Report from the Development Office
Reflections on my first year at Putney
Having just arrived, I wrote last year about the things which attracted me to The Putney School. This year I would like to reflect on what I have found to be special during my first year. First and foremost is extraordinary leadership. Eight years of balanced budgets, low faculty attrition, good students competing to fill our beds, and record fund-raising don't occur in a vacuum. They result from wise leadership and a well-developed work ethic. Building on the rock-solid foundation laid down by Sarah Gray Gund '60, Chair Elizabeth Blaylock '80 has built a wise, unified, cohesive, and generous Board of Trustees. Director Brian Morgan has maintained fiscal discipline while recruiting an extraordinary team of administrators whom he empowers to use their many years of experience to make Putney a better place. Understanding that money makes good schools better still, Brian is an intrepid and enthusiastic fund raiser. Associate Director Judy Sheridan has nurtured a rigorous intellectual environment which facilitates recruitment and retention of what may well be the strongest, most dedicated faculty in the school's history. This past year no one left Putney to teach at another school! Finally Kevin Cornell '59, who chairs the Development Committee of the Board, has been incredibly supportive of our development team's efforts. Although no longer on the Board, Ken Landis '42 has been a wonderful mentor to me as well. |
 Doug Gortner |
Another thing which I find extraordinary at Putney is the common sense of purpose. Everyone seems to be pursuing a common goal-to make the school a better place for kids to learn and grow. While we occasionally champion competing strategies, there exists a level of trust which is increasingly uncommon at all levels in the educational world.
Finally, though the pace of life is pretty intense, there is a lot of fun and good cheer on the hilltop. Sings are robust, assemblies ring with laughter, and even staff and admin meetings are laced with humor. Putney is a happy place!
Office Reorganization
There have been several personnel changes and reassignments in our department during the past year, and we now have a terrific team in place. Rennie Washburn moved from being Campaign Coordinator to Manager of Annual and Deferred Giving. A graduate of the Westminster School and Goucher College, Rennie brings a strong analytic background to the position. She honed her skills in her previous position as trust officer at Vermont National Bank, and serves as past President of the Connecticut Valley Estate Planning Council and as a director of the Upper Valley Planned Giving Group. In her spare time she chaperones weekly ski trips for her daughter's 3rd grade class and runs a Brownie troop. Deni Bergne moved from Annual Fund Coordinator to Development Office Manager, in which capacity she manages the departmental calendar and budget, is responsible for gifts-in-kind, keeps the work flowing smoothly, and pitches in wherever help is needed. A graduate of Smith College, Deni is a master gardener, enjoys painting and horseback riding, and teaches the knitting evening activity. To fill the revised position of Development Information Coordinator (our database manager), we lured Ellen Merrill from the Holstein Foundation. Despite an hour's commute, Ellen has done half a day's work before the rest of us arrive at the office. Ellen shares Deni's passion for horses. Campaign Manager, Bob Sheridan and Alumni Director, Harriet Rogers '49, remain in their respective positions.
Fund-Raising Retrospective
To say that the year just ended was a banner year for development would be to diminish its significance; it was as good as it gets! The new team got off to an understandably slow start, but finished with a flourish.
The Annual Fund
While a few objected to our asking for a specific gift amount, many applauded the change and many more sent larger gifts than in previous years. As a result, the Annual Fund grew 19% and contributed a whopping $493,000 to the operating budget, allowing the school to do some things it would simply not have had the money for had you not been so generous.
The Board of Trustees more than pulled it's weight, with 100% participation and an average gift of more than $3,000, an increase of 109% from the previous year.
Those who work here believe in our mission and many choose to donate a portion of their modest salaries to the school 41 members of the faculty and staff contributed $3,233 to this year's Annual Fund.
The Alumni are the financial backbone of any school and Putney is no exception. This year 732 alumni contributed $263,300 through the Alumni Fund, an increase of $79,728 over the previous year. Our special cadre of Class Agents made this possible. The 50th Reunion Class of 1954, chaired by Lorna Hayden Power, made a significant Annual Fund gift and also created a fund to purchase a new piano for the school.
The only area of concern is in the percentage of alumni who give to the Annual Fund. While some schools exceed 50% each year, on average, less than 25% of Putney alumni contribute. Since our alumni are as passionate as any, we have spent a lot of time analyzing this conundrum. Here is the conclusion we have reached: many alumni don't give because they are unable to make a gift of the size they deem appropriate. Our message is: If you can make a large gift, by all means do so. If you can't, please participate at a modest level - a $10 gift is more help to Putney than no gift at all.
