Finn M.W. Caspersen: 1941–2009
Dedicated Board Chair Dies Finn M.W. Caspersen ’59, a devoted alumnus whose generous spirit and strong leadership over four decades helped establish Peddie as one of the nation’s finest boarding schools, died on Sept. 7. He was 67. “We are saddened by the loss of our dear friend,” said Head of School John Green. “Finn was a pillar of this community, a stalwart; someone whose deep loyalty and love for Peddie were boundless. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, Barbara, and the entire Caspersen family.” Mr. Caspersen visited campus as recently as June when he joined classmates for their 50th reunion. He was honored for his “unswerving dedication and vision” with the Thomas B. Peddie Award, the school’s highest alumni honor. A member of the school’s board of trustees since 1970, Mr. Caspersen became board chair in 1976. Under his leadership, which was bolstered by the historic $100 million gift from Walter H. Annenberg ’27 in 1993, Mr. Caspersen spent countless hours guiding Peddie’s ascent to the upper echelon of boarding schools. Much of the progress the school made under Mr. Caspersen’s stewardship can be attributed to a staying-ahead-of-the-curve philosophy he shared with Green shortly after he was installed as the school’s new head in 2001. “I remember the day in my office when Finn first said to me, ‘If you’re not moving forward, you’re going backward.’ It’s a belief he lived by,” said Green. Following in the footsteps of his father, who provided the capital for the Caspersen Science Center in 1964, Mr. Caspersen was the driving force behind four buildings that bear the family name: the Finn Caspersen Campus Center, the Freda Caspersen Dormitory, the Finn M.W. Caspersen Rowing Center in
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Mercer County Park and his most recent achievement, the Caspersen History House. Mr. Caspersen’s contributions, however, went far beyond bricks and mortar. He was a visionary, leading the transformation of Peddie’s academic programs and establishing the ’59 Information Network at the Annenberg Library. In 1995 when asked which of his gifts to Peddie he was most proud of, Caspersen said, “My time, the time I’ve put in. Peddie is a school on its way.” He had a wide range of philanthropic interests, but none were closer to his heart than education. “If there’s any one area of charitable endeavor that should be highlighted, it is education,” Mr. Caspersen told the Harvard Law Bulletin in 2008, “because it’s an investment in the future — an investment in human capital. I’ve been active in a range of other things, but education’s always been my particular love.” Mr. Caspersen, a 1966 alumnus of Harvard Law School, spearheaded the most successful fundraising campaign in the history of legal education for HLS. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Brown University, where he later served as a trustee. Other institutions that benefitted from his dedication to education include the Hodson Trust, Drew University and the New Jersey State Board of Higher Education. He was also a passionate supporter of U.S. Rowing. In November 2003, Peddie School became the beneficiary of Mr. Caspersen’s love for the sport with the completion of the Caspersen Rowing Center, which serves as the training site for the national team, as well as Peddie crew athletes. Mr. Caspersen, who graduated cum laude and earned a National Merit Scholarship, credited the school with giving him the tools necessary to excel in college and beyond. “Peddie gave me the confidence to really achieve,” he said in 1999. “I really felt that after three years there, I could tackle almost anything.” He is survived by his wife, Barbara, and four sons.