FAQs About Giving to Highland School

List of 9 items.

• What is The Highland Annual Fund?

  The Highland Annual Fund is Highland School’s most important ongoing fundraising activity, raising much of the 10-15% gap between tuition income and the full cost of educating your children this year. Your tax-deductible gifts to the Highland Annual Fund pay for teacher salaries, classroom supplies, specialist programs, arts, athletics, technology, and more. We ask every family to support The Highland Annual Fund at a level that shows your pride in being part of this school community.

• What is the goal for this year?

  100% participation from the Highland community is always our top goal. To meet our needs for faculty compensation and other critical programs, our total financial goal is $625,000 for the Highland Annual Fund, our special events and the Highland Heroes corporate sponsor program. 

• How much should I give?

  Gifts range from $5 to over $25,000. We encourage families to consider giving at the Leadership Gift level of $1,000 or more if you are able. For current families, we ask that you consider an amount equaling 5% of the tuition you pay. For those who can do more, Leadership Gifts determine our ability to sustain Highland’s exceptional program with the best teachers, the most innovative programs, and state-of-the-art facilities. Whatever your capacity, we do ask that you make Highland School one of your philanthropic priorities.  

• Why not raise tuition to cover the total cost?

  Although we must raise tuition to provide for growth of faculty salaries and school programs, no independent school could charge full cost without pricing itself out of the market. We believe a Highland education should be accessible to as many talented and exceptional young students as possible.

• Who gives to The Highland Fund?

  More than 500 members of the Highland community (parents, alumni, faculty, grandparents, friends, local businesses) make unrestricted donations each year that provide the difference between tuition income and the full cost of our exceptional program. 

• Should I give if I receive financial aid?

  Yes! Even though many families make financial sacrifices to pay tuition, it is still important for every member of our Highland community to participate in The Highland Annual Fund at a meaningful level to show your support of, and belief in, the School.

• Why does my participation matter?

  Highland can leverage your participation to raise additional funds from granting agencies, foundations, and major donors. In addition to income from The Highland Annual Fund keeping tuition rates at affordable levels, our parent, faculty, staff and trustee participation rates serves as a positive indicator of the school's strength. When Highland applies for grant monies, this participation is often a deciding factor. The higher our participation rates, the greater our chances of earning grant support.

• How are gifts recognized?

  Highland values your support! Every year, we recognize our donors in our Annual Report, both by constituency (parents, alumni, or grandparents, for example) and the giving level in which you participate. Specific gift amounts are never listed.

  
  Donors making gifts in honor or memory of a teacher, a family member, or someone special are listed in the Annual Report along with the name of their designee.

• Why commit now?

  The Highland Annual Fund is part of this year’s budget. It is crucial that the Board of Trustees know that we will meet our goal by December 31 in order to plan for the remainder of the year. While you can give at any time during the school year, we ask that you make your pledge or gift before the end of the calendar year.