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The
Annual Giving Fund
Goal: $46.0 Million
Look behind any activity at the Academy, whether
in classrooms, athletics or residential life, and
you will find two kinds of gifts that allow Exeter
to function: gifts to the endowment and gifts to
the Annual Giving Fund. Both help limit Exeter’s
reliance on tuition and help sustain its unique approach
to education. The mission of the Exeter endowment
is to provide consistent, yearly support, not only
for this year, but for all the years to come. Consequently,
although the endowment is powerful, it is by definition
restricted: only a portion of its value can be spent
each year.
The mission of the Annual Giving Fund is to support
Exeter in the here and now: where the endowment is
by definition restricted, the Annual Giving Fund
can step in, providing flexible, immediate funds.
Its purpose is to ensure that Exeter has the dexterity
to act on the needs that arise each year, whether
that be enough financial aid to assist an additional
student in need or the right salary to attract an
exceptional teacher in biology.
The Annual Giving Fund supports roughly 10 percent
of the Academy’s activities each year. It would
require approximately $137 million in endowment to
generate the amount given annually through the Fund
by alumni/ae, parents and friends. The impact of
their gifts cannot be overstated. Imagine, for example,
10 percent missing from the financial aid budget
or from teachers’ salaries. Exeter would continue,
and it would remain a good school, but the special
margin of excellence that is evident across campus
would be diminished.
The Annual Giving Fund is, therefore, the first priority
of The Exeter Initiatives. Our goal is to increase
the flexible resources at Exeter’s disposal each
year, so that the Academy can respond more effectively
to the needs that arise, particularly those in financial
aid and faculty salaries. While it will take a number
of years to reach the endowment goals of The Exeter
Initiatives, for example, gifts to the Annual Giving
Fund can be put to work immediately. The power of thousands
of Exonians joining their gifts together can help us
move forward quickly to increase financial aid and
faculty compensation.
At the launch of The Exeter Initiatives, the Annual Giving Fund
had already received gifts totaling $16 million. Over the next
five years, our goal is to average approximately $6 million per
year for a total of $46 million. This represents an increase of
approximately 10 percent over what has historically been contributed
on an annual basis.
The goal is ambitious, but achievable. Exeter is asking every
Exonian to consider making the unique mission of the Annual Giving
Fund a priority each year. The Academy is also seeking greater
philanthropic leadership in the Fund through The 1781 Society.
Greater participation at all levels will increase Exeter’s
ability to meet the needs of students and teachers and to uphold
its high academic standards in every year.
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Gift Levels of The 1781 Society
| Principal’s Circle |
$100,000 and up |
| Non Sibi Associate |
$50,000-99,999 |
| Harkness Associate |
$25,000-49,999 |
| John Phillips Associate |
$10,000-24,999 |
| Daniel Webster Associate |
$5,000-9,999 |
| Founder |
$1,781-4,999 |
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Profile:
Priya Wadhera ’90 on the Power of Participation
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| Priya Wadhera ’90
with fellow Annual Giving Fund volunteers Derek
Chang ’85, Frederic Sater ’52; P’80,
Sara Fischer Betekhtin ’77 and Michael Oneal ’74. |
Elated at the prospect of a life in academia, Priya
Wadhera, who recently joined the faculty at Columbia
University, attributes her passion for learning—and
teaching—to Exeter. “If I’m a good
teacher, I owe that to Exeter,” she says. “It
was there that I came to understand learning as an
ongoing dialogue in which all in the classroom must
engage. Teaching is about being nurturing and demanding
at the same time. This is the type of environment
I aim to create in my own classroom today.”
For Priya, a long-time Annual Giving Fund donor
and phonathon volunteer, Exeter’s unique, student-centered
teaching method, and the amazing instructors who
challenge students to surpass their own limits, are
what make the Academy worth her support. “After
all,” she stresses, “Exeter’s special
character has always been derived from the people
who comprise the community there, namely the teachers
and the students.We learn that with a great education
comes great responsibility. And this is where the
Annual Giving Fund comes in. As Exeter embarks on
this ambitious campaign, it is vital that every donor
understand that his or her gift, no matter what the
amount, is critical to Exeter’s future. It
is essential that we join together and participate
so Exeter can continue to educate and inspire generations
to come.”
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