Our Priorities
Annual Fund
Every year, the Burroughs Annual Fund is an essential source of revenue for JBS. That is especially true this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Gifts to the 2020-2021 Annual Fund ensure that revenue lost due to the pandemic does not compromise our programming, faculty or staff salaries, professional development, tuition assistance for incoming families and the quality, maintenance and safety of our buildings and grounds.
Comprising more than 10 percent of the school’s operating budget ALL gifts count, and gifts at all levels have an impact. Last year, 91 percent of parents and 32 percent of alumni made a gift to the Burroughs Annual Fund. Alumni, families (past and present), and friends collectively contributed more than $2.3 million to the 2019-2020 Annual Fund. The Annual Fund is the primary way alumni, families and friends support Burroughs.
The Annual Fund is a source of unrestricted funding that helps Burroughs meet the expected and the unexpected. This year, the unexpected includes the needs of families hit hard by the economic consequences of the pandemic, and a programmatic pivot to distance learning when buildings closed. We are hopeful that you will consider making a gift to the Annual Fund 2020-2021 to support our talented faculty and resilient families during this unprecedented school year. Annual Fund dollars support every student every day…no matter what.
Questions?
Contact Amy Dunaway ’92
at 314-993-4045, ext. 315.
Endowment & Special Gifts
The Burroughs endowment was established in the 1970s. Investment income from endowment is the largest source of school revenue after tuition and Annual Giving. Devoted and generous alumni, parents and friends have established endowed funds to provide permanent income to Burroughs. These donors sustain the Burroughs experience through gifts that last forever. Under professional management, these funds support immediate and long-term goals. As of May 31, 2020 the market value of the school's endowment and other managed funds was $55.4 million.
- Why make a gift of endowment to JBS?
- Endowing Scholarship & Tuition Assistance
- Endowing the Academic Program & Faculty
- Endowing the Campus
Why make a gift of endowment to JBS?
A gift of endowment ensures that Burroughs has the resources required for a second century of service and learning. As we prepare for the school’s Centennial in 2023, one of our major strategic goals is to substantially grow the endowment to control tuition, support scholarship, support key programs, and to ensure staff salaries are competitive. As a donor of endowed funds, you:
- Provide a permanent place for your extended family to direct their gifts to Burroughs.
- Celebrate your family, a loved one or a favorite faculty member by naming your fund.
- Secure permanent funding for Burroughs because the principal of your endowed fund is invested and untouched in perpetuity. Your gift lasts forever.
- Connect with the beneficiaries of your generosity through personalized reports that will give you the satisfaction of knowing how your funds impact the school.
For information about establishing an endowed fund at Burroughs, contact Ginger Imster, Director of Advancement and External Affairs.
Endowing Scholarship & Tuition Assistance
For Burroughs to maintain the school’s enduring commitment to inclusion and educational equity, the endowment must be of a size large enough to reduce the school’s dependence on tuition income which currently provides more than 80 percent of the school’s annual revenue.
The amount required to establish a named scholarship fluctuates each year as tuition costs change. Each year, donors and their designees receive notification of their beneficiary inclusive of the student’s background, academic success, etc. Lifelong relationships often develop between donor and beneficiary. For the 2020-2021 school year, nearly 26 percent of students receive scholarship support, including children of faculty and staff.
To sustain the Burroughs tradition of excellence, the school must provide the resources necessary to attract and educate the most talented students in the St. Louis area, regardless of their families’ ability to pay. You can make an impact on the tuition aid program at Burroughs by creating a restricted fund for scholarship or tuition aid. Named endowed scholarships provide the equivalent of a full tuition for one student in perpetuity. Quarter and half scholarships can also be endowed.
Endowing the Academic Program & Faculty
Burroughs’ core curriculum is grounded in the arts, athletics, global studies, humanities, service and STEM (science, technology, engineering and math). Students are required to take classes in all these areas and more because Burroughs believes in the power of YET.
Longtime art teacher and department chair Charlie Derleth promoted the power of YET during his 20-year career at Burroughs. Many seventh graders would tell Charlie that they could not draw. Charlie would remind them that they could not draw…YET. The liberal arts foundation gives Burroughs students the opportunity to discover their capacity to learn, grow, improve and to discover the power of YET.
Donors can endow virtually any aspect of the academic program including:
Burroughs is a very attractive place for teaching and administrative talent; however, the competition for professionals requires Burroughs to be in a position to increase its investment in salaries and training.
