Hi everyone! I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself: my name is Todd and I will be recruiting for the New England region of St. John’s College this year, along with New York City and Long Island.

I wanted to take a moment to reflect on my first week – in that short time, I’ve gotten to meet just about everybody on campus (my next step is Santa Fe!), attend classes, and learn from some of the best about what makes St. John’s so special.

Here are a few things that strike me about the St. John’s Experience, and why you should come check us out.

1). Choose from two amazing locations to go to school.

I really don’t think you can go wrong with attending school in either Annapolis or Santa Fe – both campuses are set in striking locations, with beautiful views of the Chesapeake Bay in Annapolis, and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in Santa Fe. I live in Annapolis, just a block from campus, and on my street alone there is a record store, two great coffee shops, a number of bookstores, and more great restaurants than I can count. Santa Fe is one of the art capitals of the world, so by attending St. John’s, you are able to take your pick between two awesome (and different!) locations, or split your time between the two. Both cities provide ample locations to be a student while promoting life outside of class as well.

2). The community is palpable.

I went to a small college in Maryland for my undergraduate degree, so I thought I knew about close knit communities. However, the community at St. John’s is different. As a student at St. John’s, you will be taking the same courses as everyone else throughout your four years, which means that there is a peer-to-peer support system in place like no other college in the country. The tutors and staff members are also deeply invested in the individual lives of the students. All of that together makes for a campus that is supportive of one another, and treats everybody else as equals, from the President down to the freshman.

3). The curriculum is unlike any other in the country.

What students are learning in their classes, the way in which they are learning, and the degrees that they are getting, are all completely unique to St. John’s. While it is called a “Great Books Program”, you are not limiting your experience to literature or even the humanities – you are diving into geometry, music, biology, and even quantum physics all within your four years here, and will come out with a foundation of skills which will position you will for a number of great careers. More importantly though, the curriculum will teach you how to learn; how to ask questions, how to observe, how to work collaboratively among peers. These are things not only important to a good career, but a good life.

I’m on the road starting this week, and will be all over Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and even a part of Maine, and am very excited to bring the St. John’s story to anyone in New England who will listen. Please reach out to me and say hi, especially if I will be your counselor!