The Spring Hill Fund
OUR ANNUAL FUND: THE SPRING HILL FUND
We do not receive state or regional funding and instead rely upon a blend of tuition, fundraising, and philanthropy to provide a Spring Hill education. That’s where our annual fund comes in! We invite everyone to give at a level that is personally meaningful and strive for robust participation in The Spring Hill Fund. Like most independent schools our school tuition covers a portion but not the entire cost of a Spring Hill education, and so our annual fund (called The Spring Hill Fund) helps to make up the difference.
Our Annual Fund campaign kicks off in October, and all parents and caregivers, grandparents, faculty, staff and alum families, play a role in supporting the school. The Spring Hill Fund touches every corner of the school and makes sure that Spring Hill can deliver the quality education and enriching opportunities to our students that families know and appreciate! To be counted in our Annual Fund, gifts must be received by June 15th each year.
Unrestricted gifts to the annual fund are put to use immediately to fund the areas of greatest need to support programs that make The Spring Hill School distinctive. Everyone is asked to participate because each year The Spring Hill Fund is a cornerstone of our school’s success!
Learn more about what The Spring Hill Fund supports below.
We also provide these “giving guideposts” to help you find YOUR PATH to giving to The Spring Hill Fund. Also, please see more below about what kinds of opportunities are funded by The Spring Hill Fund.
Annual Giving Guideposts for The Spring Hill Fund
This is guidance offered to help you decide a gift level that may be right for you.
Annual Giving:
Trailblazers: $10,000-$19,999
Catalysts: $5,000-$9,999
Oak Trees: $3,000-$4,999
Boosters: $1,500-$2,499
Stewards: $500-$1,499
Friends: $1-$499
*Leadership gifts:
Founders & Angels Circle $100,000+
Visionary Circle: $50,000-$999,000
Luminary Circle: $20,00-$49,000
*Leadership Gifts may be for current use, capital or strategic projects, financial aid, or other identified priorities which help to sustain, grow, and advance the school.
Give Online Today to The Spring Hill Fund!
Make a Pledge to The Spring Hill Fund
What does The Spring Hill Fund support?
- Talented faculty and staff
- Professional development and training
- Materials for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics
- Garden and outdoor education
- Technology
- Art & Music: art, theater, and music specialists
- Supplies such as paint and instruments
- Athletics equipment
- Spanish language program
- Financial Tuition Assistance
Thank you so much for your generosity and help in creating a vibrant, accessible and transformative learning community at The Spring Hill School.
See your gifts in action! Explore our most recent annual report.
FAQs
Our annual giving campaign is essential for our school’s success. Like most independent schools (and some public schools), we ask current parents and relatives, trustees, alumni families, friends and supporters of the school to contribute to this yearly unrestricted campaign.
The Spring Hill Fund allows the school to be flexible and responsive to yearly budgeting needs and supports teacher salaries and benefits, professional development, classroom supplies, outdoor education, technology and enrichment such as music and the arts.
The Spring Hill School strives to make an education at The Spring Hill School as accessible as possible. The Board of Trustees annually assess the need for modest tuition increases. However, a benefit of The Spring Hill Fund is that gifts to The Spring Hill Fund are tax-deductible while tuition is not.
We know that giving to the annual fund is a personal decision. We invite everyone to give at a level that is meaningful and right for them. Gifts often range from $25 to over $20,000. We hope that our Annual Giving Guideposts can offer guidance to help you to decide what size gift may be right for you.
Annual Giving:
Trailblazers: $10,000-$19,999
Catalysts: $5,000-$9,999
Oak Trees: $3,000-$4,999
Boosters: $1,500-$2,499
Stewards: $500-$1,499
Friends: $1-$499
*Leadership Gifts:
Founders & Angels Circle $100,000+
Visionary Circle: $50,000-$99,000
Luminary Circle: $20,00-$49,000
*Leadership Gifts may be for current use, capital or strategic projects, financial aid, or other identified priorities which help to sustain, grow and advance the school.
The gap is the difference between what it actually costs to educate each child and the amount of tuition. Right now, our gap is commensurate with that of other independent schools—about $3,500 per student.
We aim for robust participation across current families, faculty, and staff because it is a vote of confidence and a sign that our community supports all the students and teachers of The Spring Hill School. This noteworthy percentage also has an impact on gifts from outside sources because foundations prefer to see high parent participation rates before agreeing to donate funds to a school. (So, as a school, we are aiming to not only reach our fundraising goals, but also for strong participation!)
Yes, pledging allows you to make a gift that you pay over a specified time during the school year OR is a specific amount you agree to donate by the end of our Spring Hill Fund campaign. To pledge, go to the Give Online to The Spring Hill Fund button, and click “Pledge."
The Spring Hill Fund pledge period ends December 31. All pledge payments must be received by June 15 to be counted in our Annual Fund campaign.
- Make your gift or pledge online by clicking on the Give Online to The Spring Hill Fund button.
- Stock gifts are another way to donate. Please email dara@thespringhillschool.org or sandy@thespringhillschool.org to notify us.
- Send a check, payable to The Spring Hill School, to:
The Spring Hill School
Attn: Sandy Stack/Dara Olandt
825A Middlefield Dr.
Petaluma, CA 94952 - Recommend our school to receive a grant from your Donor Advised Fund (DAF). Send your grant recommendation through your DAF sponsor's online portal or contact their customer service team.
Yes, you can make a donation through our secure website–please click on the Give Online to The Spring Hill Fund button on this page.
The Spring Hill School holds two major fundraising campaigns every year: The Spring Hill Fund (annual fund) in the fall, and the Dream Big Gala/Auction in the spring.
Funds raised at the Gala/Auction also support general operating expenses, as well as annual priorities, and help us close the gap between tuition and expenses. The Gala/Auction is another wonderful way to support our school.
Please feel free to contact Dara Olandt, our Director of Development (dara@thespringhillschool.org) or (707) 763-9222
