SSFS Closing

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Former HOS Tom Gibian is currently on the board and has an MBA in finance from Wharton. If anyone might be able to shed light on whether there is hope for the coalition, it might be him.

Don’t you think if there was hope he’d have already said so before announcing the school is going to close?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Coalition 04/17 End of Day Update (Sent By Email)
Dear Friends,
We've got quite a long email coming your way. Consider a snack and your favorite drink as you read along. Thanks for getting to the end and please forward to everyone you know
The donor commitments over the past 48 hours have been remarkable. We have $9M+ in pledges, which has given our primary angel donor the confidence to guarantee the money up front to keep the school open for the next three years. Our long-term goal is to set up an endowment so that nothing like this can happen again.
Let's Take a Minute to Connect
We started the Coalition because we couldn’t believe this community working together couldn’t muster the money to stay open despite a financial crisis. We wanted to provide a vessel so the parents, the students, the alumni, and our friends and faculty could all sing from the same songbook. You all have surpassed our wildest expectations. There is an ocean of talent, expertise, resolve, and, most noticeably, kindness in this community. It’s been staggering.
We’ve been operating on a two-phase short-sighted plan - first, get the money.
We are there.
The second part is to keep the school intact and headed in a new and better direction. This is where the primary drivers of this boat need to be the parents. First, let us thank you as a group - our primary donor pool is parents of current students. We know how traumatic this week has been, and we are sorry that we haven’t gotten the parents more involved.
We’ve never done a 10-year Capital Raise in 48 hours without notice before!
And not all of us have children at the school yet. So we have interacted mainly with the people we knew for our time there thus far. We are fully aware that, ultimately, parents need to be at the head of this effort. We built this coalition for the people SSFS belongs to now- the parents and students. And the parents have done the heavy lifting financially. They have taken leadership roles in the Coalition as we've gotten to know everyone in our widely expanding network. And more than anything, we can’t thank you enough for saving the most important part of our childhood and keeping this unique, special community alive. Everything that’s taken place in the last 72 hours has proven that.
I know it sounds crazy, but we are now in a place to believe the school might come out stronger on the other side. We have the money for it. Now we need people to stay and more to join us.
We know you have to make difficult decisions about what’s best for your kids. But right now, if you want to let yourself hope that this place survives and that we can all stay connected to this uniquely special place and the people we love that make it one, we think you can give yourself permission to start doing that.
Now, Let's Get to the Update
General and what we need
- You ROCK with all of your amazing ideas and resources you've sent us. Chef's kiss! Please keep it coming. We have the most incredible team-- we hope you will meet them someday-- and they are on every idea you have and every tidbit. We need them. Send away!
- We need a PR/spokesperson who's cool, calm, collected, and grounded and who can speak on camera (unlikely) but would feel comfortable doing so. The Coalition has convictions about media, and we need someone to delegate media requests who can align with those convictions and stick to them like glue. You can email us, but please share your experience and work in links or clips. Open to someone outside of SSFS community but in your network.
- Pledges. Seriously. Get the form out. Get the word out. We've heard some large groups have had no idea. Please share, share, share.
What has happened and what we are doing right now
- Slack is up and running, thanks to a few quiet leaders who could seriously run the world. We need people on those channels for easier communication and leads, so thank you for your patience!
- The Coalition is officially united. Originally, there was one group of family members and the Coalition, and now the community is fully united; this was always our goal because we have to be united to row in the same direction. We worked together, externalized, listened, and considered; it's really beautiful what's happening.
- I am not trying to bury the lead, but this is probably what you are most here for, and it is related to our goal of requesting a meeting with the Board to present all of your and our efforts to them. We're engaging in thoughtful dialogue with SSFS to chart a constructive path forward. The Coalition is committed to supporting the school's future while being clear that our vision necessarily includes significant board leadership renewal. Our financial support is explicitly tied to these governance changes—not as a criticism of past efforts, but as an essential foundation for rebuilding trust and ensuring the school's long-term stability. In true Quaker fashion, we seek to work through this transition with respect and care, finding solutions that honor the school's mission while embracing the fresh leadership needed for its next chapter.

This sounds like an enormous amount of nonsense.

[Anonymous]

Doesn't it?

