expense reductions

$7 Million Budget Adjustment : Successfully realigned revenues and expenses to ensure the College’s financial viability, addressing declining enrollment trends.

Launch of Revenue-Generating Initiatives:
Introduced the College’s first suite of non-credit, online certificates in high-demand fields such as healthcare and technology.
Developed programs that cater to working professionals, aligning with the Norbertine value of fostering lifelong learning.
Launched an athletics optimization strategy, adding competitive club sports to attract students.

Board of Trustee support : In its October meeting it unanimously approved:

undergraduate tuition rate increase of 2.5% and
room and board rate increase of 2.5%.
endowment policy spending distribution of 4.5%.

New educational Offerings :Rolled out flexible, affordable online educational opportunities designed to meet workforce needs and promote social mobility.
Mission-Driven Innovation : Embedded the College’s core values in these initiatives to address broader community needs while contributing to the stability of the institution.

Transparency and Governance : Continued a practice of open communication and collaborative decision-making with faculty, staff, and students to address institutional challenges.
Campus Safety : Enhanced security measures and proactive strategies to maintain a safe and welcoming campus environment.

Traditions and Celebrations : Preserved beloved traditions such as the Mass of the Holy Spirit and the Knights on Broadway Christmas Show.
Communio in Action : Emphasized community solidarity, mutual respect, and service throughout all initiatives and campus life.

These successes are a testament to our dedicated and generous alums and an inspiration for future endeavors. Your support and commitment are integral to our mission and we deeply appreciate your role in our success.

Endowment Campaign : The Support What Matters campaign concluded with a remarkable achievement, raising more than $128M, surpassing our $125M goal.
Athletics : The SNC Hockey Locker Room initiative also exceeded expectations, raising nearly $1.7M, surpassing the $1.5M goal.
Year-End Giving Campaign : Encouraged sacrificial gifts and endowment of mission-critical positions to support the College’s operating budget and ensure long-term stability.
Recruitment Advocacy : Launched initiatives to inspire alums and supporters to help recruit future Green Knights, emphasizing the importance of education in transforming lives.

Celebrated the unique spirit of St. Norbert College, from academic excellence in the arts, humanities, and sciences to the shared joy of rooting for the Green Knights.

A Year of Shared Promise

In 2024, St. Norbert College exemplified the resilience and faith that have defined its legacy for over a century. Rooted in the Norbertine tradition of communio — a commitment to community and mutual support — the College faced significant challenges with courage and collaboration.

The higher education landscape is evolving rapidly, presenting difficult decisions and necessitating creative solutions. Together, the St. Norbert community embraced this moment as an opportunity to honor its mission while ensuring a sustainable future. While extremely difficult, the $7 million budget adjustment was approached transparently, with shared governance and an unwavering commitment to the College’s
core values.

Amid these efforts, innovation flourished. The launch of online certificate programs in high-demand fields addressed workforce needs and underscored the College’s dedication to lifelong learning and social mobility. These thoughtfully designed programs reflect the principles of stabilitas loci, service, and extending the Norbertine mission beyond campus and into the broader community.

While addressing these pressing needs, the College also celebrated its enduring traditions and heritage, fostering a sense of connection and nostalgia among our community. Beloved events like the Mass of the Holy Spirit reminded the community of its shared faith. At the same time, cultural touchstones like the Knights on Broadway Christmas Show highlighted the joy and creativity that define St. Norbert College.

Crucially, the spirit of generosity and solidarity remained central to every effort. From year-end giving campaigns to recruitment advocacy, alums, and supporters were invited to actively participate in shaping the College’s future. Every gift, every act of service, and every moment of engagement reinforced the shared promise of stewardship that sustains the institution.

Through these collective efforts, 2024 was not just a year of challenges but a year of triumph. It demonstrated the power of transparency, collaboration, and faith in action. St. Norbert College remains a beacon of excellence, rooted in its mission to educate, inspire, and transform lives. Together, as a community, we look ahead to a bright, secure future and are deeply grounded in the values that have guided us since our
founding.

Here’s to a 2025 full of promise, progress, and continued faith in one another!

2024 Community Email Updates

Dear St. Norbert College Community,

As the year draws to a close and we prepare our hearts for the joy of Christmas, I want to share an update on our journey together—a journey grounded in faith and communio —to advance the sacred mission of St. Norbert College. This time of year invites us to reflect on our purpose, count our blessings, and review our progress as we work together to build a hopeful future.

Our Why

At SNC, we change students’ lives as our dedicated faculty and staff spark their curiosity and accompany them as they discern their purpose. Personal relationships and a commitment to human flourishing, within the context of communio , set this campus apart in quite an extraordinary way. This educational environment is transformative by fueling excellence in academics, leadership, athletics, scholarship, and service. I mark these impressive accomplishments each week with personal notes of congratulations.

I count the relational nature of our community as among our greatest blessings. This is evident in the culture of care, compassion, and interconnectedness that gets amplified in both good times and difficult moments. We celebrate each other’s successes with genuine joy and happiness. In tough times, we navigate through the range of emotions associated with the Kubler-Ross stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance emerging stronger and more united.

Each of us processes change with varying levels of understanding and in our own time. For my part, I will continue to be as honest and transparent regarding how we arrived at our current financial circumstances, the progress we have made, and the distance we have left to travel. While many seem relieved that we are addressing the realities of this time directly, there are others who are fearful, angry, and/or anxious about the future. These are understandable emotions, and we assure any community member who is struggling or needs assistance that we are here to support you. Please take advantage of the SNC support services available.

