What I Wish For

When I first came to Peddie, we had a meager annual fund compared to our peers, and it was supported by only a small subset of loyal donors. However, there were a few very generous donors who held Peddie close to their heart and were unceasingly generous in meeting what they perceived to be as its needs. That was in the mid-1980s.

Since that time, because of thoughtful work by the school, the necessity of philanthropic support in fulfilling Peddie’s dreams has become more evident. Ambassador Walter Annenberg’s several gifts were the first principal gifts of their kind and provided evidence of the impact philanthropy has on a community. Annenberg’s 1984 gift, 1989 gift, and then finally, the historic $100 million gift in 1993 demonstrated what Peddie could do with greatly increased philanthropic support for capital projects and the endowment. Ironically, this also produced questions about our need for continued philanthropy.

Having learned what we can do with more financial resources, we characteristically want to dream bigger and begin “anew.” The Ambassador’s generosity and other principal gifts from donors in recent years have allowed us to dream more imaginatively about being a better version of Peddie each year.

Because of the increased gifts to support the endowment and specific capital projects prior to and during the One Peddie campaign, we are able to provide more financial assistance to students than we could before; house students in new and renovated dorms; house more faculty in homes on or near campus; support Peddie Food Service; offer a state-of-the-art music hall and expanded gallery spaces; expand the resources available through the Hensle Health Center, launch new alumni outreach efforts, sustain leading-edge campus technology, and enhance student safety – all better than before. The Zhao and Li Family Fitness and Exercise Center is perfect evidence of how current philanthropy is providing a response to a current need for the entire community. All of these improvements were made possible by philanthropic support of capital and endowed funds.

And so, “we finish our labors to begin them anew.” Every day is another day to improve Peddie. That philosophy has been the driving force behind all the change that has happened here since it was founded. Our motto is iterative, forward-looking and focused on self-improvement. There’s always something we can do better than the last time we did it. This is the nature of both education and “the highest quality of citizenship.”

Thinking ahead, I’d like us to rally around the dreams of this amazing school. I believe it is a most American institution in the sense that we are striving for a better Peddie, as the Constitution hopes for “a more perfect union.” This school was established to help students become better people, better thinkers, better problem solvers, and most importantly, better citizens at the end of their time here than they were when they got here. That goal is suggested in our motto and clarified in what Walter Annenberg repeated on each of his visits to meet with the community: “Strive for the highest quality of citizenship; that’s what I learned at Peddie.”

Our greatest need, until we can be need-blind in our enrollment process, is going to continue to be financial assistance for students whose families cannot afford tuition. Then, there are high-priority temporal needs that do not have endowed funding but are essential. Right now, we’re engaged in fortifying the student experience in the area of competitive athletics through gifts to The Peddie Fund for increased coaching staff, expanded admissions efforts, travel to offer more opportunities for competition and new equipment. We are also working to provide access to the Signature Experience, support for off-campus trips, support for Robotics, all of which are not fully funded by the endowment and rely on increased support for The Peddie Fund for delivery each year. In the near future, we will likely have field projects, dorm renovations, and more.

In order to meet these and other emerging high priorities, increased support and wider participation in The Peddie Fund is essential. When tuition covers about 60% of our costs, and the endowment return covers another 33%, we rely on The Peddie Fund to support 5-6% of our costs for our highest priorities. In my last year at Peddie, I wish for us to break records in The Peddie Fund. Most of our peer schools have annual funds that fund 10% of their expenses. A stronger Peddie Fund, which is our annual fund, would accelerate our progress toward building a stronger version of Peddie and keep Peddie steady in the years ahead. It would be a great testament to the work we are doing and help fulfill the dreams we imagine for the Peddie we love. In short, financial philanthropy is an operational necessity to support the philosophical necessity of the school.

People sometimes ask me how the world would be different if Peddie weren’t here. I think our focus
on citizenship and our insistence that the academic things we teach are tactics in support of a strategy
of citizenship are highly distinctive. Our hope for our students is: You need to be practicing the highest quality of citizenship you can, and this will be a joyful experience. We teach intellectual skills to make our students capable and articulate; we teach citizenship to help them find their purpose! I think without that, the world has lost something pretty important.

We are a school that places more emphasis on one’s entrepreneurial citizenship than the college acceptance letters one earns. We put more emphasis on growth than we do on achievement. We guide Peddie students to do something meaningful with their lives, and our alumni consistently seek opportunities to be generous with time, talent, and treasure in the service of a greater good. Peddie people making a difference in their communities is a great and meaningful thing.

In my last year at Peddie, I’d like to continue to emphasize that theme of the highest quality of citizenship as the tie that binds us and everything we do. With your philanthropic support, we can continue to enhance our delivery of that experience, and maybe even accelerate it.