Launching the public phase of their $25 million fundraising campaign for a new, north shore campus at the former Cardinal Stritch campus, leaders at St. Augustine Preparatory Academy announced Thursday that they have already raised $9.5 million for the effort, bringing them closer to their goal.
That announcement came Thursday night under the green and purple lights of the school’s annual fundraising gala. Abby Andrietsch, chief executive officer of Aug Prep, had just told a room of nearly 800 attendees that the campaign had raised close to $9 million, when news of a surprise donation came from a table near the stage.
That news was that several leaders at Baird – along with the Paul Purcell “Kids Win” fund and Baird Foundation – were donating another $750,000 to support the $100 million project.
The new campus is slated to open in fall 2026.
Announcing the donation, Mary Ellen Stanek, president of Baird Funds and co-chief investment officer of Baird Advisors, noted how Purcell, like Aug Prep founders Gus and Becky Ramirez, had a deep commitment to improving education in Milwaukee. That commitment is what prompted the founding of the Kids Win fund, and the donation towards making Aug Prep’s north campus a reality, she said.
“We’re doing this for three simple reasons. One is a deep gratitude to Gus and Becky, and their family for all they have done and the gift they have given our community. Secondly, we believe in investing in winners and clearly to quote Paul, kids are winning here. And three, we’re hoping that our gift collectively inspires others to step up and help,” said Stanek, who also serves as an All-In Milwaukee board member.
Andrietsch who worked at Baird before becoming Aug Prep’s CEO, said it was an honor to have the school invested in by the company.
“To be honored and invested in by Baird means a lot to me personally. It means a lot to our students,” she said.
Banner night
In addition to the surprise donation from Baird for the Cardinal stitch effort, gala attendees raised roughly $2.6 million to pay for operations at the school’s recently expanded south side campus. In less than 45 minutes hundreds of attendees raised paddles, pledging thousands of dollars toward the school, with more than a dozen individuals pledging $20,000 each.
With the theme of “Aiming High: Rooted in Hope,” the gala also honored retired Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce (MMAC) president Tim Sheehy and Dr. Emilia Arana of the Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers for their contributions to Milwaukee’s education landscape, including their support of Aug Prep.
Sheehy, who played an instrumental role in lobbying for last year’s passage of a long sought-after, increase in per-pupil state funding for students in charter and private voucher schools, received the 2024 Founders Award and Arana received the 2024 Friends Award.
“Over the past 40 years, I’ve worked with a dozen superintendents of Milwaukee Public Schools system and I bet I’ve been in that superintendent’s office over a hundred times and coming and going from that office, I noticed a small plaque on the wall in the corner, and I think that plaque is the only thing that survived from one administration to the other … and the words on that plaque are ‘children are messengers that we send to a time we will not see,’” said Sheehy, accepting the award. “And that sentiment always spoke to me. It was a way for me to think about paying it forward to those who helped me. And I think it’s been a motivation for so many of you in this community that in some small way, I hope that we all have. And I hope that I have personally really helped those on the front line of education in some way prepare those messengers for a better life … All of our children deserve the best schools.”
Growth and vision
A K4-12th grade private Christian voucher school located on the south side of Milwaukee, Aug Prep was co-founded in 2017 by Becky and Gus Ramirez, chairman of Waukesha-based manufacturer Husco International. Aug Prep now has more than 1,800 students, and last year opened a new 123,000-square-foot elementary school on its campus.
After Cardinal Stritch shut down operations last spring, the campus was purchased by the Ramirez Family Foundation in July for $24 million, with plans to convert it into a north campus for Aug Prep.
Ramirez initially estimated renovations and improvements to the former Cardinal Stritch campus’ grounds and 12 buildings would cost between $8 million and $10 million. In October of last year, Andrietsch said the renovations and improvements to the campus would likely cost closer to $25 million. But just a few months later, in February, school officials said they now planned to invest $100 million in the project – a figure that includes the $24 million purchase price.
The Ramirez family and Husco have committed $75 million in the initial phase at Aug Prep North. Aug Prep is currently fundraising for the remaining $25 million.
The hope is to have $10 million to $15 million raised by the end of this summer, with the full $25 million accounted for by the time the north campus opens in fall 2026.
“Education is the great equalizer for Milwaukee students and their families, so we must do everything we can to ensure more students have access to a high-quality education,” Ramirez said. “The success of our Aug Prep South students has exceeded our goals and will continue to improve. We plan to create a similar opportunity for students on the north side as we deliver an excellent education to a racially, ethnically, and socio-economically diverse student body. Aug Prep North will ultimately transform the lives of more than 2,000 students. When fully built out, the combined Aug Prep South and Aug Prep North campuses will play a significant role in the future of our city, graduating 400-500 young men and women every year who are equipped to flourish in their future education, the workforce and our community. We invite those interested in transforming education in Milwaukee to support the campaign.”
Phase One of the Aug Prep North will open in fall 2026 with just over 300 students in grades K4-6th and 9th and will grow to serve 1,000-plus students in grades K4-12. Beyond this initial investment, a second phase is envisioned for the future which would eventually build capacity to reach 2,000-plus students. VJS Construction Services has been appointed the general contractor with EUA serving as the architect.