I am grateful to all the members of the community who have stepped up to lead from where they are by staying focused on serving students and each other while spreading kindness, joy, and love. I will never forget all of you who have reached out to me personally to offer your words of understanding, support, encouragement, and thanks.

Institutional Context

Given some misinformation that is circulating, I want to remind everyone how we got here and why our collective response to this moment in the history of the College is so critical to its future:

Within weeks of my arrival, it became clear that the College was on track for three consecutive years of negative operating performance and that the FY24 deficit was significantly larger than anticipated.
During the prior decade, the College’s enrollment had been shrinking even as its discount rate was growing at a steady clip (meaning less net tuition and fee revenue to cover expenses).
In fall 2022, the College’s faculty numbers were at the highest level in more than a decade despite SNC educating nearly 350 fewer students.
Net tuition and fee revenue is lower today than a decade ago due to the College graduating larger, lower-discounted classes and replacing them with multiple smaller, more highly discounted classes.
SNC is tuition-dependent and approximately 60% of the College’s operating expenses were personnel-related in FY24. This is why we cannot address current financial challenges without impacting our faculty and staff colleagues.
The demographic cliff and increasingly competitive market are exacerbating the dynamics described as reflected in the size of recent first-year classes.
Despite adjusting faculty numbers during the past year, the student-faculty ratio is virtually the same as it was a decade ago.

Our Progress

Our commitment to the mission of St. Norbert College remains unwavering. We understand how unsettling the financial challenges have been to our community. I also empathize with the disruption that results from rapid change on campus. Yet, if we did not proceed in the way we have during the past 16 months, the walk-forward budget projected a nearly $20M deficit by FY27 in an increasingly inhospitable environment for higher education. To avoid this devastating prospect, we have acted decisively in reducing the budget by approximately $12M. This was extraordinarily difficult, but it was the right thing to do as we work to preserve the mission of this incredible College.

We are advancing multiple strategies to contain costs and generate revenue while remaining attentive to mission, educational quality, student success, and operational excellence. We continue to invite faculty, our critical partners, to develop ways of diversifying: a) the student segments we serve (beyond traditional-aged, residential students); b) the programs we offer (beyond four-year degrees); and c) the way we deliver instruction (beyond face-to-face to include hybrid and online offerings).

While we are addressing these significant annual operating budget challenges, I want to assure our community that St. Norbert College is working hard to adjust in order to sustain its historically sound financial position with substantial long-term assets and relatively low debt levels. This work is critical to ensuring SNC’s long-term success and service to future generations. The hard decisions we have made are proactively strengthening our position to meet emerging challenges with resilience and purpose.

Looking Forward: Spring 2025

Dr. Valerie Martin Conley, Vice President and Senior Academic Officer, has been working all semester with faculty, academic deans, academic affairs staff, the Faculty Personnel Committee, the Curriculum and Educational Policy Committee, and the Senate as she finalizes recommendations for academic program elimination and faculty reductions. Next steps, slated to happen in January 2025 include:

Finalizing potential academic program elimination recommendations
Identifying potential individual faculty members for termination
Communicating recommendations to potentially impacted faculty
Allowing time for potentially impacted faculty to request a review by the Faculty Personnel Committee

Please know, every decision is being viewed through the prism of fulfilling our mission and protecting our community members to the best of our ability.

Our Commitments:

To Students: All students in currently declared programs will be able to complete their degrees, honoring their paths and progress.
To Faculty: Terminated faculty will receive a minimum 10-month notice period or equivalent severance pay.
To Staff: Severance will also be offered to impacted staff as appropriate and in a manner consistent with institutional precedent.

As of 12/13, our enrollment management and business offices are projecting a minimum spring 2025 shortfall of $700K. We will close this gap prior to May 31, 2025, to balance the current FY25 budget.

Beyond this, we still face a significant challenge—a minimum $7 million budget reduction target to align revenues and expenses next fiscal year (i.e., FY26). This alignment will remain a top priority because “without margin, there is no mission.”

While these issues can be unsettling, we should remember that we have already reduced nearly twice this amount working together. We have significantly reduced expenses, developed new curricula, and implemented strategic initiatives. The progress we have made bolsters our confidence in our College community and its supporters’ resilience as we complete the critical work ahead.

As we continue the path toward long-term sustainability, we will develop the process for strategic planning in spring. We will remain steadfast in our commitment to Catholic identity, Norbertine heritage, and liberal learning while diversifying the student segments our College serves. In this way, we will position SNC to meet the needs of local, regional, and global communities while embracing innovation, excellence, and sustainability.

As the only Catholic, Norbertine College in the world, our strength is in communio , a value guiding our shared work and calling us to unity and mutual support. The spirit of communio is present in each of you—students, faculty, staff, trustees, alums, donors, and friends—whose efforts and sacrifices are integral to sustaining the College during this time of transition.

Together We Lead, Together We Serve

St. Norbert College is a great institution. Its current financial difficulties are similar to those playing out in higher education across the country. The quality and effectiveness of our response will be critical for the generations of students, faculty, and staff who follow us. I have no doubt this community will rise to the occasion and become a model for others as we demonstrate compassion, grace, resilience, and determination in the coming months. Building on our considerable assets, we will become an even more mission-driven, student-centered, and financially-sustainable College.

As we move forward, we will continue to rely on the generosity of all to help strengthen sustainability, build institutional reputation, and preserve the exceptional educational experiences we provide. In this season of giving, I invite each of you to consider how you might make a difference. You can positively impact our mission by:

supporting the St. Norbert Fund
endowing mission-critical positions
recruiting prospective students
offering internship opportunities for students
hiring SNC graduates

We are so grateful for each one of you. It is your faith in our mission that inspires and sustains us. Together, we will continue to honor our traditions and adapt to meet the needs of our time with courage and resilience.

