Special Thanksgiving Edition

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Perhaps “possessed” is too strong a word, but one of the groups of parents I met with for the first time during my interviews for the position of Head of School at MPA was certainly a “motivated” one. No, I'm not referring to the thoughtful and thorough head search committee of the Board, but the development committee.

It was the fall of 2001, the country (and economy) were still in shock from the attacks on New York and Washington, and the all-volunteer development committee had inherited the job of driving through to the successful completion of the Building on Vision (BOV) Campaign. To make matters more interesting the school’s development director had just submitted his resignation, leaving behind a reduced staff.

Far from cowering under the table in the face of this daunting challenge, the development committee held meetings that were raucous, free-wheeling and characterized by incredible spirit and optimism. Once my hiring had been announced in early December of 2001, the committee adopted the goal of completing the BOV campaign before the new guy started in July of 2002. And of course, to everyone’s surprise but their own, they did!

The following year, with its sights set firmly on the goal of growing the annual fund, the development committee, working with a rejuvenated staff, cruised to an annual fund that ended at over 150% of the original goal. 

While some of the personnel have changed over the last five years, the spirit has remained strong and the successes impressive. And it is the result of the combination of hard work, dedication, persistence and love of the school. Under the auspices of the Board of Trustees and in cooperation with staff, these parent volunteers work hard to help provide the resources to make MPA as strong as it can be.

Whether it means coming in during the evening to make phone calls on behalf of the annual fund, planning for the annual golf tournament, working in support of fund raisers like the Best of MPA, or meeting to generate new ideas, the gift of time, talent and financial support is critical.

So as we approach Thanksgiving 2006, let me extend my deepest gratitude, on behalf of MPA students, faculty and staff, to all those volunteers who make it possible for MPA to continue to grow and thrive.

“Thanks for your pledge to the MPA Annual Fund!” parent volunteer Amy Hawley on the phone surrounded by members of the development committee

It has been a particularly successful fall season for the school’s current capital campaign and it gives me the opportunity to close the loop I opened with my eCommunication piece of two weeks ago. The October 30^th Head’s Message, “Going Global at Home”, referenced the first two of three strategic goals revealed in the Board’s 2005-2010 Strategic Plan. The third goal got a few major boosts at the beginning of November.

Strategic Goal # 3 - Commitment to Our Future, providing resources to flourish - is the critical third leg of the plan, making the other two possible. It calls on us to, “provide and direct the resources—human, financial, infrastructure and community—as the school moves from its founding years to a fully resourced, comprehensively equipped educational innovator and leader.”

Three key resource programs have just marked important milestones. They are the Best of MPA annual auction, a new Parent Association grant program and the Coming of Age Capital Campaign.

The Best of MPA has become a big social event each year and a chance to show support for the programs and people who make MPA the special place that it is. The bash on November 3^rd was no exception with the theme of East Meets West inspiring intriguing auction items and inventive costumes. Led by volunteer parents Martha Krikava and Dee Polacek and supported by parents, faculty and staff, it was a huge success, generating a net of over $85,000 for the school.

Also that Friday, a new committee of parents met to review grant applications from faculty to support activities that will advance global programming at the school. Awardees were recognized in last week’s eComunication. Funds totaling $5,000 for these activities are being generated by a host of PA fundraising events, such as the magazine drive, poinsettia sale and others. These grants will have a direct impact on the growth of global programming at MPA.

And finally, that Friday also brought a pledge of $250,000 to the Coming of Age (COA) Capital Campaign, capping a $1.25 million week and a $2.25 million fall for the campaign. COA has been setting MPA records almost from the beginning.

In April of 2004, the Board of Trustees approved a plan to move forward with a capital campaign to support construction of new facilities. At the time, the goal was $10 million and represented what seemed like an extremely ambitious target, given the fact that the BOV campaign, ending in 2002, had raised around a third of that amount.

Construction on the first of three phases of the campus master plan began shortly after that board decision in the summer of 2004.  Improvements included the acquisition of two properties adjacent to the old entrance, the creation of the new green space on Larpenteur, a new south entrance and parking lot, skylights in the lower and middle school areas and significant classroom renovations.

By the following spring, enough pledges to the Coming of Age Campaign had been secured to warrant beginning construction on phase two of the master plan. Ground was broken on March 3, 2005 on the two story classroom addition and sports center.

Improvements also included the addition of a new Pre-K, the creation of a recital hall on the site of the old student commons, two new parking lots and the planting of over 100 trees and 4,000 plants. In addition, five new lower school classrooms were created where the old upper school science labs had been, allowing a reorganization leading to greater divisional definition.

Once again, a dedicated group of campaign volunteers worked with staff to coordinate ongoing solicitation efforts throughout 2005 and into 2006. Of particular note has been the work of campaign leaders Brad Boyle, Dan Mckeown and Co-Chairs Ford Nicholson and Chuck Jakway - all past or present serving Board members, supported by Development Director Kathy Peters-Martell and in cooperation with the Board of Trustees 

By the start of this school year, as the new facilities were being claimed for use by students, faculty and staff, the pledges to the COA campaign were just short of the original $10 million goal. Since the original April 2004 board vote, construction plans had evolved to include additional enhancements to the facilities and the final combined phases one and two campaign goal had reached $12.5 million.

Which brings us to this fall. In the space of just over one month, the Coming of Age Campaign has secured new pledges totaling $2.25 million to bring us to just over $12 million! Those who were in attendance at the Best of MPA that night shared in the excitement as MPA parent Kevin Hart took the stage to announce that he and his wife Polly had decided to double their COA pledge from $250,000 to $500,000. Earlier that week, alumni parents Karen and George Benz had pledged $1 million to the campaign.

This is a truly remarkable accomplishment and represents an important rite of passage for a young school that celebrates its 25^th anniversary this year. The support for MPA through these three activities has been simply astounding and none of it would have been possible without the hard work and dedication of so many parents working together to make it all possible.

So thank you, thank you, thank you!