Putney Parent's Fund Committee: No one should be more vested in the Annual Fund than the parents of our students, knowing that the monies donated will be spent before the end of June to enhance their children's experience. This year, Chairs Jill and Lanse '71 Stover, of Beverly, Massachusetts, inaugurated the Putney Parent's Fund and recruited a sterling committee to form the Putney Parent's Fund Committee. Through mail and personal solicitations, every parent was contacted. They far exceeded their dollar goal and significantly increased the participation rate.
Grandparent's Fund: Joan Clarkson G'05, of Oyster Bay, Long Island, chaired the successful Grandparent's Fund through which 34 grandparents contributed $9,424 to the school. This too represented a healthy increase over the previous year.
Putney is indeed fortunate to receive gifts from many other friends and foundations, and matching gifts from corporations. This past year their Annual Fund gifts accounted for $52,357.
Deferred Giving
You may have noticed the articles inside the back cover of your Putney Post, which have shifted from promoting the Annual Fund to promoting the Deferred Giving Program. At its fall meeting, the Board of Trustees voted to implement a program of promoting annuities, charitable trusts, and bequests to begin building our modest endowment. We are fortunate to have two individuals with a specialty in this area: Rennie Washburn, whom you read about above, and me. After a career in insurance and banking, I spent the first ten years of my development career getting the planned giving programs off the ground at Deerfield Academy and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. If you love Putney, talk to your kids about designating a small portion of your estate to honor a loved one through the creation of a named endowment to help a student or a teacher. It has been our experience that this will be seen by family members as a terrific idea.
Alumni Office
I am told that the reason we don't have a formal Alumni Council is that our Alumni never feel that they need an official forum to speak their mind and offer suggestions. Legendary Alumni Director Harriet Stupp Rogers '49 awaits your call at (802) 387-6273, your email at hrogers@putneyschool.org, and your visits to the third floor of the main building. Guided tours of the new building or lunch in the KDU are available on request, including the spur-of-the-moment variety. We will be increasing our use of email to communicate with you, so please send Harriet a message if you have recently changed your address. She also wants you to check the Post for a list of area receptions planned for the coming year.
Building the Future Campaign
The Putney School is well past the three-quarter hurdle in the Building the Future capital campaign. So far, more than $7.8 million of the $10 million needed to build and endow the Michael S. Currier Center and a year-round indoor recreation building has been contributed to the campaign. In the best Putney tradition, this initiative continues to attract broad-based support. Putney is profoundly grateful to its more than 600 generous supporters who have brought us so far.
As in any campaign, large gifts are vital to success, and three gifts in particular deserve special mention here. Three years ago, Putney had never received a non-testamentary gift of $1 million or more. As of June 2004 we have 2 gifts of $1 million, a pledge of $1 million, and a pledge of $4 million.
Our first gift of this magnitude came from an anonymous donor in the form of a challenge to the Alumni, since met. The second came from Gil Kerlin. Sadly, Gil, father of Sarah Gray Gund '60, Gil Kerlin '63, and Jonathan Kerlin '68, died in the spring of 2004, but he knew that his gift was instrumental in completing the magnificent new performing arts center.
The most recent $1 million commitment came during graduation weekend when our newest trustee, a member of the class of 1981, announced a 3.3 to 1 challenge from himself and his brother, a member of the class of 1980, to complete the funding for the Michael S. Currier Center. This magnificent gift honors their mother, a member of the class of 1958, for her 26 years of service on the Board of Trustees.
The Capital Campaign Committee, consisting of Sarah Gray Gund '60, chair, Kate Ganz Belin '62 and Ira Wender (who is father of three Putney graduates), campaign co-chairs, Elizabeth Blaylock '80, Ken Landis '42, Brian Morgan, ably staffed by Bob Sheridan, performed yeoman duty. Not only did they successfully solicit the many trustees, alumni, parents and grandparents, faculty and staff, friends, and foundations to bring the total raised as of June 30, 2004 to $6,753,187, they planned and executed an extraordinary opening gala for the Currier Center.
Other Gifts
In June of 2004, a member of the class of 1947 and his family committed to making a $4 million endowment gift "to insure that the farm would remain forever a growing part of both the life and the curriculum of The Putney School" as well as an additional $500,000 to address the deferred maintenance of the farm. This is the largest gift in the school's history. Look for an in-depth article featuring this extraordinary gesture in the spring issue of the Post. Another wonderful gift was made by the widow of former Board Chair John Wirth '54. In addition to fulfilling the large pledge he had made, Nancy gave the school a significant additional gift which the Board unanimously voted to utilize to create an endowed fund bearing John's name that will be used for faculty development.
In summary, Putney School is on a roll, prospering in every area; and this is reflected in the fund-raising area as well. Your financial support of the school has been extraordinary, and we hope to spend more time next year out in the field letting you know in person how deeply appreciative we are. Thank you! |