Faculty Professional Development
Hiring and retaining the very best faculty has long been a top priority for Burroughs. In the last decade, we've added several new positions including a director of academics, a director of service learning and a STEM director. We’ve increased the staff in our Counseling & Wellness, Academic Support, College Counseling, and Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity offices as well. As we add faculty, we also invest in them. Donors have created three new endowed chairs for a total of 10 endowed positions. We added the Bogliasco Fellowship which provides a month-long residency at the Liguria Study Center for the Arts and Humanities in Bogliasco, Italy. We have also added additional sabbaticals and professional development opportunities to provide faculty with time and resources to grow as educators. To continue to attract and retain the very best teaching and administrative talent, Burroughs is seeking new endowed chairs to support ongoing professional development.
Burroughs Faculty Fellows
To bring young and diverse educators to Burroughs, the school must compete for the best talent to see professional opportunity in St. Louis. Endowed funds are needed to develop partnerships with outstanding teacher training programs throughout the world. In addition, endowed funds would be used to ensure Burroughs Faculty Fellows are paid a reasonable stipend, as well as room and board, to make fellowships at Burroughs more attractive.
Innovation Fund
Burroughs is seeking endowed funds to further encourage teachers to pilot innovative programs, support student equity through programs for at-risk students and engage in collaborative partnerships between departments. Proposed projects would be peer-reviewed, peer-approved and funded through the Burroughs Innovation Fund. This is a new initiative and one that we hope is a collaborative effort between donors and teachers as funding is secured.
Endowing the Campus
In 1923, the Burroughs campus was comprised of less than 20-acres. Today, the campus is nearly 50-acres. Changes to the Burroughs campus have been measured and deliberate. The recently completed improvements to facilities and green spaces demonstrate how committed the Burroughs community remains to well-reasoned change to meet the needs of students.
Click here to learn more about the Burroughs Fine Art Collection, Campus Improvements, Campus Operations and Drey Land.
A belief in education is a belief in the future. Gifts of endowment honor the thousands of remarkable people who have taught and learned on the Burroughs campus. The curious, kind, competitive, and talented people who help one another, love one another, and grow-up together. Every year, we celebrate the next group of people to assume a place in the history of Burroughs. Graduation is that moment, and donors who give to endowment ensure Burroughs always has the funds it needs to support students now and for graduations yet to come. Endowment is a gift that lasts forever.
—
Andy Abbott, Head of School
Beyond Burroughs
The inception of John Burroughs School was born of a desire for change in how children were taught. From day one, a Burroughs education has been steeped in both liberal arts and service learning. This dual approach has been a part of the Burroughs tradition since the school opened October 2, 1923. To keep Burroughs at the forefront of education, the school seeks to raise funds to support programs that have an impact beyond the Burroughs campus.
Equity Exchange
The Equity Exchange is a collaboration between Burroughs and the St. Louis Public Schools. It was conceived through numerous conversations with educators around the nation who wanted to go beyond "Diversity 101." With a grant from the Edward E. Ford Foundation, in July 2014, independent, private and public school educators and professionals met for a retreat in St. Louis. After two days of intensive workshopping, they identified the core principles that launched the Equity Exchange in July 2015. The Exchange has since welcomed more than 100 participants from 13 states representing 42 different independent, private, public and charter schools, school districts or organizations. Endowed funds to advance the programming of the Equity Exchange, including its Summer Institute, are needed.
Community & Equity Partnership
Burroughs provides—and requires—ongoing in-house diversity and cultural competency training for our faculty and staff. Since 1999, local, regional and national experts have led workshops on campus for our faculty, staff, and quite often for the wider St. Louis community. In the last five years, we more intentionlly extended this programming to our adult community through the JBS Community & Equity Partnership, while also bringing together national cohorts of educators through The Equity Exchange. Preparing for our globally oriented society requires community-wide commitments to assure our diversity initiatives are broadly defined and culturally relevant. To further advance these goals, JBS is seeking donors who are interested in establishing an endowed fund to advance conversations that help students and their families further develop their cultural competency skills. Funds would be used to underwrite programming and events that encourage conversations and raise awareness, conversations and action supporting diversity, equity and inclusivity.
Burroughs Faculty Fellows
To bring young and diverse educators to Burroughs, the school must compete for the best talent to see professional opportunity in St. Louis. Endowed funds are needed to develop partnerships with outstanding teacher training programs throughout the world. In addition, endowed funds would be used to ensure Burroughs Faculty Fellows are paid a reasonable stipend, as well as room and board, to make fellowships at Burroughs more attractive.