Wishing you peace and blessings in this holy season,

Laurie M. Joyner, Ph.D.

President, St. Norbert College

Dear St. Norbert College Community,

Since announcing our alignment with Dignitas Infinita regarding gender identity language in mid-September, our community has engaged in meaningful dialogue about how we live out our Catholic, Norbertine, and liberal arts identity, specifically within the context of the teachings of the Catholic Church. For more than 125 years, the respectful exchange of perspectives has been the foundation of St. Norbert College’s resilience. However, achieving that type of community takes work and vigilance.

While some community members have expressed concerns, we are perplexed by claims that there have not been opportunities for discussion. The forums for engagement attached below reflect our ongoing commitment to transparency and inclusion.

It is essential to understand that this decision lies within the governance authority and responsibility of our Board of Trustees and Sponsor. Dialogue allows us to deepen understanding, but this decision reflects our Catholic and Norbertine identity, and is not subject to unilateral change by the administration.

The Vatican document Dignitas Infinita was signed by Pope Francis and released in March of 2024 with the goal to offer clarifications on the use and abuse of the term “dignity” for the universal Church, which includes St. Norbert College. The decision was not made in response to any one issue. It puts us in conformity with our colleges’ bylaws ([The operation of St. Norbert College] “shall be conducted within the context of the…teachings and doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church, and shall be in compliance with the objectives and philosophy of the Order of Canons Regular of Premontre…” bylaws I.2); it prepared us to receive the new 2024 Title IX regulations; it responded to internal policies that shifted the college’s stance without proper approval; it allowed us to continue to serve and minister to people on campus as we always have; and it put us into communion with our local Bishop, Pope Francis, and the universal Church. Most importantly, Dignitas Infinita clarifies what human dignity means and looks like, and recognizing the dignity of every human being is a core aspect of St. Norbert College’s Catholic tradition.

St. Norbert College remains committed to radical hospitality. We will continue to create a welcoming environment for everyone in our community—LGBTQIA+ students, practicing Catholics, members of other faith traditions, those from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, and everyone who calls St. Norbert College home. It is also worth noting that we have received more positive feedback about this shift to align with Catholic teaching as we have received critical comments, underscoring the diversity of perspectives in our community.

Corrections

Like other SNC leaders, I received several emails yesterday from students. There has been some confusion regarding the November 21 st “Communio for All” event. On October 24 of this year, Dr. Karen Park, on behalf of the Theology and Religious Studies (THRS) faculty, invited me and any other Norbertine interested in participating, to a campus wide discussion of Dignitas Infinita and the associated changes on campus. While I could not accept the spot on the panel at that time, I offered the THRS discipline an opportunity to discuss the topic with me and/or a couple of Norbertines before engaging the topic in a campus-wide forum. I am confident Dr. Park would be willing to share the 10/28 and 10/29 email exchanges in which she declined my offer on behalf of the THRS faculty. During these exchanges with the THRS faculty, I was unaware of any student participation or organizers for the event.

On November 15 of this year, a sophomore student—an impressive young leader with an email signature that listed her as VP, President, and Representative of prestigious student organizations—invited me to serve on a “Communio for All” panel on November 21. As we sent emails back and forth, I learned that students would be involved on the panel. When I said I had extended an invitation to the event organizers, some thought I was referring to a student leader. I was not referring to a student or a student group. I was not aware that students would be on this panel until three days before the event took take place.

In trying to understand who was hosting the “Communio for All” event, we looked at the registry for the event space: that night, that time, that topic, and that room was listed as a THRS faculty event. The primary contact for the faculty group was Dr. Craig Ford. Dr. Ford is a faculty leader and theologian.

Dr. Craig Ford is not a student. And the THRS faculty are not a student group.

I’m sorry that the THRS discipline didn’t accept our invitation. The Gospel and the Rule of St. Augustine teach us that a private discussion ought to happen first when a problem emerges. Honest, open debate among community members with conflicting views is how we build community and change the world around us.

Those desiring communio must be vigilant. It is easy and tempting to know better, to look down on others on the bedrock of confidence in one’s correctness. Communio would guide us to trust and share who we truly are with the community, and to accept others regardless of the similarities or opposition of our beliefs. Misrepresenting and hiding things are inconsistent with communio.

In the quote NBC 26 shared, I referenced some dishonesty in some of the criticism and comments regarding the college offering opportunities for dialogue. It was startling to hear people who participated in events on the attached list testify that the school had done less. The promotion of lies and distortions, and what could be the manipulation of students, are inconsistent with our values at SNC. We remain committed to our shared values and actions that affirm them.

Transparency is about honesty, trust, wisdom, and respect.

Office hours continue every semester to facilitate communio and the ongoing dialogue and support that nurtures it. I’ll happily speak with students, faculty, and staff who have questions or seek dialogue.

These efforts reaffirm our dedication to fostering inclusion and belonging for everyone at St. Norbert College. Our commitment to respect the dignity of every person exemplifies the spirit of communio that binds us together.

Sincerely,

Fr. Matthew Dougherty, O. Praem.
Special Assistant to the President for Mission Integration

For reference:

Since announcing alignment with Dignitas Infinita in September 2024, the institution has held several forums to discuss this change with students, faculty and staff. Below is a list of events and engagement opportunities the administration has hosted in Fall and early Winter 2024.

