RE Log - Fall 2021

40 Ransom Everglades LOG FALL 2021 REinventing Excellence Campaign Highlights Ransom Everglades met and exceeded its REinventing Excellence campaign goal of $75 million! More than 4,700 people contributed over $82.3 million over the last six years to support important projects, such as the Constance & Miguel Fernandez STEM Center, student life and learning, financial aid, faculty support and so much more. Donors supported these initiatives through gifts to capital projects, the endowment, The Fund for RE and planned giving. Capital projects Gifts to capital projects allow Ransom Everglades to reimagine the upper school campus – from the new Constance & Miguel Fernandez STEM center and Lampen Family Wellness Center to the La Brisa property and Cameron Hall. Constance & Miguel Fernandez P’2 2 Lead donors, trustee Constance Fernandez and her husband, Miguel “Mike” Fernandez, invested in the new STEM center because they believe it’s a monument to the possibility that the future could be bright when we invest in the kids who will lead it. “It’s not just bricks and mortar,” said Fernandez, chair of the REinventing Excellence campaign. “We hope it’ll be the breeding ground for future scientists, epidemiologists. I think preparing kids for what we don’t know is a huge responsibility. You have to be ahead of things.” “The kids deserve it,” she said. “The faculty deserve it. Why? Because they are the ones who made this a first-class, number- one school. They deserve the facility. They deserve the tools.” Endowment Gifts to support endowments ensure the school’s financial sustainability and provide RE with resources to support financial aid; maintain its campuses by the bay; and attract, retain and support the finest faculty. Jeffrey Miller ’79, P’15 ’21 Jeffrey Miller ’79 created the Dan Leslie Bowden Endowment in the Humanities as a tribute to his great mentor Dan Leslie Bowden, who dedicated more than six decades of service to the school as a teacher, leader and colleague. Miller has served RE in almost every conceivable role. He has been a trustee and chair of the board. He co-chaired the REinventing Excellence campaign and, in spring 2021, RE named its original quad the Miller Family Quad. “For almost five decades RE has been a huge part of my life,” Miller said. “Many dear friendships emerged frommy years as a student, as a parent and as a trustee to the RE community. I regard Ransom Everglades as a cornerstone of the South Florida community – not only for seeking educational excellence, but also for emphasizing community outreach and selflessness.” “To have the opportunity to contribute to a major transformation – one that will reverberate throughout the city of Miami – is inspiring.” – Constance Fernandez P’22 “Education is the key to every aspect of a community being strong and vibrant.” – Jeffrey Miller ’79