Giving With Purpose by Sacramento Country Day School

Giving with Purpose Guide to Giving

Why we ask, and how your gifts and time build connection, community, and enhance learning

Your Advancement Team

Rachelle Doyle Director of Advancement rdoyle@saccds.org

Amy Wells ‘98 Associate Director of Advancement awells@saccds.org

Frances Ferrell Advancement Services Coordinator fferrell@saccds.org

Please reach out to advancement@saccds.org with any questions, comments, or conversation starters. We look forward to it!

Mission Statement

Country Day inspires intellectual discovery and engages a diverse community to think critically, live creatively, and act compassionately.

Country Day’s Core Values

Intellectual Discovery Diversity Critical Thinking Creativity Compassion

Inspiring discovery since 1964.

Sacramento Country Day School 2636 Latham Drive Sacramento, CA 95864 www.saccds.org

Welcome to Country Day!

Dear Families,

Welcome to Country Day! You have joined an extraordinary group of parents, faculty, administrators, and students in a community built on the spirit of giving.

One of the biggest reasons our community thrives is the high level of support and engagement from our parent community. Like independent schools across the country, we rely on our parents to organize events, volunteer, and provide critical financial support. Parent leaders help guide the path of our school’s future.

Over 80% of our parents have demonstrated their compassion and commitment to our success by making a financial contribution. This support strengthens our school and positively impacts each and every student. This guide will show you how active participation in your school will enhance your experience and help you enjoy our vibrant community.

Over 60 years, Country Day has experienced transformational evolution because of support from parents, trustees, alumni, and community members. This giving continues because of our collective awareness that ongoing investments are necessary in our program, our campus, and our people. We are off to a great start, and our aspirations are greater.

In the coming weeks, we will be reaching out to meet with each family individually, and when we do, please know that our office is your partner in the advancement of this school and all of your child's experiences within it. Additionally, all new families receive an invitation to our Benefactors Reception. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet with some of our community’s most passionate leaders.

Advancement is exciting work, and if you’d like to learn more about some of these exciting projects or get involved, let’s talk!

What We Believe

We believe education has an undisputable effect on living a meaningful life and philanthropy is the difference between a good education and an outstanding education. Philanthropy has the power to create more possibilities for students and their families.

We believe that educating a child requires an exceptional faculty, a curriculum that develops fluency, creativity, and competency, and the generous involvement of parents. We are excited to be the conduit between donors and gifts, helping to realize strategic efforts and helping donors to make positive changes in areas that align with your schools’ strategic efforts.

As a nonprofit organization dependent on donations, we believe being rooted in inclusive philanthropy is crucial to Sacramento Country Day School’s students. We seek donors and constituents from diverse backgrounds as active participants and makes decisions with the people who will be affected. As thought leaders in our community and in the education industry, Country Day’s advancement team strategizes on equitable processes, relationship building, and increasing knowledge while championing community-centered fundraising.

How We Meet Our Goal

We Are:

Relationship builders: We enjoy getting to know constituents, stakeholders, and community members–learning what motivates and inspires them and how they like to make an impact.

Educators: We partner with our donors and volunteers as investors in our community. We welcome you to understand why fundraising is critical to our school and is a part of the financial model for independent school education.

Bridge-Builders: We want to invite you in as partners to our community to make a difference!

Stewards: We recognize and honor our donors and the impact they make–in our Annual Reports, on our walls, and at events.

Celebrators: Our social events and celebrations of giving are designed to build community awareness of the joy, benefit, and fun of giving.

Make a Difference…

Giving Opportunities

October

THE COUNTRY DAY FUND

The Country Day Fund is the primary way for parents, grandparents, alumni, alumni parents, and friends to support our school’s mission. By giving annual unrestricted gifts, you enable Country Day to keep education dynamic, both in and out of the classroom. Each year, the Country Day Fund giving campaign is led by parent volunteers who raise funds to support, impact, and enhance students’ lives.

March

ANNUAL AUCTION

Parents, faculty, and alumni come together annually at our Auction & Gala for an evening of celebration and fundraising. The net proceeds are used for general operating expenses and to fund our Scholars program.

The Auction is run entirely by parents, with administrative guidance from the Advancement Office. Items are donated by businesses, current and alumni families, as well as faculty, and bids range from $15 to $10,000 or more.

Giving Opportunities All Year Long

CAPITAL CAMPAIGNS

Capital Campaigns support expensive improvements to the school’s programs and physical plant. As Country Day continues to renovate and replace 1960s buildings on campus with state-of-the-art classrooms, as well as enhance our education programmatic offerings, these contributions are essential to our continued success.

COUNTRY DAY SCHOLARS

Donations to the Country Day Scholars Program allow us to provide two students in each grade with the opportunity to attend our #1 ranked high school. This need and merit-based scholarship program aims to make Country Day High School accessible to exceptional students with notable potential.