September 2024

September 17: Faculty Meeting
The initiative was announced, and questions were fielded.
September 18: Campus-Wide Communication
A letter was sent to all students, faculty, and staff announcing the initiative.
September 20: Faculty-Mission Office Hour
Open discussion attended by approximately 15 faculty members.
September 23 : TRIPS Leader Training on Title IX Process
Facilitated training for approximately 20 students. During the session, a student inquired about the changes to gender identity language on campus. A 5-10 minute discussion addressed their questions, after which the Title IX training continued.
September 23: President Joyner Open Office Hours
An opportunity for the entire campus community to meet with President Joyner and discuss any topic of interest. These hours were not specific to the Gender Expression & Identity Update but served as an open forum for engagement.
September 23: President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: SGA and Staff Representatives
Josephine Tetzlaff (SGA) and Milena Shabert (Staff Association) participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.
September 25: Faculty and Staff Town Hall
This town hall was part of a broader campus presentation and discussion, during which the Gender Expression & Identity Update was one of several topics covered. Questions and concerns regarding this topic were addressed as part of the larger session.
September 27: Engagement with St. Norbert Times
Fr. Matthew Dougherty provided answers to questions about the initiative, Dignitas Infinita, and the College's approach to aligning with the Church’s teachings. While the St. Norbert Times ultimately did not run the story, the College was responsive and transparent in its communication.
September 26: Student Affairs Leadership Team Conversation
Meeting with leadership from Student Affairs to discuss the initiative.
September 30 : President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: Faculty Representative
Matt Stollak, Faculty Chair, participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.

October 2024

October 1: All-Staff Advancement Team Discussion
Discussion with staff from Advancement on the initiative.
October 2: Ally Training Adaptation Meeting
Exploration of potential updates to Ally Training to reflect initiative objectives.
October 11: Board of Trustees Mission Committee Discussion
Presentation and discussion with the Mission Committee of the Board of Trustees.
October 14: Follow-Up Ally Training Meeting
Continued discussion on adapting Ally Training.
October 16: Academic Affairs + Mission Open Office Hour
Two staff members attended.
October 21 : President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: SGA and Staff Representatives
Brian Coulter (SGA) and Milena Shabert (Staff Association) participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.
October 24 & 25: Academic Affairs Open Office Hours
No attendees.
October 28 : Academic Affairs + Mission Open Office Hour
No attendees.
October 28: President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: Faculty Representative
Matt Stollak, Faculty Chair, participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.

November 2024

November 11 : President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: SGA and Staff Representatives
Allie Ferris (SGA) and Milena Shabert (Staff Association) participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.
November 25 : President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: Faculty Representative
Matt Stollak, Faculty Chair, participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.

December 2024

December 5: President Joyner Open Office Hours
An opportunity for the entire campus community to meet with President Joyner and discuss any topic of interest.
December 9 : President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: SGA and Staff Representatives
SGA Representative (Kat Miller) and Milena Shabert (Staff Association) participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.
December 16 : President’s Cabinet Open Discussion: Faculty Representative
Matt Stollak, Faculty Chair, participated in a President’s Cabinet meeting.

Dear St. Norbert College Community,

As we approach Thanksgiving, I am deeply grateful for each of you. Your unwavering dedication and steadfast commitment to the College are the cornerstone of our success. Thanks to you, we remain a community rooted in faith, excellence, and service.

In this season of reflection, I reiterate our unwavering commitment to radical transparency regarding the challenges facing the College. We face a changing higher education landscape necessitating heart-wrenching choices. These decisions will be made following extensive consultation and input through our shared governance structure and beyond. In this spirit of collaboration, we act in good faith with the best interests of our mission and community at heart.

As we navigate declining enrollment trends, we must align revenues and expenses. This requires a significant budget adjustment of $7 million for the upcoming fiscal year. This work is essential to ensure a sustainable future for the College.

We are combining program elimination and operational changes with new potential revenue sources. In the past few weeks, we launched our first suite of non-credit, online certificates to meet the evolving needs of working professionals and students. This initiative aligns with our mission by fostering lifelong learning, contributing to social mobility, and actualizing the Norbertine value of stabilitas loci by supporting broader community needs.

These affordable, flexible, online educational options are offered in high-demand areas like healthcare and technology. These certificates are an initial response to today’s dynamic job market and early indicators are affirming interest in such offerings.

Thanksgiving is more than a time of gratitude — it is a call to give back. Our Catholic, Norbertine heritage calls us to live out our faith through acts of service, generosity, and compassion. In the spirit of communio , let us remember that every gift, every act of service, and every expression of kindness strengthens our community.

In this season of giving, some have asked about the best way to help the College.

Please consider a year-end gift to the College.
Please consider naming and endowing a mission-critical position at the College. Such a commitment provides relief to the annual operating budget, which is the College’s most pressing need, while growing the endowment.
Please help recruit a student to attend the College.

Every contribution matters and every person makes a difference. With your continued support, we will overcome short-term challenges and create a brighter future for the College.

As we prepare to gather with loved ones, let us reflect on the positive impact our inspiring campus and local community has had on each of us. For my part, I am grateful for

the warmth of our people and the beauty of four seasons
the tradition of excellence reflected in the arts, humanities, natural sciences, and social sciences
beloved traditions like Mass of the Holy Spirit and the Knights on Broadway Christmas show
the occasional Brandy Old Fashioned with alums or comfort food in the nostalgic surroundings of a supper club and
the team spirit surrounding the Green and Gold of the Green Knights and the Green Bay Packers!

I wish you and yours a most joyful and blessed Thanksgiving.

Laurie M. Joyner, Ph.D.
President
St. Norbert College

Dear St. Norbert College Community,

I write today to share updates following the Board of Trustees meeting held on Oct. 11, including significant items considered and actions taken.

