ECFS Annual Report of Giving 2021–2022

Annual Report of Giving 2021–2022

This report covers the fiscal year from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022. If you believe your gift has been left off this list, please accept our sincerest apologies and reach out to the Advancement Office at advancement@ecfs.org or 212-712-6236 to let us know.

Throughout this Annual Report, you will notice a numeral next to the names of the individuals who have contributed to the Orange Fund for 5+, 10+, 15+, 20+, or 25+ consecutive years.

Dear ECFS community,

“Exceptionally enthusiastic” describes the prevailing mood at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School throughout the 2021–2022 academic year! Our students’ smiling faces filled the halls and campuses as we returned to 100% in-person learning for the first time since March 2020, and our campuses were energized by connecting and learning side by side again. At the same time, the city once again served as ECFS’s expansive experiential classroom for students of all ages, from the Ethical Culture Kindergarten Post Office and the Fieldston Lower 1st Grade Bird Study to the Middle School’s Design Studio projects and the Upper School’s Science Research Program. Without missing a beat, our faculty were able to provide an extraordinary education to our students.

Academic excellence at ECFS continues to thrive and evolve in our community of students, faculty, and administrators who are intellectually curious, open-minded, and inquisitive. Faculty in all divisions strengthened our curriculum to ensure that ethics continue to be a fundamental part of our students’ education. We look forward to working with you to continue this dynamic trajectory in the coming years. Together, we will embrace our beloved traditions and create new ones, further evolving ECFS’s transformative progressive education for our current and future students.

The excitement and engagement that epitomized this past academic year are reflected in your overwhelming support of ECFS. As you will see in the 2021–2022 Annual Report, our entire community came together as donors, volunteers, advocates, and partners to make our School’s work successful. From “Doers to Donors,” philanthropic gifts at every level strengthened our community, and ECFS received more than $4.5 million in donations to the Orange Fund, surpassing our fundraising goal. Your generosity of time, talent, and treasure helps make the ECFS vision a reality for many, empowering lifelong ethical learners who will change the world. Our alumni community — already 10,000 strong — welcomed the Class of 2022 to their ranks, and each new graduate is poised to make a difference in the world. With your help, ECFS’s impact on the world is tremendous.

We are profoundly grateful for the trust you put in our School and for your continued partnership and generosity.

With deep appreciation,

Joe Algrant

Kimberly Smith Spacek ’91 Head of School Chair of the Board of Trustees

Kimberly Smith Spacek ’91, Chair of the Board of Trustees, and Joe Algrant, Head of School

ECFS’s Core Tenets

Our academic program is built around ten core tenets of progressive education. Developed by our own faculty and staff, these tenets guide us in all grades and in all areas of our curriculum.

Challenging

At every age, in developmentally appropriate ways, our educational program not only serves our students’ growth as citizens, but strengthens their skills as scholars.

Ethical

We nurture our students’ capacity for morality and empathy, helping to provide the framework and knowledge necessary to live an ethical life.

Relevant

Our curriculum is never stagnant; our teachers are constantly updating their courses to reflect the most pressing issues of the day.

Inclusive

We seek out new voices, identify hidden assumptions, and reshape our norms accordingly — in order to create a school that truly belongs to all of us.

Playful

Play and movement are vital to our work at all ages — for us, rigor and laughter go hand-in-hand.

Responsive

We design courses around the changing needs of students, their reactions to world events, or even surprising new passions they might bring to light.

Empowering

We celebrate the process more than the product — the practices and procedures students master so they can repeat their achievements again and again.

Interdependent

We live in community, and we recognize the responsibility each of us has to the greater whole. Our academic program is infused with an insistence that we care for and engage our neighbors, both in and around our campuses.

Experiential

Our entire curriculum is built from the ground up with hands-on, project-based, design-centered approaches. We want our students not just to see, hear, and think — but to make, do, and feel.

Healthy

The health of our students is essential, and we work diligently to ensure a safe physical environment, robust opportunities for movement, and abundant support for social and emotional health.

ECFS by the Numbers

$4,663,000

Total given by the ECFS community to the Orange Fund in FY22

2,061 donors to the Orange Fund

1,163 Loyal Oaks Society members who have been giving for 5+ years

$111.5M total endowment

1,667 students

1,204 families

$200 median gift to the Orange Fund

604 donors who have been giving for 10+ years

1,071 alumni who supported the Orange Fund

99 named endowed funds at ECFS

$17.2M awarded in financial aid

1:5 student-to-teacher ratio

10,000+ alumni

Financial Update July 1, 2021–June 30, 2022

Philanthropic Giving

All numbers subject to final audit.

