Dinner Raises Over $400,000 For NSCDS Students

From the North Shore Country Day School: Parents, alumni and friends of North Shore Country Day School raised more than $400,000 for student scholarships and supplemental support at the school’s inaugural Scholarship Dinner “O’er the Fields We’ll Go!” on Feb. 24.

The energy at the dinner, held at the Michigan Shores Club in Wilmette, demonstrated the school community’s passion and commitment for making a North Shore Country Day School education accessible to all deserving students, no matter their economic means. Providing scholarships has been a priority at North Shore since its founding nearly 100 years ago.

"To me, our inaugural Scholarship Dinner demonstrated the best of who we are as a school,” said Head of School Tom Flemma. “We’re a caring community that values education highly and believes that each of us plays a role in making the school, our community and our world a better place.”

In addition to several live auction items, the premiere event of the evening was a paddle raise for scholarships. Alumna Quinnetta Bellows-Miller, who graduated in 2004, gave a moving speech about the importance of scholarship to her and her family, and thanked the benefactors who made a North Shore education possible for her.

“It was your benevolent gifts, direction, encouragement and investment which sustained and propelled me to this place,” she said. “Like my mom and dad, it was your foresight that saw the blossom and glory of the land when I couldn’t see it—when all I could see was the turbulent tide. Your gifts and foresight helped me—and so many young people like me—see lands and actualize opportunities our parents dreamed for us. Your tools made the journey navigable even when the waves felt overwhelming. Your gifts made me and so many others like me believe more fervently in equity; that every child, without shame and regardless of their background, can reach their fullest potential when people invest in the Voyage.”

A North Shore education is distinguished by personal connections; participation in the arts, athletics and service learning; and an engaging curriculum with a global focus. This requires an educational investment. As Bellows-Miller explained in her remarks, a North Shore education is a gift of a lifetime that provides priceless and life-changing returns. For those families who cannot afford the full cost of tuition, a need-based financial aid program was established to ensure access and opportunity to families from a range of socio-economic backgrounds. This year, 19 percent of the student body received about $2 million in scholarship support.

“The Scholarship Dinner was a memorable evening that exceeded all expectations,” said Benefit Board President Sarah Geist Rosen, who graduated from North Shore in 1986. “A capacity crowd was inspired by the powerful words of our alumna speaker and scholarship recipient, Qui Bellows-Miller, and we doubled our financial goal! The success of the event is truly a reflection of the generosity of North Shore’s parents and alumni, and reinforces who we want to be as a diverse school community.”

Although this was North Shore’s first scholarship dinner, the Benefit Board has supported the school through an annual fundraising event for more than 36 years. In total, the Benefit Board has raised more than $5 million to fund areas not covered by the annual operating budget, such as curriculum and teaching fund grants, student scholarships and faculty enrichment grants. They have also helped fund major capital projects including the renovation of the Lower School, construction of the Conant Science Center and renovation of the Auditorium and Arts Center.

A special thanks to lead corporate partners Forward Space and Sotheby’s for their generous donations and to the following corporate sponsors: Byrne, Byrne and Company, Graphic Arts Studio, Northern Trust and Pasquesi Sheppard LLC.

North Shore Country Day School, established in 1919, is a college-preparatory school of 540 students in grades junior kindergarten through 12th grade, located at 310 Green Bay Road in Winnetka, Illinois.

Top image by Lipatova Maryna on Shutterstock.com

Image in text courtesy of the North Shore Country Day School: David Greer of Evanston raises his paddle.