Executive Summaries and Institutional Dashboards

The Board reviewed Executive Summaries from President Cabinet members highlighting priorities, challenges, and achievements across the College as well as the following dashboards tracking institutional performance over time:

Ten-Year Dashboard inclusive of critical enrollment and financial performance indicators
Financial Dashboard tracking long-term debt, cash, endowment, and investment metrics
Advancement Ten-Year Giving History Dashboard

Meeting Schedule
The Board began its new one-day meeting schedule with its revised committee
structure to better address cross-divisional priorities and issues. The new committees include Finance/Organizational Sustainability; Academic & Student Experience; Audit, Risk & Information Technology; Governance; and Mission & Heritage.

Some key points from the materials and reports provided:

Mission and Heritage has a robust month of lectures and other activities scheduled to celebrate the College’s three core traditions: Catholic, Norbertine, and Liberal Arts.
The Norbertine Video Project is almost complete and will be part of faculty and staff onboarding and student orientation.
Despite efforts to increase undergraduate student headcount through new offerings, improved marketing, expanded direct admission initiatives, enhanced recruitment efforts, adjusted financial aid strategy, streamlined transfer review processes, improved website design, and greater cross-divisional collaboration, the College is projecting undergraduate enrollment declines through 2028. This is primarily a function of shifting demographics and reduced demand.
SNC has been graduating larger classes with lower discount rates and replacing them with smaller, more highly discounted classes. Declining undergraduate enrollment that is more highly discounted can only be sustained by aligning revenues and expenses. Budget projections for FY26 necessitate adjusting the operating budget by an additional $7M across the College.
The Board accepted the 2023-24 Audit Report and approved an extension of the 2023 Tax Form 990 filing date.
The Support What Matters campaign concluded with a remarkable achievement, raising more than $128M, surpassing our $125M goal. The SNC Hockey Locker Room initiative also exceeded expectations, raising nearly $1.7M, surpassing the $1.5M goal. These successes are a testament to our dedicated and generous alums and an inspiration for future endeavors.
Academic Affairs will deliver $4M+ in budget reduction recommendations by December 2024. Faculty provided recommendations for program elimination, reducing the number of courses in the core curriculum, restructuring, and reducing personnel and operating budgets. Please be assured that students will be able to complete their majors, even if their particular program is eliminated.
Undergraduate enrollment as of census date (9/6/24) was 1,662, with 1,464 residents in housing this year.
We are pleased to report that our first-to-second year retention has improved to 83.7%. This positive trend is a testament to our collective efforts and the supportive environment we strive to create for our students, providing us with optimism for the future.
Graduate enrollment is 62, primarily part-time students, across three programs (MBA = 44; MTS = 12; and MLS = 6).
Fall 2025 recruitment goal is 440 (FY Domestic 403, Transfer 30, and International 7).
Undergraduate headcount is projected to decrease to 1,446 in FY28, necessitating continued budget adjustments. This decline in enrollment will impact our revenue and will require strategic budget adjustments to ensure the financial sustainability of the College.

Full Board Session
Trustees participated in a Mission Reflection led by Fr. Johnathan Turba, O. Praem., reviewing the core Norbertine value of actio .

Each Trustee also received a copy of a 7-page letter followed by signature pages titled, “A Letter of Concern and Care for St. Norbert College” from SNC alumni and friends of Catholic and liberal arts higher education.

The Board of Trustees unanimously approved the following:

Approval of undergraduate tuition rate increase of 2.5% and room and board rate increase of 2.5%.
Approval of endowment policy spending distribution of 4.5%.
The Board elected Billy Falk as Secretary of the Board of Trustees.
The Board voted to approve five former members for trustee emeriti distinction.
The Board approved extending an invitation to a potential May 2025 commencement speaker.

The Board discussed differences between Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and internal financial reporting. The management team will provide a reconciliation at least annually to the Board.

Senior Leadership Updates
Luyan Li, Ph.D., will join us in about a week as Vice President for Business and Finance/Chief Financial Officer. She will have about a week of overlap with Michael Guns to assist with her transition. The search for Vice President for College Advancement has been extended. While we continue to search for our next Vice President, we are working with The Registry to identify an experienced Interim to serve during the next several months.

Moving Forward Together
While I understand the range of reactions related to the College’s actions to address the significant operating budget challenges discovered last year, this work is essential to ensure a financially strong, sustainable St. Norbert College.Thanks to our collective efforts, we are making positive progress that will contribute to the College’s long-term vitality. As we begin to see the beautiful colors of fall, I hope you each have a few moments to reflect on the beauty around us.

With gratitude and faith,

Laurie M. Joyner, Ph.D.
President
St. Norbert College

Watch the video of this announcement here .

Dear St. Norbert College Community Members and Faithful Supporters,

I hope this message finds you well and enjoying the start of autumn. The past few weeks on campus have been brimming with joy, excitement, and tradition — from Convocation and the Mass of the Holy Spirit to the warm welcome of new and transfer students and families to the SNC community.

Most importantly, please accept my deepest gratitude to all of you — students, faculty, staff, parents, alumni, donors, and friends of the College. SNC is in a period of adaptation, and thanks to your unwavering support, we have been able to protect our sacred mission.

Points of Pride

We continue to achieve significant milestones:

The College is proud to have risen to the 90th spot in the national liberal arts college rankings by U.S. News & World Report — our highest ranking ever — and has secured a spot among the Top 100 Best Value Schools.
The state-of-the-art Donald & Patricia Schneider Family Hall building project remains on track for a fall 2025 opening. The Support What Matters campaign, in which so many of you played a crucial role, exceeded its fundraising target of $125M.
The College secured more than 30 million impressions from two dozen TV and radio interviews during a successful satellite media tour highlighting the challenges facing higher education and how the College is investing in historic strengths while adapting to the needs and preferences of today’s students.

