What type of project are we planning?
The school owns properties adjacent to us on Golden Gate Avenue and we are now looking to develop that land to benefit our students, teachers and program. The project will create a new 16,500 square foot program-driven facility used by every student in the school and includes space to gather and perform, added outdoor play space and a rooftop garden for learning, and flexible and open arts, design and innovation spaces. These spaces are intentionally flexible and under-designed so that they may be repurposed over time to best fit the needs of our program as it evolves.
Our plans also include faculty housing so that SF Day can add to the school’s many other efforts to improve affordability for our teachers. The project also includes modest renovations to optimize adjacencies and create more flexible learning spaces at 350 Masonic and add to our endowment.
Why is the school adding to its physical footprint?
As a school, we’ve consistently prioritized support for people and programs and our focus now reaffirms that commitment. Ensuring that our facility supports and enhances our program to benefit our students is essential to our success. Physical space has a significant impact on student learning and today’s curriculum requires flexible, multi-function, open learning spaces. Our students need learning space to inspire their passions, create opportunities for connection and allow for diversity of thought.
Is SF Day entering a capital campaign to fund these efforts?
Yes, the school is currently in the leadership phase of a capital campaign, This is Our Day, to philanthropically fund the construction of the new facility, create faculty housing and continue to strengthen the school’s endowment for Discounted Tuition. In 2020, we will enter our community phase and ask for broad-based support from SF Day families.
Will the campaign include endowment support?
This campaign includes an opportunity to incrementally add to our endowment and deepen our commitment to discounted tuition and faculty professional development and sustain our strong financial standing well into the future.
When will the building be complete?
We are currently in the fundraising phase of the project. Assuming all goes according to our plans, we hope to occupy the new facility in the 2021-22 school year.
How will construction impact our students?
Thankfully, our current facility will not be largely impacted by construction and we will not be required to move out of our current facility while construction is underway. We hope to do a significant part of the initial work in the summer of 2020 so that noise and disruption to our students is kept to a minimum during the school year.
What about the school’s commitment to Discounted Tuition? What are the benefits of an increased enrollment?
A larger facility and modest increase to our conditional use permit allows SF Day the flexibility to increase enrollment for the first time in 36 years. We can thereby extend our enduring commitment to Discounted Tuition, inclusion and diversity to serve more students and families for whom an SF Day education would not otherwise be possible.
What additional benefits can we expect with an expanded facility?
An expanded facility enables SF Day to grow our summer camp programming--this creates new revenue streams, builds a strong admissions funnel and also allows us to broaden the scope of our discounted tuition program to increase access to affordable summer camps. With additional square footage, we are also able to deepen our relationship with Breakthrough who each year serves 250 young people on the path to college, engages 100 volunteers--many of whom are SF Day students--as volunteer tutors, and coaches over 30 aspiring teachers for careers in education. We also look forward to partnering with our neighbors to host events and support community service efforts.
What is the school doing to support affordability for our teachers?
The school is working simultaneously on many levels to help address affordability for our faculty. This project includes plans to create seven units for faculty housing to accommodate teachers at below market rents--a small but meaningful step in ensuring our teachers are able to live close to where they work. In addition, the school continues to ensure that discounted tuition is available for faculty and staff who qualify and the Board is working diligently to increase faculty compensation, reduce the cost of health benefits, and exploring new opportunities to positively impact affordability for our teachers.
How are we engaging our neighbors in this discussion?
SF Day has a good relationship with its neighbors and local elected officials. We have kept our neighbors connected to the school as our school leadership changed and our facilities plans have evolved over the years. At least twice a year, SF Day hosts our neighbors on campus for a meeting to share our facilities plans and progress, school happenings and listen to feedback and advice from our community. Last year, the school completed a robust voluntary traffic study to examine how we might contribute positively to the flow of traffic in our immediate community.
Our neighbors will continue to be important partners and stakeholders as we move forward. We will rely on our larger school community to help in this effort -- participating in local community service, respecting traffic and parking regulations and sharing a friendly hello are things we can all do to spread good will.
