American Public Education, Inc.

Good afternoon. My name is Christina, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I'd like to welcome everyone to the APEI first quarter results conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. After the speaker's remarks, there will be a question and answer session. If you'd like to ask a question during that time, please press star followed by the number one on your telephone keypad. If you'd like to withdraw your question, press the pound key. I will now turn it over to Mr. Chris Simonoski, Vice President of Investor Relations. Thank you. You may begin.

Thank you, operator. Good evening and welcome to American Public Education's first quarter 2021 conference call. Materials that accompany today's conference call are available in the events and presentation section of our website. Please note that statements made in this conference call and in the accompanying presentation materials regarding American public education, its subsidiaries, or Rasmussen University that are not historical facts may be forward-looking statements based on current expectations, assumptions, estimates, and projections about American public education and the industry. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Forward-looking statements may be able to be identified by words such as anticipate, believe, seek, could, estimate, expect, intend, may, plan, should, will, would, and similar words or their opposites. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the impact of recent disruption to the Army's tuition assistance programs, expected growth, expected registrations and enrollments, expected revenues, expected earnings, income and EBITDA, benefits of the acquisition of Rasmussen University, the closing of the acquisition and its timing, expected financial results for APEI, assuming the acquisition of Rasmussen University, expected capital structure, net debt, the ability to deliver a return on learners' educational investment, the ability to maintain an attractive risk profile, plans with respect to recent, current, and future initiatives, including marketing expenditures, and future demand for nursing education. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including the risks related to the loss of APEI's ability to receive funds under Department of Defense tuition assistance programs or the reduction, elimination, or suspension of tuition assistance, the effects of an APEI's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, moderation or decrease in demand as the pandemic abates, the acquisition of Rasmussen University and the risk factors described in the risk factor section, and elsewhere in the company's quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC today. In addition, the company's most recent annual report on Form 10-K and the company's other SEC filings The company undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason unless required by law, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future. This evening, it's my pleasure to introduce Angela Selden, our Chief Executive Officer, and Rick Sunderland, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. Also available for questions is Steve Summers, our Senior Vice President, Chief Strategy and Corporate Development Officer. I'll now turn the call over to Angela Selden. Angie?

Thank you, Chris. Good evening, everyone. We are very pleased with APEI's first quarter 2021 results. Both APUS and Hondros College of Nursing demonstrated robust enrollment momentum, resulting in strong financial performance. As highlighted on slide three, We reported very strong Q121 financial and operating results at both APUS and Hondros. For the sixth consecutive quarter, net course registrations at APUS increased year over year, primarily driven by active duty military student and graduate student enrollment. We also saw momentum from the continued demand for online education due in part to the COVID-19 pandemic. Net course registrations increased 10% year-over-year, driven by a 14% year-over-year increase in new net course registrations. At Hondros, new and total student enrollment increased 45% year-over-year in the first quarter of 21. Much of the improvement at Hondros is due to the key operational initiatives implemented and continuously being refined since 2019. These initiatives include a new direct entry ADN program and the implementation of Hondros' affordability grants, which limit student out-of-pocket costs to $200 per month. In addition, Hondros moved to a fully online admissions process, which facilitated student recruitment and onboarding. All of these initiatives were implemented prior to the pandemic. Additionally, we believe some growth continues to be attributed to an increase in demand for nursing education and a change in the competitive landscape in our markets due in part to the pandemic. I am also pleased to report that the National League for Nursing Commission for Nursing Education Accreditation, or NLNCNEA, granted accreditation to Honduras Indianapolis campus effective January 13th, 2021. Now I will turn the call over to Rick Sunderland, APEI CFO, to discuss our first quarter financial results.