Mission and Heritage Update

A significant milestone was achieved this past spring when we re-established the Office of Mission and Heritage to animate our Catholic identity and Norbertine heritage throughout the College. The Rev. Matthew Dougherty, O. Praem., ’09, Ph.D., is serving as Special Assistant to the President for Mission Integration and Assistant Professor of Biology, and Emily Thelen, Ph.D., holds the position of Executive Director of Mission and Heritage.

To better align our mission-focused work, the following offices are reporting through the Division of Mission and Heritage: Campus Ministry; the Sturzl Center for Community Service & Learning; the Center for Norbertine Studies; the Norman Miller Center for Peace, Justice & Public Understanding; and the Killeen Chair of Theology & Philosophy.

The Mission and Heritage Office has attracted significant philanthropic support to bolster strategic initiatives, including the development of a six-part video formation series highlighting St. Norbert, the Rule of St. Augustine, and Norbertine values (action, contemplation, stability, and communio) for use in onboarding and ongoing formation efforts.

Campus Town Hall Meetings

Last week, we hosted two Town Hall meetings on campus. As essential members of our SNC community, I want to share with you some reflections on the progress we have made since launching the Preserving the St. Norbert Legacy: A Shared Promise of Stewardship plan , as well as some of the opportunities and challenges ahead.

The plan is a response to the directive of our sponsor, the Norbertine Order, and the Board of Trustees to deliver balanced annual budgets. Our collective efforts are proving successful in addressing the College’s most pressing issues through comprehensive actions aimed at transforming our financial model for long-term sustainability while maintaining our commitment to excellence, innovation, and communio

One example of collective efforts is the campuswide collaboration of the Task Force on Innovation. Since November 2023, the task force has reviewed 387 ideas submitted by the community and consolidated them down to 104 unique ideas. The task force identified six initiatives, each with significant potential to shape our future, as most promising and submitted them to my President's Cabinet and me for consideration. It shared the remaining ideas with the appropriate vice presidents for their review and consideration of incorporation into operational plans.

Annual Operating Budget

St. Norbert College is blessed with a talented community, beautiful campus, strong balance sheet, modest debt, and healthy endowment. However, the annual operating budget has presented significant challenges during the past few years. Just one year ago, SNC faced a $5M deficit in FY24 and a projected deficit of approximately $11M in FY25.

Our extraordinary efforts to align revenues and expenses during the past 12 months resulted in positive operating performance in FY24 and a projected balanced budget in FY25. This was exceedingly difficult but necessary work. I am grateful to those who helped achieve this remarkable progress by working together for the greater good of the College and its legacy.

As we prepare for FY26 and beyond, we must continue our transformation efforts to adapt to the changing landscape. Declining undergraduate enrollment is projected through the end of the decade due to a shrinking pool of college-bound students, changing college-going rates, and an incredibly competitive market. This reality demands that we rethink our operations, faculty and staff composition, and academic program offerings to serve our students best while remaining faithful to our mission. The goal remains to deliver mission-driven educational experiences while balancing the FY26 budget and beyond through cost-containing and revenue-generating strategies.

Academic Affairs and Aligning Operating Costs

Delivering on the promise of outstanding and affordable educational experiences will always remain our top priority, but aligning our cost structure with financial realities is critical. Valerie Martin Conley, Ph.D., Vice President for Academic Affairs, is leading efforts to finalize recommendations that will streamline our curriculum and eliminate some programs. Rest assured that students who have declared programs will be able to complete their course program of study.

The process of seeking feedback from across campus and beyond will continue. Please know that we will not make any decisions lightly. Still, everything must be on the table to protect all the unique assets of this remarkable College that we are entrusted to preserve for future generations.

Enrollment Management and Revenue Generation

Our enrollment management team has worked on initiatives to stabilize our student body through recruitment and retention efforts. We are introducing new strategies, including personalized campus visits, expanded merit scholarships, and more robust outreach to underrepresented students.

Our athletics program is being strengthened with new competitive sports like STUNT (one of the fastest-growing female sports that incorporate skills derived from cheerleading and gymnastics) and ACHA Men’s Club Hockey to attract new students, increase community engagement, and drive advancement results.

Our revenue-generating initiatives focus on our students’ success by expanding innovative academic partnerships, implementing transfer-friendly policies, and strengthening financial aid and retention efforts.

Looking Forward

As we look toward the future, we remain steadfast in our commitment to our Catholic, Norbertine, and liberal arts mission. This vow requires decisive and courageous actions to meet the needs of our time and create a sustainable financial model for our beloved College.

Change is difficult. This is a challenging and emotional time for many. It will take all of us working together to ensure our College’s future. I am truly grateful for your dedication. Some are going above and beyond to partner with our recruitment, retention, and advancement efforts. Others extend their support through their own generous charitable contributions. We are grateful to each one of you.

Your support is vital as we work to overcome obstacles, embrace new opportunities, and emerge even stronger. Together, we will continue to preserve and build upon the legacy of this great College.

Watch video of this announcement here .

