Donations and acceptance to highschool

[Anonymous]

We donate to the annual fund at our pk-8 at a fairly high level 10k/yr, 2 kids, anonymously. Is it advantageous to contribute with our name the year we apply to other schools? Do other schools look at this? We would be listed on the lifetime donations page because older child is in 7th and we've been there forever at the same donation level.

[Anonymous]

No.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for being so generous during your time at your kids’ school

[Anonymous]

That's a nice amount and I'm sure the school is appreciative. However, it not at the level that would stand out to high school admissions staff (if they look).

[Anonymous]

It can’t hurt. But it probably won’t help as much as you would hope.

[Anonymous]

Yes. You should not have done it anonymously. It’s enough and consistent so that other privates would have noted it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That's a nice amount and I'm sure the school is appreciative. However, it not at the level that would stand out to high school admissions staff (if they look).

So untrue

[Anonymous]

OP here - thanks for your insights. We will likely continue anonymously because it is a balance of privacy, which we hold close. Part of me thinks if this is what the school is after then we are in the wrong place. The other part wants my kids to have all the opportunities we can give them (like many parents).

[Anonymous]

Of course it will help. Full pay and a consistent level of donating is what private schools want to see most from prospective families. Up to you whether you want to provide the hook upfront or make them dig for the info.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here - thanks for your insights. We will likely continue anonymously because it is a balance of privacy, which we hold close. Part of me thinks if this is what the school is after then we are in the wrong place. The other part wants my kids to have all the opportunities we can give them (like many parents).

Op, we also donate anonymously, but our private publishes “total” contributions by family. So our name under the appropriate donation level is still made public. Not sure if that info is on the website or not, though.

My kids are at the beginning of their years at a k-8, but by the time the last one is done, we will likely have donated over $100K. We don’t expect that to impact admissions for high school, but I am assuming that if our child is waitlisted somewhere they really want to go, and the HOS makes the phone call to advocate, the donation part will come up as part of the advocacy for my child.

[Anonymous]

OP - even though you donate anonymously, it's not anonymous to your k-8. And if your k-8 placement team is any good, they will include something about the family having a consistent giving history. I do not think this would give you a leg up in admissions anywhere. What it does is act as a "plus" in the "is this a family we'd like in our community" column. Of course, you need to have behaved with the school as well. For admissions, the family side of the equation usually prevents a kid from being accepted, never gets them accepted. (Unless you know people on the board or something like that where pressure is coming from outside the admissions office).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP - even though you donate anonymously, it's not anonymous to your k-8. And if your k-8 placement team is any good, they will include something about the family having a consistent giving history. I do not think this would give you a leg up in admissions anywhere. What it does is act as a "plus" in the "is this a family we'd like in our community" column. Of course, you need to have behaved with the school as well. For admissions, the family side of the equation usually prevents a kid from being accepted, never gets them accepted. (Unless you know people on the board or something like that where pressure is coming from outside the admissions office).

the above was me....

I mean the board of the school you want your child to be accepted to.

And the part about preventing a kid from being accepted is if you are a pain in the neck with k-8 it could hurt your kid for later admissions

[Anonymous]

I work in development and being full pay, plus a consistent $10,000/year donor absolutely has an impact.

[Anonymous]

You can’t say you don’t think it will affect admissions and then talk about your k-8 HOS or placement team putting in a special word for your kid because you donate.

It absolutely helps get kids admitted. Next to legacy, it’s the oldest hook in the book.

[Anonymous]

It definitely matters. These schools have to raise several million dollars in donations from their student body in order to balance the budget each year. They can't just admit blindly and hope they reel in some big donors in the mix. I'm not privy to how this conversation goes down as I'm not a big donor but it's definitely, 100% part of the process for many families.