Being one college on two campuses is one of the many things that makes St. John’s great,but it also means that the admissions office doesn’t get to be all together nearly as often as we would like! Once a year, we have a week-long retreat on one of the two campuses, which gives us the chance to talk face to face and discuss strategy and goals for the coming year. The retreats also alternates campuses, giving everyone a chance to experience the “other” campus for a week. As someone based in Annapolis, I was ecstatic that this year’s retreat was in Santa Fe!
Our hosts showed us some of the high points of Santa Fe’s thriving food and arts cultures as we explored the Meow Wolf art collective, toured the New Mexico History Museum, took an open air tram tour of the city of Santa Fe, and enjoyed some amazing restaurants!
During the workdays, we discussed financial aid, customer service, the Graduate Institute, the way we do science at St. John’s, Summer Academy, and travel planning, among other things. Speaking as a new counselor, it was great to be able to have everyone in the same room and hear the more experienced counselors and directors swap tips and tricks—and build some new strategies as well.
It was also amazing to get the chance to chat with folks in person that I usually talk to over the phone, via email, or by skype. It’s so cool that our admissions family spans the country—the folks out in Santa Fe were amazing hosts, and I can’t wait to have them all in Annapolis next year!
The Chalkboard 