ENDOWMENT GIVING

Gifts to the endowment strengthen the financial health and flexibility of Country Day. The principal of an endowment gift is invested, and the income generated becomes a source of revenue for general or targeted support. These funds enable Country Day to weather changes in our economy and take advantage of opportunities to expand and innovate. The endowment is currently $3.5 million, built by the generous gifts of our community.

PLANNED GIVING

Education is a legacy. Since 1964, when the school’s founders mortgaged their homes to keep the school solvent, thousands have supported Country Day to provide for its future. Some have made gifts during their lifetime; others choose to provide for the school through a planned gift. From creating short-term remainder trusts to designating Country Day a trust or will beneficiary, there are many ways families can utilize smart investment tools to make a greater impact. We welcome a discussion of how we can make your contributions work for you and your family.

MATCHING GIFTS

Don’t miss the opportunity to double your gift! Many employers match employee gifts to charitable organizations up to 100%. Please check with your company or let us know if we can help. Gifts from spouses and retirees may also be eligible.

FUNDRAISING PROGRAMS

Purchase gift cards through our Scrip program. The school buys gift cards from stores at 2% to 20% less than the value and sells them at actual value. The buyer uses the gift card just like cash at participating stores in person or online. This is a great way to leverage your gifts to gain additional dollars for Country Day.

Giving Levels and Recognition

Benefactors Reception Custom Logoed Gift Red & Black Society Dinner One-on-One Dinner with Head of School

Leadership Circle

Cavaliers Circle

Changemakers Circle

Founders Circle

Visionaries Circle

Patrons Circle

Benefactors

Scholars Friends

$100,000+

$50,000+

$25,000+

$10,000+

$5,000+

$2,500+

$1,000+

$500+

$1+

All donors receive recognition in our Annual Report, a Country Day Loyal sticker, and are included in our community celebration.

Introducing...

The 1964 Society & the Red and Black Society

We are also excited to introduce the 1964 Society and the Red and Black Society. Donors contributing $1,964 or more in a fiscal year will receive limited-edition items to show their support for Country Day proudly. Donors contributing $10,000 or more in a fiscal year will be invited to an evening event celebrating donors with our Head of School. We would be honored if you would consider becoming an early member of our giving societies.

Ways to Make a Gift

Education is a legacy. Since 1964, when the school’s founders mortgaged their homes to keep the school solvent, thousands of committed alumni, parents, trustees, and friends have supported Country Day to provide for its future.

Give Online

Donors may direct gifts to a particular endowment, program, project, or need at saccds.org/give. If you are interested in supporting any cause not mentioned, contact Director of Advancement, Rachelle Doyle, at rdoyle@saccds.org.

Make a Pledge

Pledges can be made through our secure website or by contacting the Advancement Office. Pledges may be fulfilled through a single contribution or in multiple payments. Final Annual Giving payments are due by June 30 of the school year in which the gift is pledged.

Donor-Advised Fund

Stock

Gifts of securities may be made to Sacramento Country Day School by transferring stock through a broker. Please contact rdoyle@saccds.org for our agent information to transfer specific securities to Sacramento Country Day School.

The Donor-Advised Fund (DAF) is an increasingly popular way to make a charitable gift. DAFs can provide you with immediate tax benefits while making your charitable giving easier. Here are two simple ways you can make a gift through your DAF:

Make an outright gift now by recommending a grant to Sacramento Country Day School.

Create a succession plan to recommend that Sacramento Country Day School receive all or a portion of the fund value upon the termination of the fund.

You can select the option that best suits your philanthropic and financial goalsl. Just contact your Donor-Advised Fund administrator to recommend a grant or to discuss a succession plan.

If you include Country Day in your plans, please let us know and be sure to use our legal name and federal tax ID.

Gifts of Cash

Gifts of cash, check, or credit card are tax deductible in the year the gift is made. Make checks payable to Sacramento Country Day School and mail to:

Sacramento Country Day School Advancement Department 2636 Latham Drive Sacramento, CA 95864

www.saccds.org/giving

"We are only here because of the people at Country Day who came before us, and for our school to remain exceptional, we must collectively continue to build our culture of giving together."

– Lee Thomsen, Head of School

Volunteerism

Volunteer opportunities at Country Day are plentiful and offer a meaningful way to engage with the school while benefiting our students. The Country Day Parents Association (PA), the advancement team, the admissions team, and others offer various volunteer options to accommodate different schedules.

Volunteer options at Country Day: Room Parent

Parents Association Volunteers

Families of Color Volunteers

Country Day Fund Class Ambassadors

Event Volunteer

Chaperone

Admissions Ambassadors

Auction Volunteers

Library Helpers

Fall Family Festival

Field Trip Volunteers

Grade Level Room Parents