For Girls. For Life. For Generations.

The Campaign for St. Mary's Episcopal School

In 2001, St. Mary’s Episcopal School undertook a comprehensive review of its needs for the future. St. Mary’s trustees, students, alumnae, faculty, and parents participated in determining how to best fulfill the school’s mission for the decades ahead.

A master plan for St. Mary’s emerged from the process. The master plan addressed facilities, people, and programs. A multi-year capital campaign, For Girls. For Life. For Generations. – The Campaign for St. Mary’s Episcopal School, was launched as a result of this master plan.

The capital campaign was launched in 2003 with a $32 million goal over a five-year period. As of September 2007, $25.5 million had been raised toward this goal.  This campaign is the largest in St. Mary’s history and one of the largest capital campaigns among Memphis Area Independent Schools.  This comprehensive campaign has transformed St. Mary’s campus while adding additional capital to our endowment, including faculty excellence and technology funds, as well as scholarship funds and programs.

  • $3.8 million to construct a new Upper School, Garrott Hall, on South Campus
  • $7.5 million to construct a new Early Childhood Center for PK (3), JK (4), and SK (5) students, as well as fund renovations to Moss Hall for the first-through fourth grade students and a new soccer field, all on the North Campus
  • $1.7 million in additional gunds for the endowment

To assist in launching Phase III of the campaign, the Frederick W. Smith family announced a pledge of $5 million to build the new Middle School in honor of Mr. Smith’s daughter, Windland “Wendy” Smith Rice ’88. Wendy was a world-renowned wildlife photojournalist who traveled the world for various organizations such as National Geographic and the Smithsonian Institute. Wendy was a graduate of St. Mary’s Class of 1988 and just two years before her untimely and tragic death, served as St. Mary’s Artist in Residence, teaching and mentoring third-graders in the art of photography.

The $12-million Windland Smith Rice Building will house the James Frederick Smith Library, in honor of Mr. Smith’s father, for Middle and Upper School students, as well as a beautiful, state-of-the-art Middle School for fifth- through eighth-grade students. The facility will be 53,000 square feet and three stories high. The building will incorporate structures that symbolize Wendy’s passion for the arts. The facility has been designed with Middle and Upper School students in mind.  It will be age appropriate, warm, and technologically equipped for students of the 21st century.

The library will include areas for individual studying, as well as collective studying, commons areas, testing areas, and two full computer labs to be named by Jim Barksdale in honor of his daughters, St. Mary’s alumnae Betsy Barksdale Pokorny ’89 and Susan Barksdale Howoth ’86. The library will also include two distance-learning labs that will allow our students to study with students and professors all around the world in an efficient and timely manner, breaking the barriers of teaching inside the classroom. In short, the world will become our students’ classroom. The focal point of this magnificent library will be an oversized fireplace where the girls can gather to study, meet, and converse. The fireplace will be directly adjacent to a beautiful three-story spiral staircase ensconced with wildlife photographs taken by Wendy from picturesque locations around the globe.

Phase III of the capital campaign also includes $1 million renovations to the existing Taylor Building and $500,000 for parking lot additions and improvements for our students. The overall goal for Phase III is $13 million. As of September 2007, we had raised $12 million toward that goal and $26 million toward the overall $32-million campaign.

A final Phase IV will be launched after the completion of the Windland Smith Rice Building, which is scheduled to open in the summer of 2008. Phase IV will include a Wellness Center with a new gymnasium, workout facilities, indoor track, and physical education accommodations. The Wellness Center will be jointly funded and used by St. Mary’s and Church of the Holy Communion (CHC).

We hope to complete the capital campaign in its entirety by 2010. The funding for this extraordinary and transforming capital campaign has been provided by a combination of philanthropic gifts, low-interest bond financing, and planned giving initiatives.

Timeline to date:

  • Garrott Hall opened in the fall of 2004.
  • Early Childhood Center opened, North Campus Soccer Field unveiled, and Moss Hall renovations completed in the fall of 2005.
  • Blaisdell Dining Hall renovation completed in the fall of 2007.
  • Taylor renovations completed in the fall of 2007.
  • Additional student and staff parking completed in 2007.
  • Windland Smith Rice Building will open in the summer of 2008.
  • SMS/CHC Wellness Center – TBD.

This pivotal campaign, when complete, will result in a campus that enhances the delivery of the School’s mission and programs, inspires learning, fosters growth, and will give our students and staff state-of-the-art facilities to match the superior academic program that St. Mary’s has offered for outstanding young girls in the Mid-South for over 160 years.

For more questions about For Girls. For Life. For Generations. – The Campaign for St. Mary’s Episcopal School, please contact Riki Jackson, Director of Advancement, at 901.537.1423 or advancement@stmarysschool.org.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Why is St. Mary’s having a capital campaign?

