What it means to be stewards of the Sidwell Friends School.

Over the past months, I’ve spent a lot of time traveling across the country, visiting with alumni, and sharing plans for developing the Upton campus—which is also the focus of a feature I wrote (see “School of Thought,” on page 22). These visits connect our past and present, surfacing feelings that make the School special for our graduates.

In February, I landed in the offices of Facebook, where David Fischer ’90, the chief revenue officer, and Jordan Nichols ’05,
a client partner, shared news about a project they were launching: “Amplified: Leadership in Sales & Marketing.” Seeking to address the underrepresentation of people of color in the tech industry, Nichols convinced the social-media giant to hold a diversity networking and recruiting event, which Fischer keynoted. Time and again, our alumni demonstrate an enduring appreciation for the values of the School and the quality of community relationships. And they pose thoughtful queries: What does it mean, Fischer asked, to be stewards of the Sidwell Friends community in a complicated moment marked by political discord and widespread discontent?

Stewarding our community means nurturing intellectual, ethical, artistic, and spiritual growth. Fischer and Nichols are letting their lives speak to these values. So are the distinguished alumni who will be honored on Reunion Weekend. Two have drawn on their intellect and creativity to reimagine their fields: Tommy Kail ’95, the Tony and Emmy Award–winning director of Hamilton and Fosse/Verdon, and Kathryn Bostic ’75, an award-winning composer whose credits include Clemency, Toni Morrison: The Pieces That I Am, and Dear White People. Through new structures, such as the Center for Teaching and Learning and the Center for Ethical Leadership, as well as in traditional classes and with innovative coursework, we will continue to create learning environments that inspire in current students the remarkable success alumni have enjoyed on so many fronts.

Stewarding our community means celebration. Sidwell Friends has always taken itself seriously, but the accomplishments of our students and alumni call for celebration. The annual Black Student Union Production provided an opportunity to appreciate cross-divisional collaboration as well as the voices and creativity of our students. The Quakers’ success during the winter athletic season sparked spontaneous outbreaks of joy at conference and state tournaments. I always look forward to Founder’s Day, which this year will feature an online Let Your Life Speak program. Author Anand Girhdidhardas ’99—an editor-at-large for Time, an MSNBC political analyst, and a visiting scholar at New York University—will serve as one of the keynotes. So too will Baratunde Thurston ’95, a self-described “Emmy-nominated writer, activist, and comedian who has worked for The Onion, produced for The Daily Show, advised the Obama White House, and cleaned bathrooms to pay for his Harvard education.” Both are engaging and inspiring public intellectuals who will have a deep impact on our students. 

Stewarding our community means tending to the health of our students and living our values. With the recent spread of COVID-19, we are working to ensure the immediate health and safety of the School now and in the future. We are fortunate to have a remarkable Health Services staff, an engaged Board of Trustees, and dedicated teachers to help us navigate this challenge. Complex environmental factors are likely at the root of this novel virus, underscoring the need to make certain our students have both a deep connection to nature and a firm scientific foundation to prepare them for an increasingly unpredictable world. We have also been thinking about health as it relates to the design of the new campus. Working in collaboration with our students and teachers, architects are developing a compelling vision that will transform the campus into an even more environmentally sound living and learning community. The children are watching the decisions we make; we need to listen to their pleas and care for them and the Earth in equal measure.

Stewarding our community means building enduring financial strength. Because Sidwell Friends alumni embody the School’s values, they are ambassadors for our mission and, not surprisingly, have expressed deep support for the Center for Ethical Leadership, run by Equity, Justice, and Community Director Natalie Randolph ’98. In addition, alumni have donated the largest gifts—one at $7.25 million, a second at $5 million, and several at the $1 million level—toward the more than $53 million raised to date to purchase and renovate the Upton campus. Along with fellow board members, alumni trustees are especially focused on strengthening the School’s financial foundation. Trustees Jason Carroll ’96, Jamie Hechinger ’96, Kevin Johnson ’91, Jair Lynch ’89, and board clerk David Milner ’86 understand that we cannot take past successes for granted; if the School is to serve subsequent generations as well as it served them, alumni must continually invest in Sidwell Friends. They recognize the lasting effect that the faculty and financial aid had on their lives—whether they received that aid or not—and they fully appreciate the role the endowment plays in the School’s future. By underwriting faculty salaries and tuition grants, the endowment is critical to our mission. With the generosity of alumni and the entire community, we can implement a financial plan to quadruple the endowment and retire our debt by 2037. 

Together, we have accomplished much and have more to do. That is the way of Sidwell Friends. Thank you, as always, for your partnership.