Alumni Mentoring Program
As part of the school's Centennial Campaign, Burroughs is seeking funds to hire a Coordinator for Alumni Mentoring to foster greater connectivity between recent graduates and other Burroughs alumni. More than ever, college and university students want access to knowledgeable “insiders.” They want to talk with Burroughs grads who have pursued successful career paths to gain visibility into how their academic training will help pave the way toward professional success. Robust advising structures can have a dramatic impact on degree completion because students can see how their degree or diploma translates into real world opportunities.
Facilities
In 1923, the Burroughs campus was less than 20-acres. Today, the campus is nearly 50-acres. Changes to the Burroughs campus have been measured and deliberate. The recently completed improvements to facilities and green spaces demonstrate how committed the Burroughs community remains to well-reasoned change to meet the needs of students.
New Pool
A new natatorium, including an eight-lane regulation pool, new locker rooms and spectator seating for 200+, opened in November, 2020.
The natatorium was part of a larger athletic enhancements project, impacting our field hockey, golf, lacrosse and squash programs.
Art Collection
Fine art is displayed throughout Burroughs’ campus. Stained-glass windows adorn classrooms in the Brauer and STAR Buildings, and multiple bas-reliefs are displayed inside and outside of multiple buildings - all designed and created by students. In addition, Burroughs has two professional galleries where local and national artists display their work. The Fine Arts Advisory Committee (FAAC) was established in 2007. Since the establishment of the FAAC, Burroughs’ art collection has expanded significantly and now totals more than 300 pieces including numerous sculptures, paintings and prints. Endowed gifts to support ongoing acquisition, curation, management, storage, cataloging, insurance and restoration of the collection are needed.
Donald Sultan (American, 1951), Four Red Flowers. 1996. Conté on paper, 22" x 30". Gift of John & Sally Van Doren P '11 '13.
Damon Davis (American, 1985), All Hands on Deck #5, 2015. Lithograph and graphite, 35 1/2" x 54". Frances Thomas Martin Art Purchase Fund.
Chuck Close (American, 1940) Self-Portrait (Anamorphic), 2009. 16-color silkscreen and stainless steel cylinder, 27" x 27" x 11 1/4". Gift of Julie & William Shearburn '79 P '20 '23.
Campus Improvements
Campus Safety, Security and Sustainability
Sustainability has been a core value of Burroughs since the school’s founding. This value is infused in the curriculum, student activities and how the school cares for its campus. In addition, Burroughs is continuously working to assess and mediate safety and security. Implementing new technology to ensure Burroughs’ facilities are welcoming and secure, as well as environmentally and financially sustainable requires endowed funds to support continuous improvements in perpetuity.
New and Recently Funded Projects
RECENTLY FUNDED PROJECTS
- A GOLF PRACTICE AREA north of the tennis courts was completed in spring 2019.
- As part of the scheduled replacement of synthetic turf on the FIELD HOCKEY FIELD, the field was expanded to support practice and regulation play for LACROSSE. The project also included a spectator PAVILION and was completed in time for the fall 2020 season.
- Four regulation SQUASH COURTS were built on the old pool footprint. Opened in December 2020, the venue also includes additional flexible court space and a viewing area.
- ADDITIONAL PARKING off Clayton Road added 72 more parking spaces. The exit to Clayton Road was also widened to create two full lanes — one for left turns and one for right turns.
We are grateful for the early and generous support of these projects by more than 60 families (past and present). Please contact Ginger Imster (314-993-4045 ext. 256) if you would like to learn more or donate.
MASTER CAMPUS PLAN
SPECTATOR PAVILION
Campus Operations
Drey Land
In 1969, Leo Drey ’34 offered to lease 44 acres of Ozark woodland in the Pioneer Forest to Burroughs for an annual fee of $1. Fifty-years later, the Burroughs community has built and maintained most of the facilities including cabins, a pavilion, bathhouses, and the main lodge. Burroughs also maintains the acreage which borders Sinking Creek, a tributary of the Current River. Endowed gifts are needed to support the ongoing management and maintenance of this unique and vital resource for Burroughs and the broader community. In addition, the main lodge must be replaced and multiple gift opportunities are available.
Draft Renderings for Proposed New Lodge
“While the facilities are beautiful additions to our campus, what happens within them is even more important- both to our students
and to our school.”
—
Andy Abbott, Head of School
Questions?
Contact Ginger Imster
at 314-993-4045, ext 256.