By Tom Nagel
Decades in the making, St. John’s College (SJC) will become a four-year university offering bachelor’s degrees. American Magazine - The Jesuit Review reported the news on May 17.
Official approval came in October 2021. The first bachelor’s degrees are expected to be awarded in 2024. Founded in 1887, SJC has 1,200 two-year community college students today. SJC officials have sought government approval to become a four-year institution since 1981.
Weber Hall at SJC. Watercolor by Tom Nagel.
“Becoming a four-year school is going to continue SJC’s legacy and take it up a notch, because you have a lot of kids who cannot go abroad to get a four-year education, and now they can get high-quality Catholic education right here at home. It could be a game changer,” Father Brian Christopher, superior of the Jesuit community in Belize, told America Magazine.
SJC is a member of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities - the only member outside of the US - which will play a large role in the new structure.
“We are blessed to be part of the Jesuit network,” Alice Peralta, SJC president, told America Magazine. She expects more U.S. Jesuit college students to spend semesters in Belize and vice-versa. The first bachelor’s degrees will be in social sciences, business, and computer science. SJC opened a satellite community college campus in Toledo District last year and is developing plans that fit that campus into the new four-year format.
“We want to journey with the youth, showing them a spiritual pathway through education,” Peralta said of the developments and SJC’s mission.