strategic newsletter

The

$6 Million

Has Been Met!

Excellence A newsletter on Lovett’s Strategic Plan Issue 2 Spring 2010

Challenge

T

hanks to the generosity of an anonymous friend of the school, Lovett has received a $6 million gift for having raised more than $34 million toward the $42 million cost of our new Middle School, athletic and fine arts facilities, and campus renovations.

This challenge gift is both the second largest donation in school history and the second largest donation to the current strategic fundraising effort, and will undoubtedly make a huge difference for the school.

“This marvelous challenge has inspired volunteers and donors alike to stretch ever so generously in support of our school,” says Lovett Headmaster Billy Peebles. “The members of our Campaign Committee have worked tirelessly to tell our story, and our donors have responded to this challenge with magnificent support. We could not be more grateful, and we are excited about building momentum as we move to meet continuing strategic needs and opportunities.”

Many groups contributed to this effort and we thank them all.

Following is the participation breakdown by primary constituency: Board of Trustees: $20,370,160 (59%) Foundations:

$5,380,100 (16%)

Parents:

$5,043,841 (15%)

Alumni:

$2,213,574 (6%)

Friends:

$803,810 (2%)

Grandparents:

$314,751 (1%)

* Many donors fall into multiple constituency categories but were only counted in one category for this report.

Parents of Alumni, Faculty and Staff, and Corporations: $268,400 (Less than 1%) TOTAL

$34,394,636 (100%)

To realize all of the goals of the Strategic Plan will require new investments totaling $125 million; our preliminary goal is to raise $70 million by June 30, 2012. As of April 2010, $54.8 million has been raised toward this preliminary goal. n

B U I L D I N G

M O M E N T U M

Strategic Plan Fundraising Progress Preliminary Goal: $70 million*

Includes

•F aculty Support Includes and • Faculty Development Support and

Endowment Preliminary Goal: $25 Million

Development

Progress to date: $40.7 million

• Financial Aid • Financial Aid

•N ew • New Program Program Initiatives Initiatives

Facilities/Unrestricted Preliminary Goal: $45 Million

Progress to date: $14.1 million

* Completely funding Excellence in Learning, Character & Community could take as much as $125 million.

Includes •P ortman Family Includes Middle School • Portman

•B Family aseball Middle School and Softball • Complex Baseball and Softball

•M Complex ultipurpose • Field Multipurpose Field

•C ampus • Campus Renovations Renovations

A Day in the Life of the New Middle School

The Classroom as a Teaching Tool

“W

e wanted to take the ‘green’ features of the building and

incorporate them into the science curriculum,” says Erin Polk

Dixon ’94, Lovett’s Middle School science department head. “We also created a separate science unit about the building at each grade level.

It’s all about applying a real world connection to their studies.”

In sixth grade, each advisor group developed expertise on a specific

“green” school feature (e.g., the Rackley Green Roof Classrooms, the

biodiesel refinery, the low-flow toilets). Each advisory put a presentation together on their topic—which included research, photos, and

interviews—and the groups then shared what they had learned.

“The students have learned a lot about the new Middle School

and how environmental sustainability relates to their everyday lives,”

says Tyler Bromley, sixth grade science teacher. “For example, the light sensors in the new building gauge the amount of natural sunlight

entering the building, and then adjust the overhead lighting to provide only the necessary level needed.”

Seventh grade science classes have been composting in the

Rackley Green Roof Classrooms, as well as studying organic foods and organic gardening.

Eighth grade science has been studying the new curriculum unit

“Our Middle School Building.” The students have learned about many aspects of the building, from solar thermal panels to energy usage

in the new building. Data is also collected on the “green screens” in

the lobby, which calculate energy savings throughout the space. The (Top) Middle School science class, using their laptops to take notes; (above) the Rackley Green Roof Classrooms.

eighth grade science curriculum also includes a unit on alternate energy sources, including some used in their own building!

Creating on a Larger Scale

The new Middle School building has a beautiful, airy, and large

art room (top, right). “My new room has inspired me to teach on a ‘larger scale’ and not be limited by space or storage area,” says

art teacher Sara Cameli. “The children really appreciate the calm

atmosphere, the view of the rooftop garden, and the natural light.”

The display area in the hallway

outside the art room showcases a gallery of student work. The

students often stop and look at

work done by their peers, giving recognition to those who have

put tremendous effort into their

creations. “I am filled with gratitude for the lengths that Lovett went

to make such an amazing space a reality,” says Sara Cameli.

A Gathering Space The Multipurpose Room (right) serves as a gathering and meeting

space for many different Middle School disciplines, and has offered

many teachers the opportunity to use the space for a wide variety of activities.

“I cannot say enough about our new Multipurpose Room,” says

Lovett Middle School Principal Debbie Franks. “To give you an idea of how we use it, let’s look at last Tuesday. In the morning, we hosted a

reception for applicants. After that, our seventh grade students gathered for a movie and mock election. We then retracted the bleachers for

sixth grade recess. The next hour saw Chinese classes practicing dances for a for a New Year’s presentation. After lunch, the whole Middle

School gathered for a Black History Month assembly and step show.

Immediately following the assembly, the bleachers were retracted again and the entire seventh grade came in for a team trivia competition.

And, after school, a Lower School scout group used the room.”

Performing in Class “There are universities that would love to have this space,”

explains Middle School drama teacher Chris Ekholm. The Middle School drama room (below, right) serves as a performance venue (it can seat up to 100 people), a black box

theater (the vast windows can be blacked out to convert the room), and a large and

airy classroom for drama students. Another important component of drama, watching

films, is easy to do in the space as it converts to its own mini-movie theater.

The room has a spring-based floor,

a theatrical lighting grid on the ceiling, a

separate sound system with mixer boards, and a microphone.

The space has already hosted a live

improv show (performed by the Middle

School students in December), and Georgia Shakespeare performed its touring show in the drama room in February. n

3

“The room is truly a special blessing!”

— M iddle School Principal Debbie Franks

Excellence A newsletter on Lovett’s Strategic Plan

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New Fields at Lovett

Lovett’s new Baseball and Softball Complex will

include two regulation fields, practice batting cages, locker rooms, permanent seating, restrooms, and

concessions. The complex is scheduled for completion by the beginning of the fall 2010 semester.

Progress to date, March 2010