Should I support the Annual Fund or Capital Campaign? What’s the difference?

You’ve heard about Chestnut Hill Academy’s impending Capital Campaign. You’ve heard about the plans to build buildings, fund endowment for faculty salaries, and endowment for financial aid. Then you get an appeal in the mail and a phone call about the Annual Fund…. You want to participate, you want to support the School, but you’re confused. Should you give to the Campaign or to Annual Fund? Does one gift support both?

The Annual Fund supports CHA’s day-to-day operations. From paying for classroom supplies and heat for the buildings to other normal operating expenses, the Annual Fund helps bridge the gap – about 10% annually – between tuition and the actual cost of educating each student. Chestnut Hill Academy’s hope is that every family will contribute to the Annual Fund if only at a participatory level. Because the Annual Fund is so vital to CHA’s ongoing strength, and those needs do not go away, it is crucial that support for the Annual Fund remains strong.

However, the Capital Campaign has long-term goals too. We seek to increase endowment for financial aid. We seek to increase endowment for faculty compensation. We plan to improve our campus so that we have facilities that better complement our excellent programs.

These projects are investments in Chestnut Hill Academy’s future and to achieve them we need to raise money above and beyond that which supports Annual Fund. Therefore, Chestnut Hill Academy’s hope is that each family, while sustaining a commitment to Annual Fund, will make an additional commitment to help realize these long-term goals. Ideally, we hope that each family will make a pledge, payable all at once or over period of years (up to five), that reflects a comprehensive giving plan – to the Annual Fund and Capital goals.

In thinking about your giving to Chestnut Hill Academy, you may choose to:

•Sustain your level of Annual Fund giving over the next several years and make additional gifts to support the capital goals of the Campaign.

•Make a pledge of a specific amount, payable over a certain period of years, and allow the School to decide the allocation between Annual Fund and Capital

If you have questions regarding the Annual Fund or the Capital Campaign, please contact us.

Whom should I contact for more information?

For questions about the Capital Campaign, please contact:

•Besty Longstreth – Director of Development 215-247-4700 ext. 1110

•Matt Goetting, Director of Capital Planning 215-247-4700 ext. 1112

How long do I have to fulfill my commitment to the Capital Campaign?

You have up to five years, including the year in which you make your pledge, to fulfill your commitment. For example, if you make your pledge on June 30, 2004, your last payment must be received by June 30, 2008. You may structure the payments evenly over that time period, or you may choose to vary the amount of your payments from year to year. Not every family wishes to commit now to a multi-year pledge; some will choose to evaluate their goals on an annual basis. Multi-year pledges are important to Chestnut Hill Academy because they enable us to quantify the Campaign’s progress to date as well as its remaining financial goals.

May I choose a specific goal of the Campaign to support?

You may choose to support any goal of the Campaign. However, Chestnut Hill Academy greatly appreciates unrestricted support. It enables us to organize the projects according to the school’s needs in the most cost effective way as determined by the Headmaster in consultation with the Board.

When is construction of the new buildings expected to begin, and when will the buildings be completed?

If City approvals proceed as anticipated, we will break ground in Spring 2005 on the Commons expansion. We expect construction to go on for 8 months, and look forward to occupying the buildings in the winter of 2005-2006.

The other projects will be scheduled as funds are raised and schedules permit.

Will the new facilities impact the size of the student body?

Chestnut Hill Academy believes that any significant increase in our number of students would undermine the cohesiveness of community that is so crucial to our educational values and mission. The new facilities will allow some restructuring of enrollment by division, but we plan to limit any incidental increase to no more than 50 students for a total enrollment of 600.

How will the construction affect life at Chestnut Hill Academy during the school year?

The work site will be self-contained, and since we will not tear down the existing Science facility until the new building is complete, students’ day-to-day classroom experience will not change. As with any construction, we can anticipate some inconvenience but we have had recent experience with major building and will continue to organize the work always keeping in mind the safety and welfare of our community.

Who are CHA’s architects?

CHA has hired the firm of Bower Lewis Thrower to design the new buildings. BLT, based out of Philadelphia, Pennsylavania, was responsible for the additions to and renovation of William Penn Charter School Middle School and renovations to The Baldwin School. They have also done work for the University of Pennsylvania and other local area institutions. Their web site address is www.blta.com