Report of Giving 2014-2015

Ransom Everglades School

| 5

LETTER FROM THE HEAD OF SCHOOL

Dear Ransom Everglades Community,

A thank you seems insufficient. My first year as Head of School at

Ransom Everglades exceeded all expectations. You welcomed. You

invited. You showed up. You volunteered. You contributed. You gave in

so many ways, including financially, and I am grateful for all of it.

I want you to know how much your extraordinary generosity means.

You allow us to excel and prosper, and you push us to aspire to even greater achievements. In the last year, our students

and faculty shined even as our vision for the future expanded. I cannot think of a more exciting place to be entering 2016.

Please come with me for a moment as we take a quick look back, and then turn our focus forward.

In the last year, 16 students won recognition as National Merit Finalists and 10 as National Hispanic Scholars. Every one

of our 2015 graduates went on to four-year colleges or universities. Through experiential learning opportunities, students

traveled to China, Haiti, Iceland, Ireland, England and other countries. Our freshmen journeyed deep into the Everglades,

testing themselves, relying on one another and learning a deep respect for nature.

We entered into a partnership with Global Online Academy to offer a range of innovative and challenging courses to

juniors and seniors, including Global Health; Bioethics; Filmmaking; Genocide and Human Rights; and Music Theory and

Digital Composition.

We continue to build our connection to the diverse community around us; more than 20 extra-curricular clubs devote their

efforts to public service, and all of our sports teams incorporate service into their training schedules. More than 90 percent

of our student body plays at least one sport, and 80 percent participate in the arts. Our athletic program was named the best

for Class 5A-1A schools in 2014-2015 for the second straight year by the Miami Herald.

Because of your gifts, we have no inclination to rest. At a board retreat last June, we laid out a strategic plan designed to

extend and enhance the century-old tradition of excellence that started with founder Paul C. Ransom. We focused on six

initiatives that we believe will allow us to continue to prepare our students to become societal leaders, global stewards and

active public servants.

We aim to enhance the curriculum; hire, train and retain an eminent faculty; more fully integrate technology; improve

facilities and spaces – particularly on the Ransom campus; communicate better to the RE community and world outside;

and develop the school as an institution.

All of these initiatives, we hope, will help Ransom Everglades continue to be a beacon in independent-school education.

Thank you for helping our students and graduates flourish, and allowing us to chart a course to an even brighter future.

Stephanie G. Townsend

Head of School