A Message from the President

The year was 1936. Saint Peter’s College President Joseph S. Dinneen, S.J., stood on an empty plot of land and told all who had gathered for the groundbreaking of Gannon Hall that a new era of opportunity was about to begin. It was a bold move—erecting a building in the midst of the Great Depression and relocating Saint Peter’s from temporary quarters in downtown Jersey City to our present day campus “on the boulevard.” Yet enrollment grew. The College thrived. And generations of men, and later women, found their lives transformed by the power of Jesuit education.

Today, 73 years later, Saint Peter’s once again is choosing the bold way forward. I’m pleased to introduce VISION 2015, the blueprint developed by a communitywide strategic planning process that charts the future of Saint Peter’s College over the next six years. Inspired by our rich tradition of faith, reason, service and justice, the plan builds on existing strengths—and challenges us to do more.

We will engage ourselves more deeply in Ignatian spirituality. We will teach more students to become “Men and Women for Others.” We will invest in our talented and dedicated faculty, who are the key to achieving greater levels of academic excellence. And we’ll build and improve facilities that truly reflect the high quality of teaching, learning and research that is happening throughout our campus.

Is VISION 2015 ambitious? Yes. But I am confident this plan will lead us to new heights because it is deeply rooted in our Catholic, Jesuit tradition and because it involved the voices of the very people who make Saint Peter’s such a wonderfully unique community—our diverse student body, faculty and administrators, members of the Board of Regents and Board of Trustees and many loyal alumni.

My thanks to all who participated in bringing this strategic plan to fruition. On that momentous day in 1936, Father Dinneen proclaimed, “Nunca Copei!” Translated, the Latin phrase means, “Now I begin!” Indeed, now we begin. I pray that together, with faith in each other and in this institution, we will work for the greater glory of Saint Peter’s.

Eugene J. Cornacchia, Ph.D.
President of Saint Peter’s University