Giving to Williamson Is Important, Now & for the Future
By President Paul A. Reid

Several years ago, I wrote an article for the Williamsonian describing why Williamson is a very expensive School to operate. It was a little tongue in cheek. I explained why Williamson is, in fact, a difficult school to operate with a small budget. I also assured donors that we wanted to continue to operate on a per student basis of about half the amount needed by an average American private college.

You may remember some of the reasons Williamson does require more funding than might at first be obvious. First, we are a ³mechanical² trade school which means we must invest in technology and equipment not needed in a liberal arts school. Secondly, we are a small institution. We must spread the cost per student across only 250 students. It is easy to see that a student body of 2,500 students could still be served with one president, one director of food services, etc., and the cost of those people would be much less on a per student basis. Thirdly, Williamson¹s expenses tend to come from the very parts of the American economy that traditionally drive the cost of living increases. These include fuel, utilities, personnel costs, and replacement parts/maintenance. Yes, Williamson is an expensive school to operate.

But, happily, Williamson is also a very efficient and frugal school. Our per student cost of under $24,000 per year is still about half the national average operating cost per student of other leading private higher education institutions. The cost of higher education has grown dramatically during the past decade. The print and visual media are full of stories about those costs. Dramatic increases in tuition are well known, and we are often reminded of the impact of those increases on the average American family.
Higher education as a whole is passing on its added costs to the consumer ‹ the student ‹ through those tuition increases. Williamson cannot. Its higher costs must be passed on to a larger investment pool and to a larger donor pool. More individuals must decide to make Williamson¹s financial needs a personal priority for their individual philanthropy.

The trustees know of the endowment shortfall. They are aware much of this shortfall was created by its initial size. They also know the market¹s recent performance has magnified the seriousness of this shortfall.

The current campaign, know as the Legacy Campaign, was named for a very real issue. That issue is the future legacy of our School. The ability of Williamson to continue to provide the finest values-centered trade education in the nation is dependent on solidifying the financial base of the School.

The goal we all share is to increase the value of the endowment sufficiently to allow it to fund 70 percent of the School¹s operations. That is the bottom line. The $5 million challenge grant provided through the generosity of Mr. Henry Rowan is the first step to achieving that goal. Mr. Rowan understands the critical importance of his gift and the matching gifts you will make. Without your gifts, Mr. Rowan¹s gift will not be realized.
With your gifts, we will be making a significant move toward the financial security of the Williamson School.