St. Norbert College has advanced a series of initiatives called Preserving the St. Norbert Legacy: A Shared Promise of Stewardship 2024 . These initiatives represent a proactive approach to ensuring the long-term sustainability and success of the college. Strategic measures are being implemented to maintain academic quality, build a solid foundation for innovation and growth, and address the college’s cost structure. This translates directly into more opportunities for current and future students to receive a transformative education based on our three core traditions — Catholic, Norbertine and liberal arts — that prepares them for success in an ever-changing world.The plan is already delivering tangible results, including:

Building the leadership team by hiring Valerie Martin Conley as vice president/chief academic officer and appointing the Rev. Matthew M. Dougherty, O.Praem., ’09 as special assistant to the president for mission integration.
Hosting the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Chancellor Michael Alexander on campus to announce a partnership allowing students in selected degree programs to study at both institutions starting this fall. Unprecedented in this region, this agreement effectively combines each institution’s historic strengths and resources for the benefit of learners and the community. This strategic alliance expands opportunities for students, minimizes duplication of program offerings and fosters effective stewardship of institutional resources.
Launching an athletics optimization strategy that expands roster sizes and adds competitive club sports. Men’s club hockey and STUNT have been introduced as the initial competitive club sports teams beginning in the 2025-26 academic year. These new offerings will amplify SNC’s storied athletic tradition and contribute to the institutional stewardship plan.
Partnering with CORE, a public benefit corporation, to add fractional talent in mission-critical areas such as enrollment management and information technology, as well as exploring an alternative credential initiative to meet the needs of community learners, diversify revenue sources and address workforce gaps in the region.
Celebrating a successful Day to uKnight on March 21, resulting in more than 800 donors and nearly $525,000 in 24 hours and securing a multi-year, substantial financial commitment to support mission integration across the college.
Adjusting the college’s operating budget by $12 million in nine months since identifying the scope of the college’s financial challenges in order to protect the mission of SNC in perpetuity.

Additionally, the faculty and board of trustees have approved nine new academic majors, nine new academic minors, eight new concentrations and one new certificate program to provide students with expertise in high-demand areas. Such diverse and innovative learning opportunities empower students to become catalysts for positive change in their communities and careers. New offerings include an engineering physics major, supply chain management major, robotics minor, digital marketing minor and data analytics minor.

Context and our priority

Context of Higher Education: Like higher education institutions nationally, the demographic shifts resulting in fewer college-aged prospects and inflationary pressures impact St. Norbert College’s operating budget and require immediate action.
Operational Excellence: St. Norbert College is continuously working to be good stewards of students’ tuition dollars. We are reducing operating costs, sharpening focus on our core enterprise, making new investments, and pursuing innovative approaches, especially in mission integration, academic excellence, and student success.
Reductions: The college’s plan identifies ways to reduce costs through operating and personnel reductions. Given our current reality, a modest reduction in our workforce is required.
Mission: St. Norbert College remains deeply committed to providing an outstanding, holistic education within our three core traditions: Catholic, Norbertine, and liberal arts. Delivering on the promise of providing a transformative education is our sacred mission that drives our actions and decision-making.
Looking Forward: St. Norbert College provides an education that builds our students’ character while preparing them for lives of meaning and successful careers. The college is committed to ensuring the type of education we provide remains accessible and affordable for the students and families we will serve for the next 125 years.

Cost-cutting efforts to balance the budget

At the March 1, 2024 St. Norbert College Board of Trustees meeting, several recommendations were approved as part of the approved FY25 budget:

General non-personnel expense reductions . A collaborative effort across divisions to better align non-personnel expenses with actual activity and projected needs led to a budget decrease of $345,000.

Strategic use of endowment fund distributions . Annually, the College receives endowment distributions to support programs and initiatives across various divisions. A collaborative, cross-divisional analysis of these programmatic endowment distributions identified $177,000 to offset operating expenses.

Improved annual fundraising results . Thanks to the Advancement team’s good work, the College increased its annual St. Norbert Fund gift budget from $2M to $2.1M, a revenue increase of $100,000 annually.

Savings from health plan design adjustments . St. Norbert College implemented a retiree health plan phase-out effective 6/1/2024. With this change, retirees 65 or older will no longer be eligible to stay on the College’s health plan. During the next five years, the College is projected to save $262,000 annually ($136,000 in FY25).

Effective 1/1/2024, SNC increased the spousal surcharge from $100 to $300 per month. With this change, the plan experienced a significant shift in our employee plan selection and participation. These changes and an overall decrease in claims experience are projected to save the college $643,000 annually.

Increase in the Norbertine endowment distribution . The Norbertine Fathers generously committed to a multi-year increased endowment distribution to bridge the gap between projected revenues and expenses, preventing even more severe budget reductions. For FY25, this equates to nearly $900,000.

Personnel savings, including position and administrative expense reductions. The Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs, in consultation with the Deans Council, analyzed key data sets from an outside vendor, rpk, the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, and the Academic Program Prioritization process, which was led by the Curriculum and Educational Policy Committee, to determine which non-tenured faculty lines should be eliminated to rightsize the faculty given multiple years of declining student enrollment.

For FY25, phase two reductions in Academic Affairs included personnel reductions (12 individuals impacted) and non-personnel reductions totaling $1,697,086.

Preserving the St. Norbert Legacy: A Shared Promise of Stewardship 2024

To the St. Norbert Community,

Let me begin by expressing my heartfelt gratitude to colleagues across the college who have worked together to understand the challenges facing higher education and their impact on our campus. Demographic shifts, increased competition, and inflationary pressures are negatively affecting many institutions. St. Norbert College is taking immediate action toward creating a sustainable budget model that preserves our mission and ensures educational quality.

I am grateful for the collective leadership of our Board of Trustees, Norbertines, and campus community, for contributing to the numerous actions that comprise our developing stewardship plan. Many individuals have labored to make difficult decisions preparing us for an even brighter future as our college advances toward its sesquicentennial.

