What Happens When a School Thinks in Centuries?
“Raising Excellence” LinkedIn Newsletter Issue June 26, 2025
Most school funding is short-term. Endowments are built for the long term.
A bake sale buys uniforms. A grant funds next year’s program. A new budget line might last a few election cycles. But what if a school could plant a financial seed that blooms for generations?
That’s the purpose of an endowment. To create opportunity for the next 100 years and beyond.
The Power of Long-Term Capital
When invested wisely, a school endowment does something traditional funding rarely can: it compounds, making the impact of a single gift last forever.
Let’s look at what happens when a school plants a $1 million endowment, invests it wisely, and steadily raises $50,000 a year, guided by long-term discipline and a clear purpose:
Year 0: A $1 million seed gift is planted.
Year 5: Over $225,000 has already been distributed to support students, while the fund has grown to nearly $1.43 million.
Year 10: More than $550,000 has gone to programs and opportunities, and the fund has doubled to over $2 million.
Year 20: The endowment has provided over $1.6 million in support and has grown to more than $3.5 million.
Year 50: More than $10.9 million has been distributed, and the fund now stands at nearly $14.4 million.
Year 100: The school has received over $104 million, while the endowment skyrockets to over $109 million.
Endowments are about building a self-sustaining engine of opportunity. One that can power equity, innovation, and excellence for every future student who walks the halls.
A Real-Life Example: Boston Latin School
Boston Latin School, a public school in Massachusetts founded in 1635, has quietly built a $75 million endowment. That fund now powers scholarships, international learning, technology, and enrichment that would otherwise be out of reach.
It didn’t happen overnight. It was built slowly, with purpose, by generations of alumni who believed in giving back to the school that shaped them.
This isn’t an elite private model. It’s a long-term public one. And it’s replicable.
Why Time Is Our Greatest Asset
The best time to start an endowment was 30 years ago. The second-best time is today.
When schools begin to think in terms of decades, not semesters, they unlock a different kind of freedom. They can plan boldly, take strategic risks, and grow with purpose.
What will the next century of your school look like? If your high school had started an endowment in 1924, imagine what it could have accomplished by now. And if you start one today, what could be possible by 2125?
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