ECFS Giving Glossary

Philanthropy often comes with its own set of vocabulary. Here are some of the terms used when talking about philanthropic giving at ECFS.

Commemorative gifts: Gifts to ECFS can be made in memory of or in tribute to another person. Notification of these gifts is sent to the individual or family whose gift is named in their honor.

Endowment: A permanent fund that is invested to produce income. An endowed gift supports academic programs or financial aid in perpetuity. The principle of each endowed gift is preserved while the earnings benefit current students, faculty, staff, and programs.

Form VI Gift: Traditionally given to ECFS by parents and guardians in honor of their children in the graduating class, these gifts are split between the annual fund and a selected fund, such as financial aid.

Gifts in kind: Non-monetary gifts which would otherwise have to be purchased by the School. These donations must be pre-approved by the division heads or by the Advancement Office.

Matching gifts: Matching gifts help to multiply the impact of money raised by matching the donation with an equal gift made by corporations, foundations, or individuals. We receive approximately $150,000 in matching gifts annually to ECFS. Please check with your employer to see if your company participates.

Named funds: Alumni, parents, guardians, and friends can establish named funds to express their support of ECFS’s academic excellence or in support of a specific department, program, or purchase. Such funds are often created in honor of one’s family name, a relative, or a beloved ECFS teacher or administrator.

Orange Fund: The Orange Fund is ECFS’s annual fundraising drive which supports the current year’s budget. It helps fund every aspect of ECFS’s operations: financial aid, facility maintenance, technology and library acquisitions, extracurricular programming, faculty and staff salaries, and health and safety. The Orange Fund bridges the gap between income from tuition and the actual cost of educating each student and running the School. We ask all parents, guardians, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends to support this fund.

Participation: A measure, usually expressed in percentages, of how many donors in a specific group have made gifts. At ECFS, we strive for 100% participation in the Orange Fund.

Philanthropy: The donation of time, skill, or money to support an institution or cause. At ECFS, we value and appreciate all the ways people give their time, talent, and treasure to support our School.

Planned gifts: A vehicle for making gifts to ECFS as part of estate planning. Naming our School as a beneficiary in your will, retirement plan, IRA, or life insurance policy creates a legacy for you and your loved ones, while impacting our students now and into the future.

Programmatic gifts: Gifts directed to support programs essential to ECFS, including enrichment programs, arts programs, community services, tutoring, and financial aid.

For questions or more information on giving to ECFS, please contact the Advancement Office at advancement@ecfs.org or 212-712-6236.

Hear From Our Donors

At ECFS, philanthropy comes in many forms. Hear from a few of our donors who give to ECFS because they believe in the mission of our School.

Talent may be evenly distributed, but opportunity is not. By lowering the financial barriers to enrolling at ECFS, a greater number of talented students can attend the School. It’s the diversity and commitment to attracting exceptional students from all over that I find most inspiring about ECFS.

Vishaal

When we give, we are not only supporting our own children but also helping to support every child, collectively. We have to provide support in different ways to ensure that ECFS remains a positive community for the students, families, faculty, and staff. I encourage everyone to get involved in little ways or big ways — it all counts toward the same goal.

Sylvia

Clark

—

and Sarina Bhuyan Parents of Ved B. ’34, first-time Orange Fund donors

—

and Jasper

Parents of Jasper C. ’28, Orange Fund donor, Orange Fund volunteer

Hoenig

Lucien’s Pre-K teacher Karin

is truly a gift. She made us feel valued, accepted, and understood at every turn. We are so grateful for the beautiful impact she has had on our family.

— Orly Sandelowsky and Jared Weinryt Parents of Lucien SW. ’35, Orange Fund donors

Volunteering with other parents at ECFS events like Homecoming and the Special Olympics — which are so strongly supported by students and the entire ECFS community — was what made me realize what a caring and dedicated community we had become a part of. Supporting the Orange Fund gave us an easy and tangible way to do our part to help the School further its important work educating children.

— Jonathan and Arika Couchman Parents of Uma C. ’25, first-time Orange Fund donors

Students are having thoughtful discussions in class that make them think, pay attention, and evaluate what’s happening in the world. ECFS inspires our whole family to think about and engage with issues and current events in different ways.

— Elena and Greg

Sefanov

Parents of Alexi Sefanov ’22 and Eric S. ’30, Loyal Oaks Society members, Orange Fund donors, Form VI gift committee volunteer, P+T volunteer

Ghazali ’22 (pictured above with his sister Maya), Orange Fund donor, Form VI gift committee volunteer, P+T volunteer

I give what I can in order to demonstrate my commitment to providing an ECFS education for the diverse group of students who will someday join our alumni community.

