Annual Fund Donations

[Anonymous]

I have always been shocked by how cheap dmv private school parents are in comparison to other parts of the country. They are weak about giving to their own kids’ schools and equally cheap giving to nonprofits. There are definite exceptions (thankfully).

Sad that some people don’t think their kids and their community benefits from economically diverse families being a part of the school.

OP- sorry not addressing you in the above- but rather some of those who replied to you. Give what you can afford. If you are full pay but not super wealthy, this may be in the range of 1-10k annually.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have always been shocked by how cheap dmv private school parents are in comparison to other parts of the country. They are weak about giving to their own kids’ schools and equally cheap giving to nonprofits. There are definite exceptions (thankfully).

Sad that some people don’t think their kids and their community benefits from economically diverse families being a part of the school.

OP- sorry not addressing you in the above- but rather some of those who replied to you. Give what you can afford. If you are full pay but not super wealthy, this may be in the range of 1-10k annually.

Ha. As if $50k tuition is not enough.

Still waiting for the administrator to come back to address the excellent examples of bloat in independent school budgets that have already been named. There are of course others as well.

[Anonymous]

This was our first year at a private school and I did not mind making a donation even though the tuition is a stretch for us bc our kid is happy. But, I do mind the lack of gratitude/acknowledgment. Our donation may not have been what the monied families can give but it was big for us. I think something more than the automatic email acknowledgment would have been appropriate. We will give less moving forward - especially since they are sure to raise the tuition.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not OP but same scenario except with a younger child we will be applying for next year. Does the amount we give impact our younger child’s chance for admission? We are told this school (referred to on this board as a very top school) has sibling preference in pre-K only so that’s when we will be applying for her.

Yes, for Beauvoir giving more will be advantageous.

Your donation record will also make a difference when you apply out. It’s viewed as contributing to the community and unless your child is a standout academically and even if they are having donated generously makes a difference in how your application is evaluated.q

You don’t have to give a huge amount. Most families give under $1,000 so anything above that given regularly is viewed as a positive.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This was our first year at a private school and I did not mind making a donation even though the tuition is a stretch for us bc our kid is happy. But, I do mind the lack of gratitude/acknowledgment. Our donation may not have been what the monied families can give but it was big for us. I think something more than the automatic email acknowledgment would have been appropriate. We will give less moving forward - especially since they are sure to raise the tuition.

Didn't they write you a thank you note? Our school does this - often three times. From Development office, from the head of school, from a parent volunteer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:PP. Thanks. By gap, are you saying nearly $40K tuition does not cover the actual full cost of child's education?

My thoughts exactly. Some of these schools need to get rid of a lot of administrative blo at if $40-55 K isn't covering costs.

I'd be curious to know which admin jobs you think are expendable. Serious question from an administrator. Parents have ever-increasing expectations. That ramped way up during the pandemic and will never level off, from what I can tell. More wellness counselors, more individualized attention on college, more education support, more frequent conversations with admin about programs and their student, more frequent and highly detailed communications, more frequent community gatherings, more athletics social media boosterism, more alumni networking opportunities, more, more, more.

No, tuition won't cover it all. But fortunately, many in your school community are contributing enough to cover the gap for you. They are less motivated to do that when they feel they're carrying the load for others who can but will not donate. So please join in.

I’d start with the development staff.

You’re an administrator. You’re leading an organization that sells a luxury good. It is your job to figure out how to do that with the budget you have. Condescending to parents who expect this - especially when many of them run companies that must perform at a high level while managing costs - is pretty arrogant. People don’t want to donate to organizations that treat their concerns as demanding and unreasonable.

These are customers who are already paying an obscene price for a product they aren’t thrilled with, and you’re telling them they should just be quiet and give you more money.

Getting rid of the development office makes no logical sense. As an administrator, in addition to working with the budget you are given, you are tasked with increasing that budget year after year. If the development staff is dismantled, revenues would have to increase by increasing tuition. Something tells me you would not appreciate a larger increase year after year as you are already complaining about the high price. The development office helps schools manage the increasing cost of running a school without passing that entire increase onto parents through tuition increases. The tuition increase you see each year is only a portion of the increase in cost a school sees.

[Anonymous]

We donate as much as we can every year. It changes every year.

And, we are not expecting any thank you notes. Those cost money and time away from staff time. If they send any note, that's fine but it goes to recycling bin anyway so it's a waste of resources in my opinion.

[Anonymous]

Are parents renting musical instruments for band or orchestra classes? Are your kids classes smaller than public schools? Do your middle schoolers pay for the overnight trips? do you pay for school supplies like families due in public schools? Does your school have a nice graduation ceremony? Are teachers given great employment benefits, and shown an abundance of appreciation? Is your campus well-maintained and the technology constantly updated? Annual Funds pay for those things and much more.
Most independent schools are nonprofits which mean they can’t charge as much as they spend or they would be for-profits, like Basis or Whittle (RIP).

[Anonymous]

We donate $150 per month ($1800 a year) and have 1 child at the school. We also try to volunteer as much as we can.

[Anonymous]

During our first year at the school, we received a letter with a specific amount we were expected to donate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:During our first year at the school, we received a letter with a specific amount we were expected to donate.

That would make me not donate anything at all.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are parents renting musical instruments for band or orchestra classes? Are your kids classes smaller than public schools? Do your middle schoolers pay for the overnight trips? do you pay for school supplies like families due in public schools? Does your school have a nice graduation ceremony? Are teachers given great employment benefits, and shown an abundance of appreciation? Is your campus well-maintained and the technology constantly updated? Annual Funds pay for those things and much more.

Most independent schools are nonprofits which mean they can’t charge as much as they spend or they would be for-profits, like Basis or Whittle (RIP).

The answer to some of these questions is YES. Many schools have a separate fee for Books and Supplies. Trips are extra. And yes parents are supplying musical instruments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:During our first year at the school, we received a letter with a specific amount we were expected to donate.

What school?

If I'm paying X tuition and they expect an additional Y donation, why not just increase tuition by that amount? That's ridiculous. Literally I'd give $100 to make a point and every single time I got a call I'd tell them why.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:During our first year at the school, we received a letter with a specific amount we were expected to donate.

What school?

If I'm paying X tuition and they expect an additional Y donation, why not just increase tuition by that amount? That's ridiculous. Literally I'd give $100 to make a point and every single time I got a call I'd tell them why.

This is exactly what I think too. We paid $45K, just raise it with another line item of however much you want.

I sort of felt strong-armed into giving because of the incessant calls and emails, and we have another kid in public we want to go there. Also, they publish in the annual book who donates what amount. So you could give $1.00 or $900 but you're in the same category. I would hate to give $900 and have people think I gave $1.00 though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:During our first year at the school, we received a letter with a specific amount we were expected to donate.

That would be an immediate no-go for me. In fact, demanding a specific amount is such a ridiculously stupid approach that I seriously question that this actually happened.