So many words with nothing solid; oh some Angel Invenstor (anonymous) says they like what they see with pledges and......blah blah blah

Someone is playing games. Where is any evidence of anything real?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Coalition 04/17 End of Day Update (Sent By Email)
Dear Friends,
We've got quite a long email coming your way. Consider a snack and your favorite drink as you read along. Thanks for getting to the end and please forward to everyone you know
The donor commitments over the past 48 hours have been remarkable. We have $9M+ in pledges, which has given our primary angel donor the confidence to guarantee the money up front to keep the school open for the next three years. Our long-term goal is to set up an endowment so that nothing like this can happen again.
Let's Take a Minute to Connect
We started the Coalition because we couldn’t believe this community working together couldn’t muster the money to stay open despite a financial crisis. We wanted to provide a vessel so the parents, the students, the alumni, and our friends and faculty could all sing from the same songbook. You all have surpassed our wildest expectations. There is an ocean of talent, expertise, resolve, and, most noticeably, kindness in this community. It’s been staggering.
We’ve been operating on a two-phase short-sighted plan - first, get the money.
We are there.
The second part is to keep the school intact and headed in a new and better direction. This is where the primary drivers of this boat need to be the parents. First, let us thank you as a group - our primary donor pool is parents of current students. We know how traumatic this week has been, and we are sorry that we haven’t gotten the parents more involved.
We’ve never done a 10-year Capital Raise in 48 hours without notice before!
And not all of us have children at the school yet. So we have interacted mainly with the people we knew for our time there thus far. We are fully aware that, ultimately, parents need to be at the head of this effort. We built this coalition for the people SSFS belongs to now- the parents and students. And the parents have done the heavy lifting financially. They have taken leadership roles in the Coalition as we've gotten to know everyone in our widely expanding network. And more than anything, we can’t thank you enough for saving the most important part of our childhood and keeping this unique, special community alive. Everything that’s taken place in the last 72 hours has proven that.
I know it sounds crazy, but we are now in a place to believe the school might come out stronger on the other side. We have the money for it. Now we need people to stay and more to join us.
We know you have to make difficult decisions about what’s best for your kids. But right now, if you want to let yourself hope that this place survives and that we can all stay connected to this uniquely special place and the people we love that make it one, we think you can give yourself permission to start doing that.
Now, Let's Get to the Update
General and what we need
- You ROCK with all of your amazing ideas and resources you've sent us. Chef's kiss! Please keep it coming. We have the most incredible team-- we hope you will meet them someday-- and they are on every idea you have and every tidbit. We need them. Send away!
- We need a PR/spokesperson who's cool, calm, collected, and grounded and who can speak on camera (unlikely) but would feel comfortable doing so. The Coalition has convictions about media, and we need someone to delegate media requests who can align with those convictions and stick to them like glue. You can email us, but please share your experience and work in links or clips. Open to someone outside of SSFS community but in your network.
- Pledges. Seriously. Get the form out. Get the word out. We've heard some large groups have had no idea. Please share, share, share.
What has happened and what we are doing right now
- Slack is up and running, thanks to a few quiet leaders who could seriously run the world. We need people on those channels for easier communication and leads, so thank you for your patience!
- The Coalition is officially united. Originally, there was one group of family members and the Coalition, and now the community is fully united; this was always our goal because we have to be united to row in the same direction. We worked together, externalized, listened, and considered; it's really beautiful what's happening.
- I am not trying to bury the lead, but this is probably what you are most here for, and it is related to our goal of requesting a meeting with the Board to present all of your and our efforts to them. We're engaging in thoughtful dialogue with SSFS to chart a constructive path forward. The Coalition is committed to supporting the school's future while being clear that our vision necessarily includes significant board leadership renewal. Our financial support is explicitly tied to these governance changes—not as a criticism of past efforts, but as an essential foundation for rebuilding trust and ensuring the school's long-term stability. In true Quaker fashion, we seek to work through this transition with respect and care, finding solutions that honor the school's mission while embracing the fresh leadership needed for its next chapter.

This sounds like an enormous amount of nonsense.

End of day email from coalition reported that pledges were up to $15M.

[Anonymous]

Pledges mean nothing.

I can pledge 5 million tonight.

Unless someone puts some money in an account and goes public with it, this is silliness and hurtful to real families and teachers who were blindsided by this.

[Anonymous]

Imagine if society could raise $15 mil over a few days for real societal needs instead of saving a privileged private school.