    The campaign is the result of the School’s Strategic Plan, which was adopted by the Board of Trustees in 2001. The Strategic Plan identified priorities that could not be paid for through the operating budget.

  • How will the campaign impact St. Mary’s Annual Fund?

    The Annual Fund will continue throughout the course of the capital campaign so that it will remain strong and continue to provide essential support to the operating budget after the capital campaign is over. During the public phase of the campaign, donors were asked to make a gift to both the campaign and the Annual Fund in a single solicitation.

  • What is the goal of the campaign?

    The goal of the first phase is $20 million to accomplish the following:

    • $4 million for Garrott Hall
    • $7.5 million for North Campus improvements including the construction of a new Early Childhood Center, renovations to existing campus buildings, and a soccer field
    • $3.5 million for land acquisition on North Campus
    • $3 million infusion into the School’s endowment for financial aid, faculty support, and technology
    • $1 million for Excellence Funds to address current needs in technology and faculty salaries
    • $1 million in soft costs, interest, and contingencies

    The goal of the second phase of the campaign is to build a new Middle School and, in partnership with Church of the Holy Communion, to build a fitness center on the site of the existing South Campus gymnasium. The estimated cost for these projects is $10 million.

  • How long will it take to accomplish the entire master plan?

    Garrott Hall was completed in August 2004, and the Early Childhood Center opened in August 2005. Construction is currently underway on the Windland Smith Rice Building, which is scheduled to open in August 2008. The timeline on Phase IV is pending.

  • Why does the project timeline address Upper School improvements first when the needs of the Middle School are more pressing?

    Garrott Hall had to be completed first for staging purposes. Middle School classes have moved to areas in the Upper School during the construction of the Windland Smith Rice Building.

  • Was it necessary to demolish Schadt Hall?

    Yes, because it enabled us to use the space much more effectively and efficiently. We replaced a single, outdated room that provided only 2,304 square feet of usable space with a 17,000 sq. ft., three-story modern building that adds nine teaching spaces, a multi-use room, commons areas for students, office space for the Upper School, two meeting rooms, a covered connector to the Buckman Center, and an elevator for handicapped access. Additionally, Garrott Hall gives the Upper School a main entrance that will provide a distinct identity and offer opportunities to improve school security.

  • Does the plan address security of the campus?

    Yes. The plans, which were developed with security in mind, have provided a distinct identity and entry to each division. This enables us to monitor and control access to the campus much more effectively. A security consultant is working with our architects to ensure that every opportunity to maximize security is taken.

  • Does the facilities plan call for increased enrollment?

    Only slightly. The Early Childhood Center will enable us to accommodate an additional 15 students in Pre-Kindergarten. St. Mary’s grew rapidly during the 1980s and 1990s as a result of the Margaret R. Hyde Building on the North Campus. The current campaign will enable us to accommodate the existing enrollment more effectively.

  • What is the relationship between St. Mary’s and Church of the Holy Communion?

    St. Mary’s and Church of the Holy Communion have co-existed on the corner of Walnut Grove and Perkins Extended since 1953. The Head of School and the Rector always have worked to ensure a strong and positive relationship, and one that is supportive and mutually beneficial. The Church has undergone recent and rapid growth in membership and, as a thriving and active parish, requires more parking and more office space for members and staff. The Vestry has grappled with these issues and determined that continued partnership with the School is too important to sacrifice, despite the crowded conditions. Leaders of both institutions came to an agreement that, when the School is able to raise the necessary funding, St. Mary’s will relinquish the Greenwood Building and construct a new Middle School. This process is underway and will give the Church the space it needs and provide a new, modern facility for the School. The agreement and working relationship between School and Church will be codified so that both institutions are protected.

  • If I am an alumna, why should I contribute to For Girls. For Life. For Generations. – The Campaign for St. Mary’s Episcopal School?

    As a graduate of St. Mary’s, you stood on the shoulders of those who came before you, and now it is your chance to give back for the current and future students of the School. Whether you decide to honor your favorite faculty member; pay back the School for the terrific preparation you received for college and for life; or thank your family for sending you to St. Mary’s, you can show your pride for your alma mater through giving.

  • How will I be recognized for my gift?

    Named gift opportunities are available, based upon the size of the gift, and all donors will be thanked periodically for their support in various campaign and school publications.

  • Can I direct my gift toward a particular project or area of the campaign?

    The best gift for the School is one that is unrestricted and can be used where it is most needed. However, certain named gift opportunities may be a good avenue to match a donor’s interest with a campaign need.

  • How long can I take to pay a pledge or make a gift?

    Pledges to the campaign may be paid over a one- to five-year period.

  • Can I give something to St. Mary’s other than cash?

    Appreciated stocks, gifts of real estate, charitable trusts, or annuities are all wonderful means though which to support the campaign and help relieve some of the taxes on your estate.

  • Can I give anonymously?

    Yes, and when lists of donors are printed, those that are “anonymous” will be stated accordingly.