The Board of Trustees—notably Board Chair Fred Schmidt, Vice Chair Patti McKeithan, Finance Committee Chair Greg Nicklaus, and Vice Chair Phil Flynn—have demonstrated leadership in guiding efforts to address financial challenges that have been building in recent years. Their championing of our strategic actions reflects the collective resolve of the Board of Trustees to address the significant challenges and opportunities before us. Similarly, I am grateful for the support and generosity of Abbot Dane Radecki, O. Praem., the Abbot's Council, and our Norbertine colleagues as we work together to improve the college's operating performance and competitive positioning.

The unavoidable necessity of immediately addressing the college's financial situation prevented me from beginning my presidency as envisioned. However, during this process, I have grown to admire and cherish the ideals of St. Norbert College even more. My focus and commitment is to improve institutional performance so that we may continue to provide an outstanding, holistic education shaped by our three core traditions: Catholic, Norbertine, and liberal arts. Delivering on the promise of such a transformative education is the sacred mission driving our actions.

Our current situation

The college experienced two consecutive years of negative operating results (FY22 and FY23), and the FY24 budget showed a large deficit which we resolved through the reductions in Fall 2023, resulting in a balanced budget this fiscal year. In October 2023, the Board of Trustees directed the administration to balance the FY25 budget to address multiple years of negative operating performance, reduce future budget deficit projections, and prevent further erosion of the college's financial performance.

We considered multiple alternatives to balance the FY25 budget, including a substantial tuition increase, but our commitment to accessibility and affordability far outweighs such a consideration. Given this, we are responsibly reducing recurring expenses while ensuring educational quality and economic vitality. We continue our focus on mission integration, educational excellence, and student success while working to improve operations, contain costs, and identify ways to generate additional revenue.

The path forward

Our work to protect our institution's legacy, itself part of the 900-year legacy of the Norbertine Order, involves immediate and long-range efforts. Just as personnel and operating cuts were necessary to balance the current year's budget, balancing the FY25 budget (June 1, 2024 to May 31, 2025) again necessitates reductions. At last week's meeting, the Board of Trustees approved recommendations to balance the budget for the coming year, including:

General non-personnel expense reductions
Strategic use of endowment drawdown funds
Improved annual fundraising results
Savings from health plan design adjustments
Increase in the Norbertine endowment distribution
Personnel savings, including position and administrative expense reductions

More information regarding these decisions can be found here .

The collaborative work and leadership across the college that has helped to address the unexpected scale of budget deficits identified upon my arrival last fall has been extraordinary. As we address immediate financial shortfalls, we continue our ongoing work: Preserving the St. Norbert Legacy: A Shared Promise of Stewardship. Current strategic priorities inform this work and will be further engaged when the college launches its next strategic planning process.

Below are just a few of the many initiatives our community is pursuing to address negative operating results in recent years and position the college for future success:

Deepening mission integration efforts by highlighting our distinctiveness as the only Norbertine college in the world;
Balancing the FY24 and FY25 budgets through a series of cost-containing and revenuegenerating efforts exceeding $9.2 million;
Establishing and implementing an Academic Portfolio Prioritization review process to facilitate ongoing program assessment to inform resource allocation decisions over time;
Approving new academic offerings through internal program development (e.g., Engineering Physics major/minor and Earth Science major/Sustainability minor) or collaborative partnerships with groups such as RIZE (e.g., Supply Chain Management and Healthcare Administration majors);
Advancing an Athletics Optimization Strategy to increase enrollment and fundraising results by expanding rosters, adding club sports, and raising dollars to address equity issues across programs among other institutional priorities;
Launching an Integrated Planning and Budgeting Committee to link planning, budgeting, and assessment to improve transparency and support continuous improvement;
Leveraging technology to improve efficiency and effectiveness across areas;
Monetizing underperforming assets or enhancing their revenue-generating potential; and
Empowering an Innovation Task Force to vet ideas and pressure test the most promising initiatives for possible investment.

The extraordinary generosity of the Norbertines

Despite all of the planning, reductions, and improvements, it was only through the extraordinary generosity of our founder and sponsor, the Norbertine Order, that we could achieve the Board of Trustees' directive to balance the FY25 budget. Abbot Dane Radecki, O. Praem., and the Abbot's Council granted my recent request for an exceedingly generous, multi-year gift demonstrating their support for college leadership and efforts to advance institutional mission. The Norbertines continue to be agents for positive change in this community and worldwide. St. Norbert College seeks to emulate the Norbertine spirit of generosity by sustaining a caring community of learners committed to the greater good of the college and the larger community.

Our tradition of excellence continues

Despite the short-term challenges facing the college, our community has much to celebrate:

Breaking into the top 100 for national liberal arts colleges (#93) for the first time and rising in our social mobility ranking (#39), a measure of how successfully the college graduates Pell-eligible students (U.S. News & World Report);
Planning for the May 2024 groundbreaking ceremony for the state-of-the-art Donald & Patricia Schneider Family Hall;
Making incredible progress on our comprehensive fundraising campaign goal of $125 million, celebrating the anniversary of the college's founding in 1898; and
Delivering on our winning athletic tradition across multiple sports.

Moving forward together

As we continue to work to preserve the legacy of our beloved institution, we will track and communicate our progress. Senior leaders will continue to work with students, faculty, and staff through appropriate shared governance processes to take the steps necessary to ensure the college remains a compassionate and supportive community of learners as we respond to the needs of our time.

We will successfully navigate these challenges together—preserving the noble legacy of the college to which we are heirs for the benefit of future generations. I look forward to continuing to learn, serve, and lead—together.

With gratitude and faith,

Laurie M. Joyner, Ph.D.
President