Zovio Inc.

Good afternoon again, and welcome to Zovio's third quarter 2021 earnings conference call. Today's call is being recorded. At this time, I would like to turn the call over to Dika Shrey, Executive Vice President, Chief External Affairs Officer. Please go ahead.

Thank you, and good afternoon. Zovio's third quarter 2021 earnings release was issued earlier today and is posted on the company's website at www.zovio.com. Joining me on the call today are George Pernsteiner, Interim CEO, Office of the CEO, and Board Chair, Chris Bond, Executive Vice President of Operations and Office of the CEO, and Kevin Royal, Executive Vice President, Chief Financial Officer. We would like to remind you that some of the statements we make today may be considered forward-looking, including statements regarding university partners and other programs and services, our ability to grow through acquisition or otherwise, our ability to successfully integrate and leverage acquired companies, future revenue growth, EBITDA, financial and related guidance, and commentary regarding the remainder of fiscal year 2021 and later. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual performance or results to differ materially from those expressed in or suggested by the forward-looking statements. Please note that these forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this presentation. And we undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in light of new information or future events, except to the extent required by applicable securities laws. On the call today, we will also discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures. In our earnings release, you will find additional disclosures regarding these measures, including reconciliations of these measures with U.S. GAAP. Note that these non-GAAP financial measures are intended to supplement GAAP financial information. It should not be considered as a substitute for our GAAP results. Please refer to our SEC filings, including our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020, as well as our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2021, which we filed with the SEC earlier today for a more detailed description of the risk factors that may affect our results. You may obtain copies from the SEC or by visiting the investor relations section of our website. At this time, it is my pleasure to introduce our interim CEO, George Pernsteiner.

Thank you, Vicki, and welcome everyone to our third quarter 2021 earnings call. Starting with our results for the third quarter 2021 we had revenue and other revenue of $62.2 million and incurred a net loss of $5.2 million or a loss of 16 cents per diluted share. Excluding non-GAAP items, our non-GAAP net loss for the third quarter of 2021 was $4 million or a loss of 12 cents per diluted share. which was impacted by higher than expected legal and marketing costs. While revenues were in line with our expectations overall, we are striving to achieve improved performance as we move forward. That said, we believe our guidance remains intact for the full year, which Kevin will discuss in more detail shortly. During the third quarter, new enrollment at the University of Arizona Global Campus remained challenging. However, as a result of a number of initiatives we put into place, we saw student retention stabilize. As we mentioned, last quarter, we brought the leaders of Zovio and UAGC together for a two-day in-person summit to develop and approve initiatives to increase enrollment and support strong student outcomes. That event was successful, as together, as partners, we outlined a clear path to enhance new enrollment and improve student outcomes. Our plan is centered on three primary areas. First, expanding the university's grant and aid programs to help enable current students to continue their studies, to re-enroll students who had stopped out, and to re-engage military students. Second, increasing enrollment of new students, which includes greater and more targeted outreach to the military, where historically we have been particularly strong. further building the UAGC brand and finding more corporate and academic partners. And third, maintaining our commitment to superior student outcomes through upskilling and stackable credentials. While it remains early days for these programs, we are working collaboratively and aggressively with UAGC to drive results. In fact, we will be coming together again soon to evaluate and refine each area of focus as well as to develop new initiatives to drive continued success. Sovio's long-term strategy remains unchanged. We are bringing education opportunities to learners where they are. To do this, we will deliver education services that meet the diverse needs of universities, employers, and learners. In addition, we are enhancing our programs and services, and we are expanding our skills to employment offerings to empower learners to better connect with in-demand jobs. We are excited for what the future holds for Zovio and our ability to play an important role in enabling learners to advance their educational goals. Let me provide an update on our search for Zovio's next chief executive officer. Our CEO search committee has narrowed the focus to a few candidates, and we believe we will have an update soon. We have been impressed by the quality and caliber of the individuals who have expressed interest in joining us, as we work to set the company on a growth trajectory to deliver shareholder value for many years to come. With that, let me turn the call over to Chris Spahn to run through the highlights for the quarter.