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An Annual Report From the Head of School
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2008-2009 Annual Report
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Introduction
 Given what we all have experienced in one form or another this past year with regard to the economy, I am pleased to report that we are alive and well in Wolfeboro. That is not to say that we have not had to confront some challenges, because we have; but the situation is certainly not dire. Amid the economic challenges typical to what schools are facing now of frozen assets, reductions in investment returns, and unexpected market realities, the school received the largest gift in its history, we exceeded enrollment projections, and we have taken the opportunity to examine how we conduct our business of education to become more efficient and cost effective. The reality is, these challenges are not going away any time soon. What is also part of our reality is a strong academic program that is meeting the needs of today’s learner in a way that is preparing them well for their futures. I hope these pages shed additional light on this subject and give you reason to feel as proud as we do about where things are at for Brewster Academy.
Cost-Saving Measures
While it would be easy for us to have placed our sole attention this past year on financial matters, we would, ironically, have done so at our own peril. What these challenging times have shown is the resiliency and dedication of the Brewster Academy community to meet things head on and to bring creativity to the table when considering solutions to issues we are confronting. As we have made adjustments to meet our economic realities, we also have found ways to gain efficiencies and savings. A series of decisions throughout the year, and into this year, have added up to make a difference in our bottom line: changes in purchasing; examining the frequency of trash removal; extending the lifecycle of our computers through more economical upgrades; careful analysis of how, and if, to fill vacant positions; and a review of every expenditure to understand the need and benefit associated with it. We were fortunate in two areas leading into this year, our health insurance premium was manageable and the price for fuel oil was significantly lower than the year prior. Approaching the mid-point of our current fiscal year we are looking at greater stability and predictability in our finances than we were experiencing a year ago. While we are not out of the woods entirely, we are seeing breaks of sun through the trees. Aiding us will be the installation of a new accounting system. We learned from last year’s experience just how important real-time information is in directing decisions that need to be made with less lead time and with a greater understanding of how they will impact us.
Strength in Enrollment
 One area that has helped us buoy these troubled waters is our ability to maintain the strength in our enrollment. Knowing the stresses our families were under, we did two things leading into this year: we had the lowest tuition increase we have had in some time, and we added to our financial aid budget. In building the budget for FY 2009-2010, we developed three scenarios – each structured around three different enrollment pictures. Throughout our enrollment cycle we kept focusing on our best-case scenario of 280 boarding students and 80 day students. In the end we exceeded our enrollment projections by five students. That has been enormously helpful in affording us the opportunity to weather things moving into this year and to keep the positive momentum going that we have been building in admission.
How did we exceed our enrollment projections in these stressful times? Beyond attributing a good deal of our success to hard work and perseverance, much of what we accomplished is a result of getting the word out concerning what a Brewster education is all about, plus delivering on what we say we do as part of the student experience. In addition, it is developing and evolving a curriculum that is responsive to the learning needs of today’s students.
Continued Curricular Revisions
When I communicated to you in these pages a year ago, we were embarking on a plan to revise our curriculum to incorporate a project-based learning approach. The results of piloting a few elements of project-based learning last year gave us the needed direction to begin a re-write of our 10th-grade curriculum in preparation for this fall, with the intent of completing the remaining elements of our curriculum for all grades in time for the fall of 2010. I can confidently say that the faculty have embraced our direction and are reporting some exciting learning outcomes from the implementation phase of these revisions. You can learn about some of these initiatives in this annual report from faculty who are currently implementing them in their classrooms.
Students are engaged, as are the faculty, in a way that is bringing additional meaning to what it is they are learning. This excitement has spawned thinking about how we might bring an additional feature to the Brewster experience. We are beginning to consider how we might incorporate an internship program as part of our students’ experience. We are considering how we can take our background and understanding with technology, and its utilization with teaching, in a way that would allow students to be off campus for a period of time, working in an internship experience related to their area of interest for their post-secondary education, while progressing with their academic program. We hope to work out the fundamental components of this program over the next few months to begin looking at implementation within the next year or two. It is likely that we may call on some of you to assist us in offering a meaningful internship experience for our students. This is an exciting discussion and fits well within the direction being plotted for the Academy over the next few years.
Affirmation of Direction Through Strategic Planning
To assist us in developing these latest directions is the advent of a new strategic plan. As mentioned above, it would be easy for us to focus on just our financial challenges, yet as real as they are, we need to push forward with how we can continue to add value to a Brewster education. Included within our strategic plan will be how technology at the Academy needs to evolve from our current laptop program to the next most logical iteration. Two committees are working on those solutions with an eye toward the development of an implementation plan readied for the next academic year. We also will further examine our competitive positioning strategy, along with examining our cost for value proposition. We readily recognize that people have a lot of choices when it comes to selecting an independent school. We also understand that what we offer to prospective students and their families is a product that is becoming increasingly sought after. How we tell that story and position ourselves is important; with limited resources, it borders on critical to understand how best to leverage them to advance the school.
 A Transforming Gift to the Academy
One of the most exciting things to happen last year was the gift to the school of 11 plus acres of shorefront property in the town of Alton. Aside from the shear value of the property and what that meant to our balance sheet during a challenging year, is the opportunity the gift created for the Academy to further develop our curricular and co-curricular programs. There are so many possibilities that we are exploring and have been discussing since receiving the gift. We know from the experience with our student leaders that we had this past fall what the new resource means for our leadership development program. In addition, the idea of developing a center focused on the study of freshwater ecology, where our students can have a chance to learn from one of the Northeast’s most important and largest resources, Lake Winnipesaukee, is an opportunity second to none. The only thing limiting us at this point is our imaginations – but not for long. We are already seeing and using the property to add value to our students’ experience and beginning to clarify our thinking about next steps. Before long we will be putting these ideas into the form of our site plan so that we can keep moving toward our dream of a satellite campus supplementing and complementing a Brewster education with new, exciting offerings. We will certainly keep you informed of developments in these pages as they unfold.
What’s Next?
While it almost goes without saying, everything that we are attempting to accomplish takes resources, human and capital, and your past support in helping us get this far is most appreciated and has been vital to helping us get to where we are today. With that said, we continue to rely on your assistance as we persist in our quest of going from good to great. Helping us move ahead will likely take the form of a significant fund-raising endeavor resembling a comprehensive campaign. We are in the planning phase of such an undertaking and have begun to better understand the kind of support we are likely to receive and whether our priorities resonate with those closest to the Academy. As we continue developing that case for support, we will likely be back in touch with you in some form, be it written or in person, to hear what you have to say. We invite you to utilize our online format of this year’s annual report as an interactive resource and provide us with your thoughts and impressions of these initiatives and the future of Brewster. www.brewsteracademy.org/annualreport
As I mentioned at the outset, while we could focus on our finances and the challenges they present us, we would do so at the expense of continuing to examine and understand how we can bring value to a Brewster education unlike that being offered elsewhere. What should be evident is just how exciting the future is for the Academy. We continue to strive to do our best in all that we do and trust that we are living up to what you expect of us. Your words of encouragement and guidance mean a great deal and have served to help us stay the course during these difficult times. I persist in being steadfast to our vision and remain committed to helping create a bright future for our fine school. I know, with your help, that we can continue to accomplish great things. Thank you for your connection to the Academy and for all that you do on our behalf.
Dr. Michael E. Cooper, Head of School
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