I’ll sit back down though and see how this all plays out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Coalition 04/17 End of Day Update (Sent By Email)
Dear Friends,
We've got quite a long email coming your way. Consider a snack and your favorite drink as you read along. Thanks for getting to the end and please forward to everyone you know
The donor commitments over the past 48 hours have been remarkable. We have $9M+ in pledges, which has given our primary angel donor the confidence to guarantee the money up front to keep the school open for the next three years. Our long-term goal is to set up an endowment so that nothing like this can happen again.
Let's Take a Minute to Connect
We started the Coalition because we couldn’t believe this community working together couldn’t muster the money to stay open despite a financial crisis. We wanted to provide a vessel so the parents, the students, the alumni, and our friends and faculty could all sing from the same songbook. You all have surpassed our wildest expectations. There is an ocean of talent, expertise, resolve, and, most noticeably, kindness in this community. It’s been staggering.
We’ve been operating on a two-phase short-sighted plan - first, get the money.
We are there.
The second part is to keep the school intact and headed in a new and better direction. This is where the primary drivers of this boat need to be the parents. First, let us thank you as a group - our primary donor pool is parents of current students. We know how traumatic this week has been, and we are sorry that we haven’t gotten the parents more involved.
We’ve never done a 10-year Capital Raise in 48 hours without notice before!
And not all of us have children at the school yet. So we have interacted mainly with the people we knew for our time there thus far. We are fully aware that, ultimately, parents need to be at the head of this effort. We built this coalition for the people SSFS belongs to now- the parents and students. And the parents have done the heavy lifting financially. They have taken leadership roles in the Coalition as we've gotten to know everyone in our widely expanding network. And more than anything, we can’t thank you enough for saving the most important part of our childhood and keeping this unique, special community alive. Everything that’s taken place in the last 72 hours has proven that.
I know it sounds crazy, but we are now in a place to believe the school might come out stronger on the other side. We have the money for it. Now we need people to stay and more to join us.
We know you have to make difficult decisions about what’s best for your kids. But right now, if you want to let yourself hope that this place survives and that we can all stay connected to this uniquely special place and the people we love that make it one, we think you can give yourself permission to start doing that.
Now, Let's Get to the Update
General and what we need
- You ROCK with all of your amazing ideas and resources you've sent us. Chef's kiss! Please keep it coming. We have the most incredible team-- we hope you will meet them someday-- and they are on every idea you have and every tidbit. We need them. Send away!
- We need a PR/spokesperson who's cool, calm, collected, and grounded and who can speak on camera (unlikely) but would feel comfortable doing so. The Coalition has convictions about media, and we need someone to delegate media requests who can align with those convictions and stick to them like glue. You can email us, but please share your experience and work in links or clips. Open to someone outside of SSFS community but in your network.
- Pledges. Seriously. Get the form out. Get the word out. We've heard some large groups have had no idea. Please share, share, share.
What has happened and what we are doing right now
- Slack is up and running, thanks to a few quiet leaders who could seriously run the world. We need people on those channels for easier communication and leads, so thank you for your patience!
- The Coalition is officially united. Originally, there was one group of family members and the Coalition, and now the community is fully united; this was always our goal because we have to be united to row in the same direction. We worked together, externalized, listened, and considered; it's really beautiful what's happening.
- I am not trying to bury the lead, but this is probably what you are most here for, and it is related to our goal of requesting a meeting with the Board to present all of your and our efforts to them. We're engaging in thoughtful dialogue with SSFS to chart a constructive path forward. The Coalition is committed to supporting the school's future while being clear that our vision necessarily includes significant board leadership renewal. Our financial support is explicitly tied to these governance changes—not as a criticism of past efforts, but as an essential foundation for rebuilding trust and ensuring the school's long-term stability. In true Quaker fashion, we seek to work through this transition with respect and care, finding solutions that honor the school's mission while embracing the fresh leadership needed for its next chapter.

This sounds like an enormous amount of nonsense.

Okay, I’m relieved that I’m not the only one who had that reaction.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Former HOS Tom Gibian is currently on the board and has an MBA in finance from Wharton. If anyone might be able to shed light on whether there is hope for the coalition, it might be him.

Don’t you think if there was hope he’d have already said so before announcing the school is going to close?

Yes. And minute 14 of this video demonstrates that finances were on his radar when he was HOS: https://www.youtube.com/live/LIYD52MnTvE?si=EhSj4evlfrkUq8fa

