think a large part of that was due to the fact that we would be continuing to educate young people to serve our nation.”
Stay One Step Ahead of Your Airplane After holding positions as the commandant for the Air Command and Staff College and the superintendent for the Air Force Academy, John is no stranger to leading schools; however, upon arriving at The Citadel, he realized public institutions are a horse of a different color.
It helps that The Citadel’s alumni are incredibly generous. Where most colleges receive donations from around 10 percent of their former students, The Citadel sees 30 percent of their alumni giving back. Since taking office, the Rosas have been
higher education. We pontificate, study, and discuss. So, patience is a virtue that you have to embrace,” John confessed. Their latest challenge? Diversification. John, brother to three sisters (who he claims could do most anything better than him), is a proponent of increasing not only the percentage of female students in the core of cadets, but also African Americans and other minorities. Proudly, he tells me that the class coming in this fall will be the most diverse in The Citadel’s history.
“We went co-ed in ’96, in “It is funded on a shoe many respects pulling, string. There is only one screaming, and kicking. Air Force Academy, West When I came back here, Point, or Naval Academy. there was a certain segSo, those services put ment that said, ‘We need their best foot forward. to go back to the way we Funding is never an iswere.’ I made it quite clear sue. But, The Citadel is no that I wouldn’t have come different from any other here if The Citadel weren’t state school. And when the school that it is,” John the recession hit, South declared. “Every young Carolina cut higher eduperson ought to have the cation funding more than opportunity for this type of any other state in the education. If you want this, country. We lost 50 perif you want to put forth the cent of our state funding,” effort, it shouldn’t matter John said. “At that time, where you come from or we made a decision not to what gender you are. This cut academically, but to is America. I served 32 build academically, which years so everybody could has paid off. Realizing With a blue-and-white checkered floor, white cabinets, and a red hutch, be free. I mean, that is kind that the business model even the kitchen is patriotic! of pie in the sky, but it’s rewe had, where tuition and ally not.” fees pay the bill, wasn’t viinstrumental in helping the College and able anymore, we got outside consultants Ultimately, the Rosas’ goal is to foster The Citadel Foundation to raise nearly to come in and help us think for the fugraduates that are well-rounded and 110 million dollars. But, John, Donna, and ture. We did this early on, ahead of many prepared for leadership. To succeed in the staff are not resting; they’re always other colleges. It positioned us to not only the military, where almost 40 percent looking for ways to improve the school. get through the recession but to grow.” of their students went last year, John “We’re used to, in the military, getting Coming out of the recession, The Citadel believes they must understand diverse things done. You figure out what you’re has been named the Number One Public groups and know how to lead them. In going to do, get it done, and move on to the Institution in the South by U.S. News and this way, John acts very much as the Dad next challenge. That is not always so in World Report.
CH+D • Fall 2012
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