Capital & Endowment Programs

While the Annual Giving program provides funding for the daily operating expenses at GFS, Capital and Endowment programs focus on meeting the long-term strategic goals of the school. These goals include strengthening the endowment to support the strongest talent in the classroom and campus improvements to meet evolving program needs.

Our top capital and endowment priorities are:

Recruiting and supporting a gifted faculty (Faculty Endowment)

Educational innovation at GFS lies with our faculty, who foster the academic culture and intellectual creativity of the school. To retain this tradition of innovation, GFS raises money to invest in the faculty, both in terms of competitive salaries as well as opportunities for professional development.

Donors may establish named endowed funds to support extraordinary teaching in perpetuity with a gift of $50,000 or more. Gifts of any size may be directed towards existing funds. Many alumni and friends have created such funds to honor family members or beloved former teachers. Donors of named endowed funds receive annual reports on the use of their gift.

Attracting and retaining a talented student body (Financial Aid Endowment)

GFS has always strived to maintain a diverse student body and enroll the strongest students, regardless of their families’ ability to afford tuition. Both the Community Scholars Program and general financial aid dollars are critical to offering access to all talented students. The need for this aid is greater today than ever before.

With gifts of $50,000 or more, donors may establish named endowed scholarships or named endowment funds for non-tuition support, such as books, computers or summer enrichment. Gifts of any size may be directed towards existing funds. Donors of named funds receive annual reports on the students who benefit from their generosity. Gifts can be made as one-time gifts or multi-year pledges.

Businesses can also support financial aid at GFS through the Pennsylvania tax credits known as EITC and OSTC.

Preserving and enhancing the school’s historic campus to meet emerging program needs

GFS prides itself on its historic campus located in the heart of Germantown. Along with regular maintenance to keep the campus beautiful, additions and enhancements are made to facilities when dictated by programmatic needs. Recent projects have included major upgrades to the campus technology infrastructure in 2014, the Wade Science Center, a LEED certified green building, in 2009, a renovation to the Friends Free Library in 2008, and the replacement of a parking lot with a Campus Common in 2005. Gifts to capital projects can be made as one-time gifts or multi-year pledges.