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Coalition 04/17 End of Day Update (Sent By Email)
Dear Friends,
We've got quite a long email coming your way. Consider a snack and your favorite drink as you read along. Thanks for getting to the end and please forward to everyone you know
The donor commitments over the past 48 hours have been remarkable. We have $9M+ in pledges, which has given our primary angel donor the confidence to guarantee the money up front to keep the school open for the next three years. Our long-term goal is to set up an endowment so that nothing like this can happen again.
Let's Take a Minute to Connect
We started the Coalition because we couldn’t believe this community working together couldn’t muster the money to stay open despite a financial crisis. We wanted to provide a vessel so the parents, the students, the alumni, and our friends and faculty could all sing from the same songbook. You all have surpassed our wildest expectations. There is an ocean of talent, expertise, resolve, and, most noticeably, kindness in this community. It’s been staggering.
We’ve been operating on a two-phase short-sighted plan - first, get the money.
We are there.
The second part is to keep the school intact and headed in a new and better direction. This is where the primary drivers of this boat need to be the parents. First, let us thank you as a group - our primary donor pool is parents of current students. We know how traumatic this week has been, and we are sorry that we haven’t gotten the parents more involved.
We’ve never done a 10-year Capital Raise in 48 hours without notice before!
And not all of us have children at the school yet. So we have interacted mainly with the people we knew for our time there thus far. We are fully aware that, ultimately, parents need to be at the head of this effort. We built this coalition for the people SSFS belongs to now- the parents and students. And the parents have done the heavy lifting financially. They have taken leadership roles in the Coalition as we've gotten to know everyone in our widely expanding network. And more than anything, we can’t thank you enough for saving the most important part of our childhood and keeping this unique, special community alive. Everything that’s taken place in the last 72 hours has proven that.
I know it sounds crazy, but we are now in a place to believe the school might come out stronger on the other side. We have the money for it. Now we need people to stay and more to join us.
We know you have to make difficult decisions about what’s best for your kids. But right now, if you want to let yourself hope that this place survives and that we can all stay connected to this uniquely special place and the people we love that make it one, we think you can give yourself permission to start doing that.
Now, Let's Get to the Update
General and what we need
- You ROCK with all of your amazing ideas and resources you've sent us. Chef's kiss! Please keep it coming. We have the most incredible team-- we hope you will meet them someday-- and they are on every idea you have and every tidbit. We need them. Send away!
- We need a PR/spokesperson who's cool, calm, collected, and grounded and who can speak on camera (unlikely) but would feel comfortable doing so. The Coalition has convictions about media, and we need someone to delegate media requests who can align with those convictions and stick to them like glue. You can email us, but please share your experience and work in links or clips. Open to someone outside of SSFS community but in your network.
- Pledges. Seriously. Get the form out. Get the word out. We've heard some large groups have had no idea. Please share, share, share.
What has happened and what we are doing right now
- Slack is up and running, thanks to a few quiet leaders who could seriously run the world. We need people on those channels for easier communication and leads, so thank you for your patience!
- The Coalition is officially united. Originally, there was one group of family members and the Coalition, and now the community is fully united; this was always our goal because we have to be united to row in the same direction. We worked together, externalized, listened, and considered; it's really beautiful what's happening.
- I am not trying to bury the lead, but this is probably what you are most here for, and it is related to our goal of requesting a meeting with the Board to present all of your and our efforts to them. We're engaging in thoughtful dialogue with SSFS to chart a constructive path forward. The Coalition is committed to supporting the school's future while being clear that our vision necessarily includes significant board leadership renewal. Our financial support is explicitly tied to these governance changes—not as a criticism of past efforts, but as an essential foundation for rebuilding trust and ensuring the school's long-term stability. In true Quaker fashion, we seek to work through this transition with respect and care, finding solutions that honor the school's mission while embracing the fresh leadership needed for its next chapter.

This sounds like an enormous amount of nonsense.

End of day email from coalition reported that pledges were up to $15M.

Can I pledge 85 and make it a round 100?

[Anonymous]

I pledged and I meant it!

[Anonymous]

If I signed up and I’m still not getting anything from the coalition because it takes time to go thru the list how did they manage to rayse $15 million? I never realized making millions was easier than making an email list.

I think I’m starting to see how ssfs got here. No one seems to be a practical thinker around here. At least we haven’t been here long enough to feel some deep connection to the school. It’s a school and there are many. We be just fine elsewhere.

[Anonymous]

This is so irresponsible. There are children touring and applying to other schools. They are grieving and doing their best to move on. The first posts I saw about this group were made by a high schooler. There is no legitimacy to this claim.

It sounds like this group does not understand how an endowment operates. You cannot simply withdraw funds at any time.

Why would an angel investor give 9M to a school with such operational and fiscal failings? It’s not a good investment. SSFS has had turnover and tumult in recent years. If they were to remain open, how could families trust the school again? Why would prospective families even consider it?

[Anonymous]

Real help would be to tell teachers find jobs and students help to apply elsewhere. The coalition makes a mockery of us. I came to this forum to try ti understand what the real financial problems were and how we got there not to hear about the fantastic as of people with Monopoly money.

[Anonymous]

*fantasies of people

[Anonymous]

It’s of course valid to have concerns! But many people who have seen the school at its best see something worth saving. It’s okay if that’s not you-there have been serious issues that caused valid concerns over the last few years. I know that for my family the school it was is worth the effort.