— Rachel Hochhauser ’91 Parent of Daisy H. ’35 and Tallulah H. ’35, Loyal Oaks Society member, Fieldston Alumni Network Leadership Committee, Orange Fund donor

The ECFS faculty, staff, and community helped shape Gabi into the young man he is today, which I will forever be grateful for. As he goes out into our currently tumultuous world to have new experiences and make new connections, I know I will think about how ECFS helped me create a tremendously strong foundation in his life that will undoubtedly stand the test of time.

— Leanna Mercedes Form VI Parent, Parent of Jibriel “Gabi”

Ways to Give

Ethical Culture Fieldston School is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and contributions are tax-deductible to the extent of the law. There are several ways to make a gift.

Online

Our secure online gift form (www.ecfs.org/support-ecfs/) enables you to support the ECFS Orange Fund or the Form VI Gift quickly and easily. You also have the option to make monthly, quarterly, or yearly payments toward your pledge to ECFS.

By Mail

If you would like to send a gift by mail, please address it to:

Ethical Culture Fieldston School

P.O. Box 1130

New York, NY 10008-1130

Checks should be made payable to Ethical Culture Fieldston School.

By Phone

If you would like to make a gift to the Orange Fund over the phone, please call the Advancement Office at 212-712-6236 and we will return your call.

Gifts of Appreciated Securities and Stock

Neuberger Berman

DTC #0226 National Financial Services LLC (NFS)

Account NBJ-040061

Federal Tax ID #13-3862529

To process and acknowledge stock and securities gifts, we need to know the number of shares and the type of stock you are donating. Please contact the Advancement Office at advancement@ecfs.org or 212-712-6236 if you are making a gift of stock or securities.

Matching Gifts

Double or triple your impact!

Check with your employer’s human resources office for more information on how to obtain a matching gift form, then send the completed form with your gift. Please contact the Advancement Office at advancement@ecfs.org or 212-712-6236 with any questions.

Administrative Council

2022–2023

Joe Algrant

Head of School

Kyle Wilkie-Glass

Associate Head of School

Jon Alschuler

Principal, Fieldston Middle

Keith Alves

Director of Finance/Controller

Dave Argenzio

Director of Campus Safety

Stacey Bobo

Principal, Fieldston Upper

Keeniun Brumskill

Executive Director of Community and Social Impact

Jetty Castro

Director of Human Resources

Lauren Coulston

Director of Communications

Rob Cousins

Principal, Ethical Culture

Jameel Freeman

Director of College Counseling

Charles Guerrero ’89

Director of Enrollment Management

Holly Manges Jones

Chief Human Resources

Officer and General Counsel

Joe McCauley

Principal, Fieldston Lower

Mica McGriggs

Executive Director of Student

Support and Wellness

Gus Ornstein ’94

Director of Athletics

Teddy O’Rourke

Director of Campus Services

Joe Piselli

Director of Facilities

Keiko Reid

Chief Financial Officer

Sarah Wendt

Chief Philanthropy Officer

33 Central Park West New York, NY 10023-6001

212-712-6220

Board of Trustees

2022–2023

Ethan Binder

Juan Botella

Margot Bridger

Eunu Chun

Danny Crawford

Anand Desai

Akin Dorsett ’88

Pooja Goyal

Andrew Holm ’01 Treasurer

Nick Kaplan ’88

Atif Khawaja Secretary

Jesse Klausz

Rob Lewin

Vivian Lin

Seth Meisel

Patty Moreno-Fletcher

Jo Natauri

3901 Fieldston Road Bronx, NY 10471-3922

718-329-7300

Kathleen O’Connell

Jon Roure

Jonathan M. Rozoff

Dana Sirota

Min Young Song

Kimberly Smith Spacek ’91 Board Chair

Krishna Veeraraghavan Vice-Chair

Rielly Vlassis

Josh Vlasto ’00

Stephanie Wagner

Jeff Walker Vice-Chair

Joe Algrant

Head of School, Ex-Officio

Liz Singer

President, Society Board, Ex-Officio

ECFS Advancement Office

Abby Aska Manager, Parent Engagement and Events

Kavita Bordia

Assistant Director, Annual Giving

Gianna Foltz Manager, Database and Donor Services

Sara Hunt-Munoz Director, Alumni Relations

Gillian McSpiritt Manager, Stewardship and Research

Nancy Oti Director, Events and Engagement

Stephanie Pilla

Assistant Director, Leadership Giving

Yamel Sanchez Manager, Parent Engagement and Events

Lauren Servidio

Assistant Director, Alumni Relations

Rose Turshen Director, Development

Sarah Wendt

Chief Philanthropy Officer